I'm helping someone with a recent cancer diagnosis, and the subject of cancer centers has come up.
How do we vet cancer centers? Is their an accreditation or trade group or ??? that differentiates high performance from Herbs Transmissions and Cancer Center?
A research center or someone affiliated with a research center should get good treatment. Does the center specialize in the treatment needed?
Cancer treatment protocols are fairly standardized. If this is a common cancer type in a common type of patient, I would go with a local facility with highest volume of cancer care. Big well known centers like Sloan Kettering, Dana Farber, or MD Anderson are more useful for unusual cases, rare types, uncommon patient subsets. Their main advantage is access to newer protocols and emerging treatments - which should not be used unless really have to. I feel that family support when going through toxic treatments is so huge that I'd be reluctant to travel far unless absolute must.
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One thing we have found treating my wife’s cancer is that the big cancer centers (MD Anderson in our case) seem to be much better organized than local providers - we show up, and they ratchet her through the system in a day. The same actions locally would involve weeks of multiple appointments.
Ken
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My son in law received excellent treatment from Johns Hopkins in Baltimore. The cancer center there removed a tumor from his lung that turned out to be benign but one lymph node had cancerous cells. He had fourteen nodes removed at the same time. Two years out and no reoccurrence.
My wife had chemo about 5 years ago. Her thoughts.
Location is important. Are there several centers nearby? Could you talk to people who have been treated there?
Personal treatment is nice. Heated blankets, etc. Is the staff friendly and helpful? Each day they would hand her a menu and arrange for her to be fed. An acquaintance went somewhere else and was told to bring their own lunch.
During my fire service career I ran a ton of calls at nursing homes and elder care facilities. My parents spent no small amount of time in rehab facilities post-injury as they aged. A few were excellent, and a lot were gulags. The only way I knew which were which was by seeing them in action over multiple visits over a fairly long time.
I'm hoping (but not really expecting) that there might be a mechanism to tell the sheep from the goats before finding out by personal experience. Maybe the cancer center equivalent to the health department restaurant inspection reports
Online reviews by previous patients tend to over-emphasize those who's reactions are emotionally charged, either good or bad.
Your feedback so far has been valuable, thank you.
That's a great link, thank you.Originally Posted by BN
I have two friends who got from Podunk Medical to M.D. Anderson.
One still will show tumor markers and get a spell of chemo, but if she hadn't got to MDA, she would have been long gone. The other was probably beyond saving.
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