Oncologist

An oncologist is the physician who specialises in cancer: confirming the diagnosis, working out how far the disease has spread, and leading the medical treatment (chemotherapy, hormone therapy, targeted drugs, immunotherapy) and, depending on training, radiotherapy. Many people say cancer specialist, and in Israel the everyday word is simply 'the oncologist' (האונקולוג) who follows you at the oncology institute. They see people who have just been diagnosed, people in active treatment, and survivors who need years of follow-up. The first visit is usually long: reading the biopsy and imaging results, discussing the stage, presenting the options agreed at the multidisciplinary meeting, and open questions about fertility, work or side effects. In Israel the pathway typically starts with the family doctor or a health fund specialist, then the oncology institute of a hospital, where your case is presented at a team meeting (ישיבת צוות) before treatment is decided.

• ✓A biopsy or scan has just revealed a cancer and you need to decide on treatment.
• ✓Your doctor refers you after an abnormal screening test (mammogram, colonoscopy, smear, PSA) and a positive biopsy.
• ✓You want a second opinion on a treatment plan already proposed.
• ✓Cancer treated in the past: scheduled follow-up to catch a recurrence or a late effect of treatment.
• ✓A heavy family history (several breast, ovarian or bowel cancers, at a young age) that justifies genetic counselling and a surveillance plan.
• ✓Side effects of ongoing treatment that are becoming hard to bear.
• ✓Persistent unexplained symptoms, such as unintended weight loss, unusual fatigue, a growing lump or abnormal bleeding, after an initial work-up by your doctor.

In Israel, the specialist title in oncology (תעודת מומחה באונקולוגיה) is granted by the Ministry of Health after a medical degree, the licence to practise and a multi-year residency validated by the Scientific Council of the Israel Medical Association. Israeli training covers both drug treatment and radiotherapy, unlike the UK and France where medical oncology and clinical or radiation oncology are separate specialties. Blood cancers (leukaemia, lymphoma, myeloma) belong to the haematologist, and childhood cancers to the paediatric haemato-oncologist, two separate titles. You can check the licence and the specialty on the Ministry's public register (מאגר בעלי רישיון). An oncologist trained abroad must hold the Israeli licence and have the title recognised by the Scientific Council. A practical point specific to Israel: reimbursed treatments depend on the national health basket (סל שירותי הבריאות), updated every year, and some newer drugs are available only through supplementary insurance or special programmes; ask the oncologist what is covered. Seeking a second opinion from another specialist is common and accepted practice.