Treatment Choices

For most patients at the Rogel Cancer Center, their treatment plan was determined in part by the results on a pathology report. Pathologists are a crucial part of every patient’s health care team, but their work usually happens behind the scenes in a laboratory setting. Michigan Medicine pathologists now have a larger, state-of-the-art space to study, understand, track and decode each patient’s biopsy so a precise diagnosis can be made and treatment can begin.

No one wants to hear they have cancer. It's shocking and frightening and, for most people, can be overwhelming. Dr. Aki Morikawa, a medical oncologist in the Breast Care Clinic, offers information -- and advice -- on what you need to know as you talk to your doctor about treatment options.

Research from the Rogel Cancer Center has helped identify an antidepressant that reduces neuropathic pain caused be chemotherapy and finds trauma exposure to be a predictor for pain among breast cancer patients.

One big concern for patients diagnosed with cancer is whether there is time to research treatment centers and get a second opinion before starting treatment. Choosing an oncologist, or cancer doctor, is an important decision. Unless you are facing urgent symptoms like nausea, vomiting and pain, there is usually time to do some research.

When a woman walks into an oncologist’s office, she’s usually not alone. In fact, a new study finds that half of women have at least three people standing behind them, sitting next to them or waiting at home to help face cancer. Research finds half of early stage breast cancer patients relied on three or more people to help them process treatment options.

During radiation treatment for cancer, it may be tempting to skip an appointment when something else that seems more important comes up -- or when you're just not feeling well. Research shows, however, that people who kept their appointments had better outcomes than those who didn't.

Women undergoing a mastectomy for breast cancer already have a lot to manage in regard to treatment and recovery. Beyond monitoring their health, they must also weigh a decision that could alter their appearance and quality of life after cancer treatment: whether to have breast reconstruction surgery -- and, if they do, which type to choose. The procedure can have physical and mental implications for patients whose cancerous breasts are surgically removed. Opting for reconstructive surgery after a mastectomy comes with questions and choices. A U-M plastic surgeon helps address them.

Ask Molly Moravek, M.D., why she pursued a career in fertility preservation for cancer patients, and she’ll tell you that it’s because her heart breaks every time she sees a patient who has had her fertility taken from her. It's why she built a program in partnership with Michigan Medicine’s Center for Reproductive Medicine and Rogel Cancer Center that works with patients facing treatment and their oncologists to preserve the patients’ opportunity to have children once they are healthy.

Enrolling in a clinical trial is a treatment option that can be beneficial for both the patient and others who can benefit from the findings. Almost all current treatments started out being tested in clinical trials. Medicine would not advance without the use of trials and people to participate in them.

When Ron Diehl was diagnosed in 1999 with Ewing sarcoma, a rare cancer that mainly affects children and young adults, he wanted to speak to someone who survived the disease as a way to maintain hope that he could get better. A young man of 34, he had a wife and three young kids, as well as a family dairy farm to run in the small town of Lupton, Mich.