Let's overcome cancer together.

The Department of Medical Oncology at BMCHRC is dedicated to offering state of the art medical care to patients suffering from a wide spectrum of malignancies. Backed by a team of nationally and internationally recognized oncologists and haematologists, the hospital is known for its pioneering work in the field of medical oncology. Our specialists hold immense experience in treating the most complex cases with utmost proficiency and guide you on every step with uncompromised care. Our experts work in close coordination with specialists from varied sub-specialities to devise world-class treatment plans ensuring the finest results.

The Department offers a 12 hour routine of chemotherapy, every day from 9 am to 9 pm and that too with a capacity of 60 beds. The treatment is offered on an outpatient basis, making it convenient for the patients to return home on the very same day. We also have a specialized AML ward that is solely dedicated to the treatment and management of patients suffering from Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Our Medical Oncology Department has a dedicated Pediatric Haematology & Oncology cell that caters to the medical needs of small children and toddlers fighting cancer. The treatments are complemented by state of the art innovations and adherence to patient-centric facilities that are both effective and child-friendly at the same time.

What is medical oncology?

Medical oncology is a specialized branch of oncology that involves the application of clinical and experimental research in the field of oncology and haematology. It is dedicated to the treatment and management of a wide gamut of malignancies with the help of specialized drugs that are used to target and destroy cancer cells. Medical oncology treatments are often used in combination with surgery and radiation therapy, to add to the effectiveness of the treatments.

Conditions that are managed under our Department of Medical Oncology:

• Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia
• Acute myeloid leukaemia
• Hodgkin’s and Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
• Multiple myeloma
• Breast cancer
• Lung cancer
• Ovarian cancer
• Colorectal cancer
• Hepatobiliary and pancreatic cancer
• Oesophageal cancer
• Prostatic, urinary bladder, and kidney cancer

Areas of specialization

Our medical oncology team holds expertise in systemic cancer treatments, which include chemotherapy, endocrine therapy, targeted therapy, hormonal therapy, as well as the latest monoclonal treatment for solid tumours.

Chemotherapy: Also known as ‘Chemo’, chemotherapy is a drug treatment that uses strong chemicals to target and destroy fast-growing, cancerous cells. Some of the surrounding healthy cells might also get destroyed during the procedure. Depending upon the type of drug used, chemotherapy is further categorised into several different types. The treatment is accompanied by side effects like hair loss and nausea, however, these are only temporary.

The method of administration of chemo treatments along with the dose is determined by rigorous testing called clinical trials, which are done prior to the specific chemo drug being available for commercial use with patients. During this testing process, scientists and doctors determine how specific chemo drugs are absorbed in the body and how they work. Sometimes stomach juices can destroy different chemicals, making some medications impossible to give as a pill. Other substances are found to have better anti-cancer action if given intravenously (needle in the vein). Some medications can be given as an injection into the muscle and still others are absorbed when given directly into the bladder or the abdominal cavity.

Chemotherapy can be used in combination with other treatments or used as a primary treatment. The therapy may be given before the surgery to reduce the size of the tumour or after the surgery, to target the cancerous cells that were left behind. The former is known as Neoadjuvant chemotherapy, whereas the latter is known as Adjuvant chemotherapy. Chemotherapy is to be repeated several times for which you will be required to visit the hospital.

Immunotherapy: Also referred to as biological therapy, it is a relatively new treatment modality that focuses on boosting the patient’s immune system and helping it fight cancer. The therapy works by stimulating the immune system, which is responsible for preventing various infections and diseases and enables it to detect and stop the spread of cancerous cells. With better outcomes and minimal chances of relapse, immunotherapy is on the road to becoming the most preferred cancer treatments across the globe. It is further categorized into 3 types:

• Drug therapy involves the use of certain drugs to boost the patient’s immune system.
• Cell therapy uses modified T-cells to target and destroy cancer cells.
• Cancer vaccines involve the intravenous administration of certain drugs to detect and kill cancer cells.

As part of its normal function, the immune system detects and destroys abnormal cells and most likely prevents or curbs the growth of many cancers. For instance, immune cells are sometimes found in and around tumors. These cells, called tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes or TILs, are a sign that the immune system is responding to the tumor. People whose tumors contain TILs often do better than people whose tumors don’t contain them.

Targeted therapy: Listed amongst the most common cancer treatment modalities, targeted therapy has shown promising results in the treatment and management of a wide range of malignancies. The treatment involves the use of a combination of drugs that target certain desired components of the cell to curb its growth and spread. These involve specific genes and proteins that are responsible for promoting abnormal cell growth. Targeted therapy can help to slow down the pace at which the cancer is growing and can also halt its spread.

How does targeted therapy work against cancer?

Most types of targeted therapy help treat cancer by interfering with specific proteins that help tumors grow and spread throughout the body. They treat cancer in many ways. They can:

• Help the immune system destroy cancer cells. One reason that cancer cells thrive is because they can hide from your immune system. Certain targeted therapies can mark cancer cells so it is easier for the immune system to find and destroy them. Other targeted therapies help boost your immune system to work better against cancer.
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• Stop cancer cells from growing. Healthy cells in your body usually divide to make new cells only when they receive strong signals to do so. These signals bind to proteins on the cell surface, telling the cells to divide. This process helps new cells form only as your body needs them. But, some cancer cells have changes in the proteins on their surface that tell them to divide whether or not signals are present. Some targeted therapies interfere with these proteins, preventing them from telling the cells to divide. This process helps slow cancer’s uncontrolled growth.
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• Stop signals that help form blood vessels. Tumors need to form new blood vessels to grow beyond a certain size. In a process called angiogenesis, these new blood vessels form in response to signals from the tumor. Some targeted therapies called angiogenesis inhibitors are designed to interfere with these signals to prevent a blood supply from forming. Without a blood supply, tumors stay small. Or, if a tumor already has a blood supply, these treatments can cause blood vessels to die, which causes the tumor to shrink. Learn more about Angiogenesis Inhibitors.
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• Deliver cell-killing substances to cancer cells. Some monoclonal antibodies are combined with toxins, chemotherapy drugs, and radiation. Once these monoclonal antibodies attach to targets on the surface of cancer cells, the cells take up the cell-killing substances, causing them to die. Cells that don’t have the target will not be harmed.
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• Cause cancer cell death. Healthy cells die in an orderly manner when they become damaged or are no longer needed. But, cancer cells have ways of avoiding this dying process. Some targeted therapies can cause cancer cells to go through this process of cell death.
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• Starve cancer of the hormones it needs to grow. Some breast and prostate cancers require certain hormones to grow. Hormone therapies are a type of targeted therapy that can work in two ways. Some hormone therapies prevent your body from making specific hormones. Others prevent the hormones from acting on your cells, including cancer cells.
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• Hormone therapy: Hormone therapy works by slowing down or stopping the production of certain hormones that may be responsible for supporting the growth and spread of cancer cells, by administering certain drugs. Hormone therapy can be used in the treatment of cancers involving the breasts, ovaries, prostate and uterus.
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Surgery is an important component of treatment plan for some patients suffering from cancer. Surgery might help in relieving the symptoms of the patient as well as preventing the cancer from spreading to the other parts of the body. This would further help the patient in better treatment, enhanced survival chances, short recovery times, and minimal treatment side effects.

The Department of Surgical Oncology has a dedicated team of highly skilled surgeons with extensive experience in delivering comprehensive treatment of cancer. They perform a full range of cancer surgeries and reconstructive procedures with high precision and efficiency. Presence of latest equipments and technologies at BMCHRC ensures accurate diagnosis and world-class treatment.

Specialised Services

• Head and Neck Oncology
• Breast Oncology
• Thoracic Oncology
• Gastro-Intestinal Oncology
• Genito Urinary Oncology
• Gynec-Oncology
• Bone and Soft Tissue Oncology
• Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
• Neuro Surgery
• Rehabilitation and aftercare services including colostomy clinic & physiotherapy services

The Radiation Oncology department at BMCHRC is well equipped in delivering precision treatment with the use of the latest technology like 3DCRT, IMRT, IGRT and Rapid Arc.

The department is managed by a number of well qualified and experienced leading consultants, with excellent support staff. The department currently has three Linear Accelerators and one HDR Brachytherapy machines. The treatment planning is carried out with customized immobilization device, followed by imaging on a wide-bore CT scanner. In house PET scan is available for PET based RT planning.

Hematology is the study of blood, blood-forming organs, and diseases related to blood. Hematology includes the study of etiology, diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, and prevention of blood diseases that affect the production of blood and its components, such as blood cells, hemoglobin, blood proteins, and the mechanism of coagulation.

At the hematology-oncology department of BMCHRC, the doctors and experts cure the following conditions.

• Chronic leukemias- Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), Essential thrombocytosis (ET), Myelofibrosis, Chronic lymphoid leukemia (CLL).
• Acute leukemias-Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML).
• Lymphomas- Hodgkins lymphoma, Non-hodgkins lymphomas (NHL).
• Plasma cell dyscrasias – Myeloma, Amyloidosis.
• Anaemias- Nutritional, Autoimmune hemolytic anaemias, Anaemia of chronic disease.
• Thalassemias, Sickle cell disease.
• Thrombocytopenias- ITP (Immune thrombocytopenia).
• Leucopenia, Leucocytosis, Eosinophilia.
• Pancytopenia, Aplastic anaemia, Myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS).
• Polycythemia, Thrombocytosis.
• Bleeding disorders- Haemophilias, Von Willebrand disease (VWD), others.
• Thrombotic disorders- Deep vein thrombosis (DVT), Cortical vein thrombosis (CVT), Pulmonary thromboembolism (PTE), and Abdominal vessel thrombosis.
• Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC).
• Pregnancy complications-Thrombocytopenia, Recurrent, pregnancy loss, Antiphospholipid antibody syndrome (APLA), Protein C & Protein S deficiency, DIC.

Being a super specialised Cancer Hospital, Bhagwan Mahaveer Cancer Hospital also offers a comprehensive gynecologic oncology services to the patients. The doctors and specialists provide preventive services, screening for early detection of cancer, organise camps in remote areas of the region to spread awareness, perform on the appearance of symptoms in women, and treat cancer with the combined efforts of chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and surgical removal.

Specialised Services

• Pap Smear
• Health Education, Cancer screening and Detection
• Colposcopy and Hysteroscopy
• Comprehensive multidisciplinary care
• Recurrence management
• Palliative and Hospice Care