There Was Great Interest in the Cancer School Training Program on Innovative Cancer Treatments

The meeting on “Innovative Treatments in Cancer,” organized by the Cancer School in cooperation with Antalya Metropolitan Municipality and Medstar Cancer Center on 25 May 2014, Sunday, at the Antalya Atatürk Cultural Center, hosted a large number of participants.

Prof. Dr. Alihan Gürkan, Head of the Antalya Department of General Surgery at Memorial Health Group; Prof. Dr. Akın Yıldız, Specialist in Radiology and Nuclear Medicine at Medstar Cancer Center; and Prof. Dr. Saim Yılmaz, Specialist in Radiology and Interventional Radiology at Medstar Cancer Center, who participated as speakers in the meeting held in cooperation with Antalya Metropolitan Municipality and Medstar Cancer Center, provided information about innovative cancer treatments used in cancer surgery, imaging techniques, and the early diagnosis and treatment of cancer.

Prof. Dr. Mustafa Özdoğan, President of the Antalya Oncology Center at Memorial Health Group, who also participated in the meeting as moderator and delivered the opening speech, stated that cancer is not a disease condition that is simply treated and eliminated in clinics, saying, “Cancer is a social phenomenon. Our duty is to leave our clinics, explain this disease, eliminate the fear in society, and develop a strategy for how we can combat this disease.”

Emphasizing that it is very wrong to equate cancer in society with death, Prof. Dr. Mustafa Özdoğan pointed out that there are 200 types of cancer and stated that they are not dealing with a single disease. Noting that there are lifesaving measures for many types of cancer, Prof. Dr. Özdoğan emphasized that significant progress would be made in the near future.

Cancer Is Preventable!

Prof. Dr. Mustafa Özdoğan noted that between 160 and -200 thousand cancer cases occur annually in Turkey, saying, “If we can create an informed society, we can eliminate 70 thousand cancers before they reach the clinics. By eliminating smoking, we can eliminate the other 1/3 of cancer-related deaths. By eating healthily and protecting ourselves from obesity, we can eliminate another 1/3.” He added, “Many cancers can now be detected and treated early. Our doctors are well equipped in many hospitals. 10 years ago, cancer meant death. However, we can eliminate cancer through certain changes we make in our daily lives, such as eating healthily, not smoking, and exercising.”

Emphasizing that they can identify cancer cells using imaging methods, Prof. Dr. Özdoğan added, “We perform imaging with such chemical substances that we can see the type and spread of cancer down to the finest detail.” He noted that a revolution had taken place in stem cell transplantation and stated that as the number of cancer drugs increases, loss of life decreases.

As Antalya Metropolitan Municipality, we support such social responsibility projects..

Menderes Türel, Mayor of Antalya Metropolitan Municipality, who attended the meeting, drew attention to the significant advances being made in the treatment of a disease such as cancer that disturbs society. Noting that individuals bear significant responsibilities in cancer prevention and treatment, Mayor Türel stated that the risk of contracting this disease could be reduced through simple measures that can be taken in daily life. Saying that technology and Turkish physicians are turning cancer into a disease with a cure, Mayor Türel emphasized that, as Antalya Metropolitan Municipality, they would always support these and similar social responsibility projects.

“It is now possible, by using closed surgery, to ensure that cancer patients recover more quickly and that other cancer treatments can be started sooner!”

Prof. Dr. Alihan Gürkan, Head of the Department of General Surgery at Memorial Health Group Antalya, who participated in the meeting as a speaker, provided information about new treatments in cancer surgery. Emphasizing that surgery is not the only treatment for cancer, Prof. Dr. Gürkan stated that, with developing treatment methods, many types of cancer could also be treated without surgery 15 years from now. Prof. Dr. Gürkan stated that surgery had caused difficulties in the past because it became harder for elderly patients to tolerate it, and noted that, with the increase in the number of surgeons and doctors in hospitals and intensive care units, as well as infrastructure support, surgeons can now operate without fear.

Prof. Dr. Alihan Gürkan stated that closed surgery, known as laparoscopy, would replace open surgery in the near future, adding, “With this method, cancer patients recover more quickly after surgery. Thus, patients can begin treatments such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy earlier.” Emphasizing that cancer treatments should be carried out with a multidisciplinary approach by specialist physicians following an assessment of the patient’s condition, and stating that they act according to this approach, Prof. Dr. Gürkan said that they had raised the chances of success in many cancer treatments to the level of the United States and Europe through advanced imaging and surgical methods. He concluded by saying, “Laparoscopic and robotic surgery procedures will become routine in the surgery of many types of cancer in the coming years.”

“The greatest advances over the next ten years will be in the field of nuclear medicine!”

The second speaker, Prof. Dr. Akın Yıldız, Specialist in Radiology and Nuclear Medicine at Medstar Cancer Center, then provided information about developments in molecular therapy. Emphasizing that an effective and rapid treatment method is being applied by precisely locating cancer through the molecular imaging methods developing today, Prof. Dr. Yıldız stated that they had thus begun to determine the spread of cancer cells more comprehensively. Emphasizing that there would be a nuclear war at the molecular level in cancer treatment in the future, Prof. Dr. Yıldız said, “Perhaps thanks to this, we will be much more successful in combating cancer.”

“After medical oncology, surgical oncology, and radiation oncology, interventional radiology is also progressing toward becoming the fourth fundamental pillar in cancer treatment!”

Prof. Dr. Saim Yılmaz, Specialist in Radiology and Interventional Radiology at Medstar Cancer Center, began his speech by stating that, until the 2000s, interventional radiology was a field that did not treat cancer, but mainly contributed to cancer treatment by resolving secondary problems caused by cancer. Prof. Dr. Yılmaz stated that this situation had changed over the last 15 years and emphasized, “Interventional radiology is now a specialty that, in some cases, can increase success in cancer treatment on its own, although it generally increases success when combined with other treatments.” Prof. Dr. Yılmaz explained that, in addition to shrinking or completely eliminating cancer, certain treatment methods are used, such as burning, freezing, and eliminating multiple cancerous areas, and drew attention to the increased use in recent years of the nanoknife method, which aims to kill cancer by applying electricity. Prof. Dr. Saim Yılmaz also emphasized that, as Memorial Health Group, they had received first-place awards in the field of presentations from two international radiology congresses for their work on the nanoknife method.

Prof. Dr. Yılmaz also stated that drugs or radioactive substances administered into the vessels during arterial treatments performed with an advanced angiography device produced positive results: “These procedures can be used in combination or together with other treatment methods. Medical oncology, surgical oncology and radiation oncology are the main pillars of cancer treatment. Interventional radiology is also advancing confidently toward becoming the fourth main pillar,” he said.

The Antalya local administration, Memorial Health Group and the public, which took part in the “cancer school” social responsibility project aimed at increasing public awareness of cancer, eliminating the fear surrounding this disease and providing guidance on fighting it appropriately, achieved another success in raising social awareness.

Prof. Dr. Mustafa Özdoğan, President of the Memorial Health Group Oncology Center, announced the upcoming “Breast Cancer Patient Congress,” which will be held for the first time in Turkey and Antalya at the Antalya AKM on 28-29 June. We would be honored by your participation in this international congress, which will also be attended by patients from all over Turkey who have been diagnosed with breast cancer and have recovered following treatment, as well as professors from Pittsburg University in the United States.