Many times, if a cancer has spread beyond a primary tumor, doctors will recommend drug therapies, often referred to as chemotherapy.
"Chemotherapy treats the whole body, rather than just a tumor," says Dr. Gauri Keifer, a Uniontown Hospital medical oncologist with the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Center. "It's an effective way to reduce the size of tumors and prevent the spread of the disease."
For those patients requiring chemotherapy, the Medical Oncology Services Program at Uniontown Hospital is capable of administering and overseeing the most current, clinically approved chemotherapy treatments.
Researchers are constantly developing new drug therapies to improve results. At a certain point, the newly developed protocols are made available to patients through clinical trials. But because the research is usually initiated at large medical centers, such as UPMC, accessing these potentially life-saving trials usually means traveling.
Not any more.
"Thanks to Uniontown Hospital's partnership with UPMC Cancer Centers, people in this regional can access these 'cutting-edge' approaches to treatment, without leaving the community," remarks Dr. Keifer.
"In some cases, the clinical trials offer hope where none existed before. Today, new protocols are being developed to treat cancers that were previously unresponsive to treatment." Dr. Keifer adds, "It's great to be in a position to give patients the opportunity to take advantage of the latest treatment strategies."
The Medical Oncology Services Program at Uniontown Hospital includes the pathology, laboratory and diagnostic imaging departments required to handle all necessary diagnostic testing, as well as any necessary analysis or lab work.
