• A doctor checking a child's vitalsdoctor with patient 5 image by Paul Moore from Fotolia.com
  
  Oncology deals with the treatment of cancer. An oncologist is a physician fully trained in various types of cancer and who strives to treat or cure each type. Oncologists often specialize and treat certain types of cancers.They may administer a combination of treatments or advise a patient on a specific treatment.
  
  

Radiation oncology

• Radiation oncology deals with using radiation to treat the cancer. It is called radiation therapy. The goal of radiation therapy is to destroy the entire tumor; the radiation damages the genetic material so cancer cells cannot grow and divide. Normal cells can recover from radiation, though cancerous cells are destroyed. The goal of radiation therapy is to damage as many cancer cells as possible, while limiting harm to nearby healthy tissue. In some cases, it is used to shrink a tumor to relieve symptoms. Physicians plan the treatment to save as much healthy tissue as they can.
  
  

Surgical Oncology

• Surgical oncology involves surgical treatment of various tumors such as breast cancer, colon, endocrine and melanoma. Tumors and tissues are surgically cut from the body to remove as much of the cancer as possible. After undergoing surgery, patients may need the services of a medical oncologist to administer chemotherapy and to monitor the patient for signs of remissions or recurrences.
  
  

Medical Oncology

• Medical oncologists specialize in using medications such as chemotherapy, analgesics and hormones to manage cancer. They educate the patient on his cancer and its stages of development, discuss treatment, monitor care and help the patient with pain management and other issues.
  
  

Interventional Oncology

• Physicians trained in this discipline are trained in interventional radiology. They use minimally invasive procedures that are available for patients using X-ray feedback to treat cancers. Some treatment options include: Radioembolization, Microwave Ablation, Chemoembolization, Radiofrequency Ablation, and Cryoablation. Using these options, they can target the cancer and treat it specifically with the goal to preserve the diseased organ.