Contact us

  • Mitchell Memorial Cancer Center:
    270-688-3600 or toll-free at 800-947-7102
  • Radiation Oncology:
    270-688-3600
  • Hematology & Oncology:
    270-688-3445
  • Oncology Navigators:
    270-688-1946
  • Outpatient Infusion:
    270-688-3630
  • Oncology (Inpatient):
    270-417-2800
  • Clinical Pharmacy Specialist:
    270-688-1948
  • Oncology Chaplain:
    270-417-2109
  • Oncology Counselor:
    270-688-3675
  • Genetic Counselor:
    270-688-3445
  • Oncology Research:
    270-691-8094
  • Clinical Trials:
    270-691-8094
  • Director of Cancer Services:
    270-688-3640
  • Cancer Registry:
    270-688-3636
  • Financial Advocate:
    270-688-4438

Cancer Treatments

happy family

When you choose Owensboro Health for cancer treatment, you stay close to home while benefiting from nearly all the same options and technology you’d find at an academic medical center. You’ll work with our caring cancer specialists to develop a treatment plan tailored to your condition, preferences and overall health.

Cancers We Treat

Find treatment at Owensboro Health for almost any type of adult cancer, including:

Radiation Therapy

Radiation therapy kills cancer cells by using high-energy waves that you can’t feel. Owensboro Health Mitchell Memorial Cancer Center is accredited in radiation oncology by the American College of Radiology, which means you’ll benefit from:

  • A dynamic team of highly trained radiation oncologists, medical physicists and radiation therapists who oversee your treatment
  • Strict measures to keep you safe
  • Sophisticated equipment that helps improve your outcome

Types of Radiotherapy

Your doctor at Owensboro Health will recommend the type of radiation therapy that’s best for your condition.

External Radiation

External radiation uses a machine to send X-rays from outside your body into the tumor. Types include:

  • Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) and stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT), or stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) – Uses tightly focused radiation beams instead of surgery to eliminate tumors
  • Intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) – Conforms to a tumor’s shape to precisely treat it and sometimes employs RapidArc® technology, which reduces treatment time to just a few minutes
  • Your care team members will minimize your healthy tissue’s exposure to radiation, sometimes by:
  • Using image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT), in which images of your tumor are taken during each treatment to ensure the radiation beam targets exactly the right place
  • Relying on respiratory gating, which adjusts the radiation beam for tumors that move as you breathe

Internal Radiation (Brachytherapy)

Internal Radiation, or Brachytherapy, places small, radioactive pellets into or near your tumor. If you’re diagnosed with a Gynecological Cancer, you may receive temporary high dose rate (HDR) implants.

Systemic Radiation

At Owensboro Health, you may receive Systemic Radiation—injections of radioactive substances—to treat Lymphoma or Prostate Cancer. Injections of certain radioactive medications also can relieve pain due to cancer that has spread to your bones.

Cancer Medications

Your cancer treatment may be delivered into your blood vessels or through a pill in the form of medications such as:

  • Biotherapy, or Immunotherapy – Helps your immune system attack cancer
  • Chemotherapy – Destroys cells that grow quickly, especially tumors
  • Hormone Therapy – Prevents certain types of tumors from getting the hormones they need to survive

Some medications are targeted therapies, which act only on cancerous cells and thus minimize side effects.

Cancer Surgery

A surgeon may remove tissue or an organ from your body to diagnose cancer, see where the disease has spread or eliminate tumors. Depending on your condition, your surgeon at Owensboro Health may use robot-assisted surgery or another minimally invasive technique that reduces pain, scarring and recovery time.

Following cancer treatment, especially mastectomy, a cosmetic and reconstructive surgeon can help restore your appearance.

Clinical Trials & Research

To evaluate how well new cancer treatments work, researchers use clinical trials. Ask your doctor whether you may qualify for a promising experimental therapy in a clinical research study.