HKIOC is the first private oncology centre in Hong Kong that brings into practice the concept of comprehensive and integrated cancer therapy. Through cutting-edge cancer medicines and advanced medical technologies, we provide personalized cancer therapy services with an aim to improve the survival rates and overall quality of life of all the patients we treat.

We understand that the battle against cancer is a long journey filled with anxiety and fear, and is not at all easy. Treatment is the first step. With cues from Western approaches to cancer therapy, we integrate and streamline the procedure for cancer diagnosis and treatment. We offer our patients a one-stop solution that covers cancer prevention, screening, diagnosis and treatment as well as post-recovery support. The following is an overview of the various methods of cancer therapy along with the basic concept behind each cancer treatment.

Personalised Cancer Therapy Strategy

Comprehensive cancer diagnosis and therapy entails the close collaboration across professional teams of different specialist medical disciplines. A multi-disciplinary approach allows us to design a personalised cancer therapy that meets the needs of the patient, including the introduction of the state-of-art registered medicines such as immunotherapy and targeted therapy. With a multi-disciplinary approach to cancer treatment, we bring together different specialist doctors such as surgeons, oncologists and radiologists who conduct thorough medical consultation alongside allied health care professionals, such as oncology nurses, registered nutritionists, pharmacists, clinical psychologists and massage therapists to build a team that provides comprehensive services to our patients, covering every aspect of cancer treatment:

Oncology – for developing a cancer treatment plan, including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, targeted therapy and immunotherapy
Surgery – for creating and executing a cancer surgery plan
Radiotherapy – for developing a radiotherapy plan
Professional Medical Team – which provides support and counselling to patients and their families during the period of treatment

Multi-disciplinary cancer therapy brings together different clinical professionals to discuss patient cancer diagnoses from a diverse set of perspectives and develops a joint treatment plan best suited to the patients and potentially improves the success rates of treatments. This is likewise a more efficient process for patients, as they no longer have to visit numerous different specialist doctors at differing points of time, moving us far closer to making the concept of “Day Care Cancer Therapy” a reality.

Multidisciplinary Treatment

Day Care Cancer Therapy

Personalised Cancer Therapy – genetic testing

An Overview of Methods of Cancer Therapy

In general, the most common methods of current cancer therapy include surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, targeted therapy and immunotherapy. Surgery tends to be the first option in the treatment of early-stage cancers, and in certain cases, is complemented with one or more treatment methods as part of a comprehensive treatment plan. Promisingly, new types of cancer therapy such as targeted therapy and immunotherapy have been found to provide new hope to patients with advanced cancers.

Cancer Therapy | Cancer Surgery

surgery-in-operation-room

Concept:

Surgically remove the tumour or affected organ

Benefits:

Has in theory, a high chance of curing the cancer completely.

Limitations:

If the tumour is inoperable because of its size, chemotherapy or radiotherapy might be required to shrink the tumour before the surgical procedure. These might also be required to kill the remaining cancer cells. However, if the cancer cells have already spread, surgery is then not recommended.

Cancer Therapy | Chemotherapy

colored-tablets

Concept:

Chemotherapy medicines work throughout the patient’s body, damaging cells that grow and divide quickly.

Benefits:

It kills cancer cells.

Limitations:

Chemotherapy cannot differentiate between cancer and normal cells, so it will also damage the rapidly growing normal cells and therefore entails quite a few side effects. Understand More

Cancer Therapy | Radiotherapy (Radiation Therapy)

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Concept:

Uses high-energy particles or waves such as x-rays to destroy or damage the cancer cell DNA. This can be done in two ways, internally or externally. Critical body parts that are affected by cancerous cells are usually treated with radiotherapy externally. In recent years, radiotherapy technologies have made great advances and improved the effectiveness, as seen with the invention of therapies such as CyberKnife, IGRT, Tomotherapy and Proton Therapy.

Benefits:

Radiotherapy is a local treatment which reduces the damage to normal cells, as as radiation does not remain in the body.

Limitations:

There is damage to some extent to parts of normal cells surrounding the targeted area.

Understand More

Cancer Therapy | Targeted Therapy

targeted-therapy-for-brain

Concept:

A form of drug treatment that began at the end of the 90s. This kind of treatment may be restricted to patients whose cancer has a specific gene mutation that codes for the target, as it works by interfering with specific molecules that are involved in the growth, progression and spread of cancer.

Benefits:

It targets cancer cells that grow abnormally, enlarge or spread, and has fewer side effects and a reduced impact on the functions of bone marrow and the immune system.

Limitations:

It requires tumour DNA testing which takes time, and only about 20% of patients are eligible for targeted therapy.

Understand More

Cancer Therapy | Immunotherapy

Concept:

Boost the body’s immune system and T-cells as a way to help the immune system work better at destroying cancer cells.

Benefits:

There are fewer side effects and it brings new hope to patients with advanced cancer which were previously thought to be incurable.

Limitations:

Theoretically speaking, immunotherapy works for every kind of cancer, but so far, its effectiveness varies with different kinds of cancer. As more effort is poured into the study of cancer immunotherapy, more diverse applications shall be expected to arrive in the near future

Understand More On Personalised Cancer Treatment

Cancer Therapy | Hormone Therapy

hormone-replacement-therapy

Concept:

A drug treatment that slows or stops the growth of cancers induced by hormones.

Benefits:

Most commonly used to treat breast and prostate cancers, with mild side effects.

Limitations:

It is a long-term treatment program in the form of drugs or injections.

Understand More About The Treatment Of Breast Cancer,Prostate Cancer

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References：

HKIOC: multi-disciplinary treatment improves the success rate of cancer treatment
https://www.yilishuomedia.com/2018/01/multidisciplinary-team-approach-can-enhance-treatment-efficacy/
HKIOC: doctors said you don’t have to get checked up every year! 3 common misconceptions in women health check
https://www.hkioc.com.hk/zh/physical-examination-yearly-unnecessary-fallacy-of-female-health-check/
AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY：Understanding Your Diagnosis
https://www.cancer.org/treatment/understanding-your-diagnosis.html

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