Onco.com Impact Story
A 73-year old man from Hyderabad was diagnosed with adenoid cystic carcinoma of the nasopharynx, an extremely rare type of cancer. The cancer had spread to his lymph nodes and to the back of his skull, and local doctors were offering treatment options with uncertain outcomes- radiation after chemotherapy, or radiotherapy directly. The family was confused.
Diagnosis: Rare cancer (adenoid cystic carcinoma of the nasopharynx)
Stage: The cancer had spread to the lymph nodes and to the base of the patient’s skull.
Problem
The local doctors did not indicate any clear line of treatment. They offered both direct radiation, and chemotherapy followed by radiation. The family was confused about how to proceed further.
Questions
The patient’s family was keen on traveling to the US in order to check if an advanced procedure like CAR T-Cell Therapy could help. They wanted to know the right line of treatment.
The Onco.com Solution
We formed a panel of US-based medical and radiation oncologists to study the case. This expert panel concluded that the patient needed concurrent radiation treatment and chemotherapy with radical intent. The patient’s family received this recommendation completely online, and our team answered their questions regarding advanced therapies.