Cancer Insights: Radiation Oncologist on Treatment, Detection, and Hope

When you grow up watching your dad be a radiology oncologist, and then your big brother, of course, you want to be one too. That was not what Dr. Patrick Gagnon thought initially. But after first-hand exposure to in rotations, he fell in love with this field.

Dr. Gagnon candidly shared how he loves the hope and quality of life he can offer his patients. Did you know radiation can alleviate pain due to cancer or remove obstructions? Radiation is not always to cure but rather to offer quality of life. He stressed the importance of early detection. Once terminal diseases, they are now very curable in their early stages. Get your annual screenings done! The most common cancers are breast, prostate, and colorectal. You can treat cancer with chemotherapy (internally), radiation (external intense radiation), or a combination.

Dr. Gagnon uses Stereotactic Radiation to pinpoint treat cancer more effectively, than in his dad’s days of practice, and in less time. At Southcoast, they also practice image-guided radiation therapy. He was so good at explaining both treatment modalities. Cancer treatment has grown in leaps and bounds since then and is now in use at Southcoast Health.

Learn More at Southcoast.org.