The Progression of Cancer Treatment

  • 200

    Galen

    There was never much cancer treatment throughout early history. During the second century A.D, Galen of Greece was considered to be the highest medical authority for over a thousand years at that time. He and Hippocrates shared the same view: once a patient was diagnosed with cancer, it was incurable.
  • 19th and 20th Century Cancer Treatment

    It wasn’t until the 19th and early 20th centuries that major advances were made in general surgery and cancer surgery. Bilroth in Germany, Handley in London, and Halsted in Baltimore. Their work led to “cancer operations” designed to remove the entire tumor along with the lymph nodes in the region where the tumor was located because of the discovery of anesthesia.
  • Cancer Treatment in the 20th Century

    Until near the end of the 20th century, diagnosing cancer often required “exploratory surgery” to open the abdomen (belly) or chest so that the surgeon could take tissue samples to be tested for cancer. Starting in the 1970s, progress in imaging tests such as ultrasound (sonography), computed tomography (CT scans), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI scans), and positron emission tomography (PET scans) have replaced many exploratory operations. CT scans and ultrasound can also be used to guide biops
  • Modern Cnacer Treatment

    Cancer treatment today has progressed to a point of fast diagnosis and better treatments; treatments such as chemo therapy and better surgery.