HCM City Holds Workshop on Immunotherapy in Cancer Treatment

Singapore’s Parkway Cancer Center over the weekend held a counselling workshop on targeted therapy and immunotherapy for cancer patients, introducing a way to detect cancerous cells more effectively and promising new hope for patients, state media reported Apr 4. Immunotherapy, the latest cancer treatment approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, has been hailed as a breakthrough in oncology. People with cancer experience a breakdown of the immune system, which inhibits the body’s natural defenses and ability to recognize cancerous cells. “The therapy, a protocol that uses drugs, can aid in stopping or slowing the growth of cancer cells, and prevent cancer from spreading to other parts of the body,” said Dr. Lim Hong Liang, an oncologist at the center. However, some other attendees told the workshop that the new treatment did not signify the end of humanity’s struggle against cancer. It is important for patients to know that, like all medical treatments, there are certain limitations to what immunotherapy can achieve, according to the experts. Immunotherapy has shown promising results, especially in treating lung cancer and melanoma, and is also effective in treating lymphatic, colon, gastric, head and neck cancers. According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer, in 2012, Vietnam had 125,036 new cancer patients, of whom 94,743 died. The five most common cancers in terms of both incidence and mortality were of the liver, lung, stomach, breast and colorectal. In 2015, the HCM City Oncology Hospital alone diagnosed and treated more than 100,000 people for cancer, 70% of them from the southern region. (VietnamPlus Apr 4)