Below is a sample of treatments and services provided by the Thoracic Oncology Program.
Showing page 1 of 3 of 25 results
Diagnostic Tests
Computed Tomography (CT) Scan
CT scans use X-ray equipment and computer processing to produce 2-dimensional images of the body. The patient lies on a table and passes through a machine that looks like a large, squared-off donut.
CyberKnife delivers highly targeted beams of radiation directly into tumors, in a pain-free, non-surgical way. Guided by specialized imaging software, we can track and continually adjust treatment at any point in the body, and without the need for the head frames and other equipment that are needed for some other forms of radiosurgery.
Endoscopic mucosal resection, or EMR, is one of the newer, more minimally invasive techniques we offer for our esophageal cancer patients who have small tumors that have not spread outside of the esophagus. It may also be beneficial for patients with Barrett's esophagus. In this simple procedure, we are able to locate, remove, and examine cancerous or precancerous lesions of the esophagus. The mucosa is the innermost lining of the esophagus, and it extends down into your gastrointestinal tract. Cancers in this tract often originate in the mucosa, thus making visualization and access to it essential for diagnosis and treatment.
Esophagectomy is the surgical removal of the esophagus. Esophagectomy typically is recommended when the cancer has not spread to other parts of your body, and is potentially curable. In esophagectomy, most of your esophagus and nearby lymph nodes are removed, your stomach then moved up and attached to the remaining portion of your esophagus. There are several techniques for performing esophagectomy. Your surgeon will consider several factors such as overall condition, the size and location of the tumor, and the involvement of the tissue and organs near the tumor.
This procedure is called Fundoplication. It has been shown to be effective in preventing reflux. Patients who undergo the Fundoplication procedure usually spend 24 hours in the hospital and are back to work within a week.
Some tumors are hard to reach through surgery because of where they are. However, a laser can strike small tumors in delicate or hard-to-reach areas. When conducting a laser resection, the surgeon inserts a tool through a small incision, directs the laser at the tumor, and transmits the high-energy beam, which destroys cancerous tissue by vaporizing it.
The removal of a lobe, this operation is usually effective at taking out all the cancerous tissue and decreasing the chance of cancer coming back. BMC was the first hospital in New England to perform robotic lobectomies, which require only small incisions. Robotic surgery is less painful and offers faster recovery times than more standard operations for lung cancer.
Lung resection is the surgical removal of all or part of the lung, because of lung cancer or other lung disease. Surgery can provide a cure in some cancer cases, when the tumor is discovered early. For cancer patients, the type of resection will be based on the tumor location, size, and type, as well as the patient's overall health prior to diagnosis.
If the physician performs a sentinel lymph node biopsy, and cancer is found in the sentinel nodes, it is likely a lymph node dissection will be advised to remove the other lymph nodes in the area.
Some breast cancer patients may need lymph node surgery. Lymph node surgery is performed for staging purposes to find out whether the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm (axillary lymph nodes). One or more lymph nodes may be removed for examination under a microscope in one of two ways: an axillary lymph node dissection or a sentinel lymph node biopsy.
Microwave ablation is a cancer treatment in which microwave energy is sent through a narrow, microwave antenna that has been placed inside a tumor. The microwave energy creates heat, which destroys the diseased cells and tissue. It is a newer method of treating lung cancer that can target and kill cancerous cells and relieve pain.
