Oncology
Oncology is the branch of medicine concerning the development, diagnosis, and treatment of tumors. At Atlanta Access Care, our services include:
- Venous Access Device (insertions and removals)
- Biopsy (thyroid, liver, soft tissue, bone)
- Paracentesis and Thoracentesis
Venous Access Devices
Venous access devices are often implanted under the skin. These devices allow medications to be delivered directly to larger veins and can be left in place for long periods of time.
Biopsy
A biopsy is a medical test involving the removal of cells or tissue to determine the existence or cause of disease.
Paracentesis and Thoracentesis
Paracentesis is a medical procedure that is performed to remove fluid from the abdomen while thoracentesis removes fluid from the body cavity, which surrounds the chest.
Chemoembolization
Chemoembolization is a minimally invasive treatment for liver cancer. It delivers a high dose of cancer-killing drug (chemotherapy) directly to the organ while depriving the tumor of its blood supply by blocking, or embolizing, the arteries feeding the tumor.
Using imaging for guidance, the interventional radiologist threads a tiny catheter up the femoral artery in the groin into the blood vessels supplying the liver tumor. The embolic agents keep the chemotherapy drug in the tumor by blocking the flow to other areas of the body. This allows for a higher dose of chemotherapy drug to be used, because less of the drug is able to circulate to the healthy cells in the body.
In general, they can be performed in an outpatient setting, with patient’s returning home on the same day as the procedure. Patients typically have lower than normal energy levels for about a month afterwards.
Chemoembolization is a treatment to reduce pain, not curative. It can be extremely effective in treating primary liver cancers, especially when combined with other therapies. Chemoembolization has shown promising early results with some types of metastatic tumors. Although the individual materials used in this treatment are FDA approved, the treatment itself is not approved for intra-arterial therapy of liver tumors.
Immunoembolization
Immunoembolization is a relatively new technique, which uses the body’s immune system to destroy the tumor. It has been best studied in the treatment of metastatic melanoma. Dr. Sullivan and colleagues recently published their work with this technique, and demonstrated its ability to control tumor growth in the liver and elsewhere in the body. The treatment involves delivering an immune system stimulant into the tumors in the liver.
