CANCER SURVIVORSHIP
Unique specialty clinic opens in the Hat
A cancer survivorship clinic has opened in Medicine Hat and it may be the first of its kind in the whole of Alberta.
Dr. Marc Trudeau, medical oncology, has opened the clinic in Riverside Medical Clinic, 28 Third Street NE. To have such a clinic is unheard of in a community the size of Medicine Hat when Calgary and Edmonton don’t have any, he said.
To understand the need for a cancer survivorship clinic, it helps to remember the progress made in treating cancer.
In the 1960s there were just a few chemotherapy options, and now oncologists are specializing in various fields within oncology, said Trudeau. There are now gynecology oncologists, geriatric oncologists, and survivorship is another specialty, said Trudeau.
A patient still has other medical needs following cancer treatment and remission. Whether they should be monitored on an ongoing basis is still under debate. Trudeau says the goal is to catch a reoccurrence in the early stages to have a good chance of achieving a second remission. This can prolong life, and most cancer centres simply do not have the manpower to provide this.
Generally survivors discharged from the cancer centre are referred back to their family doctors. Some patients and family doctors are very comfortable with that while others do not feel equipped for this. Some patients may still have issues related to the radiation or chemotherapy treatment they received.
“I’m filling the gap,” said Trudeau.
Some breast cancer survivors may be on the drug tamoxifen for the long term. In this case there should be regular bone density tests, said Trudeau. Others may require regular cardiac tests.
Some patients may still be receiving radiation therapy but if they develop complications, and are not able to return to the place of treatment straight away, Trudeau says he can help.
Some Hatters may remember Trudeau from his days at the Margery E. Yuill Cancer Centre. For a number of reasons he took a professional break and says he is delighted to be back in the oncology field in Medicine Hat. He first came to Medicine Hat in 2005 for an interview and says he still calls it home.
He is launching the cancer survivorship clinic because he “wanted to be a step ahead”, said Trudeau. He’d had feedback in the past from patients about such a clinic so understood the need for one.
“It is a constant struggle for some patients to be cut off from the cancer clinic,” said Trudeau.
While there are patients who appreciate the staff they have worked with during their cancer treatment and would like to continue that relationship, others prefer to have the follow-up away from the centre they associate with their treatment and perhaps more anxious days.
At the moment a referral from a family doctor is enough to get an appointment with Trudeau and the wait is only five to seven days.
The intention is to have a hand-in-hand working relationship with the Margery E. Yuill Cancer Centre too, said Trudeau.
It is too early to say whether the cancer survivorship clinic will conduct research but there is a strong possibility it will, said Trudeau.