TREATING THE WHOLE PATIENT: Development of cardio-oncology is just one way cancer teams are treating the whole patient, not just the disease.

• Author: Saylor, Teri

A cancer diagnosis can be devastating, both physically and emotionally. Even treatable forms of the disease often take months to stabilize, and depending on its stage, the treatment patients receive can diminish their quality of life, even if they ultimately survive.

Doctors today are finding ways to improve their patients' experience by focusing on taking a more holistic approach to cancer care.

"We as oncologists have been focused on curing cancer and extending the life of our patients, but we haven't focused the same degree on the consequences of the treatments or the impact of those treatments on other pre-existing conditions, like cardiovascular disease," says Dr. Susan Dent, a medical oncologist at Duke University School of Medicine and co-director of the Duke Cardio-Oncology Program.

For the last 15 years, Dent has been making strides in developing cardio-oncology, an emerging subspecialty, recognizing that some cancer patients may have pre-existing heart disease, which may worsen during treatment.

And patients who are heart healthy before their cancer diagnosis, may be at risk of developing cardiovascular disease because of their treatment.

Dent began working in cardio-oncology in Ontario, Canada 23 years ago. She is the founder of the Canadian Cardio-Oncology Network and is president of the International Cardio-Oncology Society.

"I like to think of this specialty as moving away from a disease-centric approach to a person-centric approach," Dent says. "We're treating the person, not just the cancer, and we know the treatment they get affects their entire system."

Dent has worked with cancer and cardiology specialists and primary care doctors to emphasize the importance of treating other conditions like hypertension, diabetes, or heart problems, which in some cases can shorten people's lives more than the cancer itself.

At the Novant Cancer Institute in Charlotte, Dr. David Rizzieri is also exploring a multidisciplinary approach to cancer care, bringing physicians from different disciplines together under one roof, and aligning medical oncologists with radiation oncologists, surgical oncologists and other specialists.

"This approach to care recognizes that one person can't do it all, and everyone must come together," he says.

Rizzieri, is the senior vice president and system physician executive for the Novant Health Cancer Institute. He holds the Agnes B. and Edward I. Weisiger Endowed Chair for Cancer Research.

"Fifteen to 20 years...