Medical Oncology

Medical Oncology (Chemotherapy) is a treatment involving the use of drugs to eliminate cancer cells. Chemotherapy may consist of single drugs or combinations of drugs, and can be administered through a vein, injected into a body cavity, or delivered orally in the form of a pill. Chemotherapy is different from surgery or radiation therapy in that the cancer-fighting drugs circulate in the blood to parts of the body where the cancer may have spread and can kill or eliminate cancer cells at sites great distances from the original cancer. As a result, chemotherapy is considered a systemic treatment. More than half of all people diagnosed with cancer receive chemotherapy.

Board Certified physicians provide medical oncology services at the four Regional Oncology Centers. The Halifax medical oncology program participates in national clinical trial studies through the National Cancer Institute, pharmaceutical companies and other agencies, providing patients with the most advanced treatments possible. The Medical Oncologists working at the Regional Oncology Center have trained or worked at facilities such as Harvard, The Mayo Clinic, Vanderbilt University, Fox Chase Cancer Center and George Washington University.  As part of our overall capabilities, we are proud to offer the only Gynecolgic Oncology program in the area. Patients do not have to leave the local community to see physicians from nationally recognized academic institutions.