Healthcare highlight interview with Dr. Vineetha Binoy, Senior Consultant Medical Oncologist at Health City Cayman Islands.
Why did you move to Cayman?
I moved to Cayman in 2014 with my husband Dr. Binoy Chattuparambil, since he was appointed the Chief of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery at the then-new Health City Cayman Islands Hospital. Prior to this, we were both working as consultants at Narayana Health’s Flagship Hospital in Bangalore, India
What should we know about your experience?
I was trained in Internal Medicine, Medical Oncology, Hematology and Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation at various prestigious Institutes in India and Australia, and has over 18 years of experience in Oncology. I was certified by the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO) for excellence in Medical Oncology (2012) and is the recipient of the prestigious ‘Young ICON’ award of the Indian Cooperative Oncology Network (ICON) in 2012. Practising at Health City Cayman Islands since 2014 , as the first resident oncologist on the Island, I have strived to enhance the standards of cancer care in Cayman. I am keen that my patients receive the most up-to-date cancer care, and have been working closely with experts around the world to bring the latest therapeutic innovations and treatments to Cayman.
Any advice for someone diagnosed with breast cancer?
Owing to advances in early diagnosis and more effective treatments, Breast cancer is rapidly becoming a chronic illness rather than a life-threatening condition. Survival of patients with breast cancer has dramatically increased in the last 2 decades, largely owing to earlier detection by advanced mammographic screening technologies, increased patient awareness, and of course more effective treatment modalities.
However, It is very important that the diagnosis and staging workup of your cancer is completed timely and accurately and the treatment is planned appropriately by a multidisciplinary team experienced in managing breast cancers. The healthcare practitioners involved in your team should be up-to-date in their medical and surgical expertise and also must be skilled in recognizing and managing the short-term and long-term sequelae of the constellation of therapeutic modalities. Cancer is a journey that doesn’t just affect your physical well-being, it can impact every aspect of your life and the lives of those around you so you need a Medical team that walks the journey with you.
How do you decide on what the treatment course will be?
At Health City, the diagnosis, treatment and Survivorship care plan for any patient with cancer is determined after detailed discussion in our Tumor Board meetings where our specialists including but not limited to, Medical Oncologist, Surgical Oncologist, Radiation Oncologist, Gynaecologic Oncologist, Pathologist and Radiologists , come together to review the details of each case, including the images, laboratory and pathology reports. The final treatment course is based on the most Up-To-Date guidelines and recommendations of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) , which is an alliance of 33 cancer centers in the United States.
What is unique about Health City’s oncology medical care
The access to affordable, world-class cancer care at your doorstep, with outcomes on par with any centers overseas, provided with the utmost compassion, in a Multidisciplinary and patient-centric approach.
What’s your guidance on breast preservation?
It is the Breast surgeon who decides whether you have a choice between a Lumpectomy (breast-conserving surgery) or a Mastectomy
- Whether you have a choice depends on several factors-
- The size of your cancer
- The size of your breasts
- Where the cancer is in your breast
- Whether there is more than one area of cancer
- Your general health
If your surgeon offers you a choice between lumpectomy or mastectomy, then the decision can be yours. Both the treatments work equally well in curing the cancer but they each have different benefits and disadvantages which will be explained to you by your surgeon so that you can make an informed decision. For eg: If you have a lumpectomy then you will definitely need radiotherapy afterwards, however, if you have a Mastectomy, then you may not need radiation afterwards.
An interesting fact about you?
I was drawn towards this speciality, recognizing the need for comprehensive and compassionate cancer care after having multiple cancer survivors in my own family. After moving to Cayman, I have enjoyed being a community Oncologist, which provides me with more satisfaction than working in Academic or subspecialty-based practices. After work, you will mostly find me at home, on the sofa, watching Netflix.