We are committed to supporting clinicians during these challenging times and to ensuring that our patients continue to receive the best possible care. Our physician leaders have provided various guidance on clinical protocols below and attached; however, please note that all clinical decisions should be made by the treating physician in their clinical judgment as to what is best for each individual patient.
Continuing to treat patients
Our cancer centers are open, and we have been undertaking robust screening and infection control measures as well as secure video consultations to ensure we are able to maintain a safe environment for patients and the staff who care for them. In an effort to reduce total treatment times for patients and consistent with nationally recognized treatment guidelines, we are offering hypofractionation and stereotactic radiotherapy courses as clinically indicated.
Clinical protocols
For your reference and in case helpful, our clinical reference groups have established treatment protocols using current published evidence and international expert consensus group guidelines. These have been revised and published for the main tumor types and accessible below.
Breast cancers – you can also read our detailed radiotherapy protocol for operable invasive breast cancer here
Urological malignancies
Lower GI patients
Upper GI malignancies
Gynaecological malignancies
Head and neck cancers
Lung cancers
Neurological malignancies
Sarcomas
Frequently asked questions
Stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) enables treatment of a number of tumor types using a small number of fractions – five or fewer. This hypofractionated approach is non-invasive and has obvious benefits in limiting treatment episodes or avoiding surgery. We have significant expertise and capacity across our network to treat lung, pancreas and liver, brain, prostate and oligometastatic disease (all cancers) with SABR. We will be offering these hypofractionated radiotherapy treatments where possible.
Physicians should discuss the risk and benefits of having treatment at this time with patients. Informed consent is required and should be clearly noted.
We endeavour to treat patients within days from referral. This timing depends on whether our physicians have all the pathology, radiology, and other test results available to make treatment decisions.
Wherever safe to do so, patients will have treatment delayed until after symptoms have resolved and isolation period is over. However, there will be occasions where it is clinically necessary for treatment to continue.
