Recent technology in cancer treatment in Ahmedabad

Overview

Tremendous developments are underway with respect to the treatment of cancer, thus giving a wide scope to possible therapy and treatments for the patients. Ahmedabad city has also become one of those quick cities in implementing new technologies in treating cancer, considering its advanced technological health facilities. In the list of experts who deal in cancer treatment, there has been one name included-known as Dr. Vikesh Shah-who has been in the forefront of integrating state-of-the-art treatments for cancer in his clinic. Some major cancer treatment technologies available in Ahmedabad have been discussed in the following context.

Precision Medicine: Personalized Cancer Treatment

Precision medicine is a whole new way of looking at medicine wherein the treatment will be sought to be tailored according to the unique characteristic features of the individual patient’s tumor. Thus, the genetic makeup of a tumor is analyzed in order to find specific mutations that may be targeted with specialized therapies.

Precision medicine can promise better outcomes in the treatment of cancer and is in practice by doctors in Ahmedabad. A genetic test of a patient’s tumor can reveal mutations likely to be particularly responsive to specific targeted therapies. Certain lung cancers contain mutations in a gene called EGFR and are treatable with the drug osimertinib. Some forms of breast cancer overexpress a protein called HER2 and are quite effectively treated by therapies that target that protein, including trastuzumab.

Besides the probability of successful treatment being much greater in precision medicine, it reduces the side effects that are generally observed with traditional chemotherapies. Since the therapies target the exact cancerous cells, the healthy tissues are spared, hence improving the quality of life of a patient under treatment.

Immunotherapy: Boosting the Body’s Immune System

Immunotherapy represents the use of treatment modalities by essentially activating the body’s immune system to recognize and fight cancer cells. Whereas in conventional treatments, an attack is directly meant for the tumor site; in immunotherapy, the immune system is improved such that it finds and eliminates cancerous cells.

Among pioneering medical clinics using the application of immunotherapy for cancers-such as melanoma, lung, and kidney-is one belonging to Dr. Vikesh Shah from Ahmedabad. One successful modality of immunotherapy is the use of checkpoint inhibitors. These drugs block the proteins that stop the immune system from attacking cancer cells, effectively “unleashing” a body’s natural defenses.

The other most novel form of immunotherapy available at Ahmedabad involves the CAR-T cells treatment. This technique involves changing a patient’s T-cells in the laboratory to be more sensitive towards an attack by tumor cells. These re-engineered T-cells are then again returned to the patient, where they undertake a concentrated attack on the tumor cells and get them killed. This CAR-T cell therapy has already worked wonders for certain blood cancers, such as leukemia and lymphoma.

While it opens new horizons for patients, especially for those whose cancers have resisted all other kinds of therapy, immunotherapy promises to be one of the strong tools in the struggle against cancer.

Proton Therapy: Advanced Radiation Treatment

Radiation therapy is one of the cornerstones of cancer treatment. In its traditional methods of performance, it can be very injurious to healthy tissues around the site of the tumor. Now, proton therapy is a kind of radiation that is highly advanced and offers treatment to the tumor much more precisely, while lessening the harm to healthy tissues around the site.

Presently, Ahmedabad has proton therapy as the latest modality of treatment. Proton therapy uses charged particles called protons and not X-rays. These protons can be targeted by physicians with a great deal of precision; hence, a high dose of radiation can be delivered to the tumor, and very minimal radiation exposure leaks out to surrounding tissues. Special indications of proton therapy include tumors in the brain, spinal cord cancers, and prostatic cancers.

This is particularly important in the management of cancer in pediatric patients, given that this lowers the chance of developing long-term side effects. At present, proton therapy also extends to the treatment of cancers in the head and neck and also for some kinds of brain tumors, offering thus a safer and more effective alternative for the patients.

Advanced Imaging Techniques: Enhancing Diagnosis and Treatment

Accurate diagnosis, therefore, forms the very bedrock of optimal treatment of cancer. Recently, the capabilities of various imaging technologies have taken a quantum leap forward, enabling the physicians to trace and monitor cancers with greater efficiency. Advanced imaging modalities are widely available in Ahmedabad and are going to be one of the most significant contributors of cancer care.

PET-CT is one of the most informative and important imaging modalities. Scans obtained in using the PET-CT combine functional imaging with exquisite anatomic imaging that enable the physician to locate the precise position and extension of cancerous tissue. This modality is of great importance in tumor staging, assessment of treatment response, and recurrence detection.

With the help of other sophisticated skills, detailed pictures of tumors and tissues surrounding them can be acquired, such as MRI with diffusion-weighted imaging. This especially will be helpful in the diagnosis and treatment planning of brain tumors, breast cancer, and prostate cancer.

Apart from this, technologies of molecular imagining like FISH and NGS are used to detect genetic abnormalities inside the tumors. All these techniques form part of precision medicine that helps the doctor choose the best treatment according to the genetic profile of cancer.

Robotic Surgery: Precision in Surgical Oncology

This is usually through surgery that will remove cancers. Development in robotic surgery has allowed the process to be less invasive and much more exact. Robotic-assisted surgery may grant an increase in control, smaller incisions, and faster recoveries.

Doctors in Ahmedabad have also been among those leading from the front in robotic surgery for the treatment of cancer conditions. Such technologies are employed in prostate cancer, kidney cancers, and all cancers of gynecological origin. This robotic system provides further dexterity on the part of the surgeon and gives the added element of control during their procedures. This, in turn, allows surgeons to execute complex procedures with greater accuracy.

These robotic surgeries result in less complication, reduced pain to patients, and shorter stays in the hospital. Maximum accuracy regarding removals could be made from tumors with least disturbance to healthy tissues hence establishing better results for patients.

Liquid Biopsies: A Non-Invasive Way to Monitor Cancer

Liquid biopsies represent a quantum leap in trying to find and identify cancer. Other than classic biopsies, which require samples of tissue to study, liquid biopsies require only a blood sample for analysis of cancerous genetic mutations and other biomarkers.

This helps in the diagnosis of cancers at an early stage, treatment response monitoring, and recurrence. Ahmedabad-based doctors have started using liquid biopsies to keep a tab on patients with advanced cancers. Analysis of ctDNA in blood shows the progress of the disease and real-time modification in the treatment approach.

Liquid biopsies hold great value for patients with metastatic cancer in whom tissue biopsies can be perilous or very difficult. It is a less invasive, more convenient way to monitor cancer and, therefore, lets doctors provide more personalized care.

Targeted Therapy: Focusing Directly on Cancer Cells

Targeted therapy constitutes one of the big advances that have ever been made in treating cancer. This is different from standard chemotherapy, which attacks all fast-growing cells. Targeted therapy focuses on the specific molecules important in the growth and survival of the cells.

Doctors in Ahmedabad use such forms of targeted therapies in cancers arising from the breast, lungs, and colorectal regions, among many others. These treatments block the signals that tell cells to grow and divide; when used effectively, they can “starve” the tumor. Examples include, but are not limited to, erlotinib and gefitinib, which target the EGFR mutation in non-small cell lung cancer, while trastuzumab targets the HER2 protein in some breast cancers.

They often come in combination with other treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation, to which the former then become more effective. Because these therapies have fewer side effects since they only target the cancerous cells, outcomes for the patients also improve.

Gene Editing and CRISPR: Cutting-Edge Cancer Research

Gene modification techniques, especially CRISPR, are opening an entirely new vista for the treatment of cancer. CRISPR allows editing cellular DNA with unprecedented precision; thus, scientists can correct genetic mutations that drive cancers.

While most of those are still largely in the research stage, several CRISPR-based therapies are under investigation for their potential to treat everything from blood cancers to solid tumors. In Ahmedabad, doctors research ways CRISPR can be used to develop new therapies that attack cancer at its genetic roots.

It is, therefore, being applied in CAR-T cell therapies for giving genetic modifications to the patients’ T-cells, which are superior in their fights against cancer. CRISPR will, in addition, enable such therapies to be more effective and more accessible to more patients.

As research proceeds, CRISPR and other gene editing technologies could become key modules in cancer treatment and thus offer new hope for patients with cancers that happen to be difficult to cure.

Artificial Intelligence in Oncology: Transforming Cancer Care

Big data and artificial intelligence are changing the face of cancer diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring. Now, artificial intelligence has come into play, analyzing big data that no human could ever be capable of and finding patterns, hence predicting from them.

Cancer Doctors in Ahmedabad are integrating AI into cancer care through various touchpoints, from the diagnosis of medical images like mammograms and CT scans for early detection, wherein AI algorithms try to offer more accurate detection. AI is now being used to predict how patients will respond to various treatments so that doctors can fine-tune the treatment plans.

Another strong tool in cancer research is Big Data. Data analysis from thousands of patients shows the researchers an insight into the development of trends, presenting new options for treatments. Several hospitals and research centers in Ahmedabad come together to build large databases on cancer, which are used in the development of better treatment protocols for improved patient outcomes.

By combining artificial intelligence with oncology, researchers in Ahmedabad are at the forefront of building novel and more effective cancer treatments.Contact  Dr. Vikesh Shah to learn more about how our cancer technology can help you or someone you care about.