At Cancer Care Centers of Brevard, the Medical Oncologists have a close affiliation with one of the most important cancer institutions in the U.S., the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida.  In addition, they have access to institutions where a specialized team deals with rare diseases or special cases.

What is a Medical Oncologist?

Medicial Oncologists are specialists concerned with the diagnosis of cancer and its treatment using drugs such as chemotherapy, immunotherapy or targeted agents. They specialize in the treatment of many cancers, including lymphoma and the leukemias, and can help to prepare a patient for a bone marrow or stem cell transplant. There is active research in this field and new drugs and treatment combinations become available on a regular basis.

Medical oncologists will evaluate you in conjunction with a surgeon and radiation oncologist to select the appropriate drug combinations to treat your cancer. They can also help you to participate in a clinical trial where new drugs or new combinations of drugs are tested for safety and effectiveness. A medical oncologist will follow you after treatment to monitor your disease and can also assist in managing pain and disability or recommend comfort or Hospice care.
Our Medical Oncology clinics have their own laboratories, which rapidly enables the physician to assess blood abnormalities and make decisions on therapy.

Hematology

Hematology is concerned with the study of blood, the blood-forming organs, and blood diseases. Blood diseases affect the production of blood and its components, such as blood cells, hemoglobin, blood proteins, blood clotting, etc.
Our physicians who specialize in hematology are called hematologists. They also treat cancer (Hematology/Oncology). Hematologists may have special interests, such as:

• treating bleeding disorders like hemophilia or idiopathic thrombocytopenic purport
• treating hematologic cancers such as lymphoma and leukemia
• treating disorders of hemoglobin, such as sickle cell anemia, thalassemia and anemia
• the science of blood transfusion and the work of a blood bank
• bone marrow and stem cell transplantation