Male senior patient with male doctor

Expert Brain and Spine Cancer Care at Providence St. Joseph Hospital Orange

We understand it can be scary when doctors detect tumors in your brain or spine. It can take an emotional and physical toll on you, but that’s why we’re here. The medical experts and support staff within the Neuro-Oncology Program at the Providence Center for Cancer Prevention and Treatment provide adult patients who have either primary or metastatic (from melanoma, breast, lung, kidney, etc.) central nervous system (CNS) tumors with the most advanced and comprehensive care available.

1000 W La Veta Ave, 1st Floor, Center for Cancer Prevention and Treatment , Orange, CA 92868
2257.4 miles away
714-734-6238
Mon - Fri: 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Expert Brain and Spine Cancer Care at Providence St. Joseph Hospital Orange

We understand it can be scary when doctors detect tumors in your brain or spine. It can take an emotional and physical toll on you, but that’s why we’re here. The medical experts and support staff within the Neuro-Oncology Program at the Providence Center for Cancer Prevention and Treatment provide adult patients who have either primary or metastatic (from melanoma, breast, lung, kidney, etc.) central nervous system (CNS) tumors with the most advanced and comprehensive care available.

1000 W La Veta Ave, 1st Floor, Center for Cancer Prevention and Treatment , Orange, CA 92868
2257.4 miles away
714-734-6238
Mon - Fri: 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Personalized Treatment for Brain and Spine Cancer

Systemic therapies travel through the bloodstream and affect cells in other body parts. They are used for patients whose cancer has spread to other areas of the body or if there’s a high risk of spread. Sophisticated genetic analysis allows us to target therapies to specific DNA mutations that cause cancer cells to develop and grow. Systemic therapies include:

  • Chemotherapy
  • Clinical trials
  • Immunotherapy

Surgical therapies involve an operation or procedure to remove cancer from the body. Surgery may be the main treatment for some invasive cancers, but it’s only one part of the entire treatment plan. Surgical therapies include:

  • Laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT)
  • Neuroendoscopy
  • Resection of the brain and nervous system

Radiation therapy uses high-energy radiation from a source like X-rays or photons to kill cancer cells or shrink tumors. It may be part of a treatment plan that also includes systemic therapies and/or surgery. Radiation is sometimes used to help ease a patient’s pain or discomfort. Radiation therapies include:

  • Three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy (3DCRT)

Additional therapies may also be part of the treatment plan for a small number of patients. These may include:

  • Alternating electrical fields
  • Interventional radiology

Meet the Team

At Providence, you'll have access to a vast network of dedicated and compassionate providers who offer personalized care by focusing on treatment, prevention and health education.

Female doctor wearing mask, doctors in background
Trusted Team of Experts Services
Trusted Team of Experts

Specialists with expertise from many areas of medicine participate in the Neuro-Oncology Program. These specialists form a multidisciplinary team that includes neurosurgeons, medical oncologists and radiation oncologists, radiologists, and pathologists as well as dieticians, social workers, cancer genetic counselors and a navigator. The navigator assists patients and their families with coordination of care. Care coordination by a clinically trained navigator is vital to our neuro-oncology patients as brain tumors often require several treatments across different areas of specialty, including surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy.

This multidisciplinary team meets regularly to discuss each patient's unique medical needs and develops individual care plans that include integrated treatment options. Our team approach to care and development of personalized care plans that include advanced treatment options enhance the patient experience and contribute to superior clinical outcomes.

Patients managed by this team have access to the latest, most advanced surgical and radiation technology including stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS). This team approach to care ensures our patients receive evidence-based comprehensive medical treatments that are scientifically proven to be the most effective for treating CNS tumors and are supported by national guidelines. In addition, several clinical trials investigating new chemotherapy agents are available to patients managed by this team.

Why Choose Providence for Your Brain and Nervous System Cancer Care?

Every year, fellowship-trained specialists at our brain tumor centers of excellence treat thousands of patients just like you. With such deep experience, you know you’re in the most capable hands. Here are even more reasons so many tumor patients trust Providence for their care:

Doctor smiling at patient

No two patients are alike. This is why we take a personalized approach to treating cancer of the nervous system, which includes the brain and spine. Our multidisciplinary tumor boards bring together your oncologists, neurologists and other experts to collaborate on your diagnosis and treatment. We also offer a Providence Molecular Tumor Board, which evaluates your genomic and clinical information to find the best genetically matched treatment for you. Your oncologists and neurologists will work with you to design a care plan that fits your needs. It’s an approach that combines leading-edge treatment with the compassionate care Providence is known for.

We take a team-based approach to treating cancer of the brain and spine, and we perform minimally invasive procedures whenever possible. Your team may treat you with Gamma Knife, a technology that precisely targets tumors with high-dose radiation beams. Or your specialists may recommend surgery, such as open surgery or neuroendoscopy. A neuroendoscopy is a minimally invasive treatment that uses a small incision to remove a tumor. Depending on your cancer and treatment, your care team may include specialists such as neuro-oncologists, radiation oncologists, neurosurgeons, neuro-radiologists, neuro-ophthalmologists, otolaryngologists, endocrinologists, oncology nurse navigators and rehabilitation specialists.

Learn more about the experts who make up our multidisciplinary cancer care teams.

We provide you and your family with a full range of support services that go well beyond conventional treatment, from genetic counseling and education to nutrition and pain management. Our rehabilitation therapies – such as speech, occupational and physical therapy – help you regain mental and physical strength following treatment. And because cancer can be an emotional strain, we care for your mind and spirit as well as your body. We offer counseling services and support groups so you can connect with fellow patients and share your journey.

Cancer doesn’t discriminate, but access to great brain and nervous system cancer care hasn’t always been the same for everyone. At Providence, we are deeply committed to making sure every patient we treat has access to the best cancer care. We offer various location-specific services to help our patients receive equitable care, such as translation for non-English-speaking patients, telehealth and transportation assistance. We value, respect and support the racial, ethnic, religious, gender, sexual and spiritual identities of each member of our diverse community. And, in keeping with our Mission, Providence offers financial assistance programs that provide free and low-cost care to those who are eligible.

As a patient at Providence, you have access to the largest community-based cancer network in the United States. Being part of a collaborative network means that your local care team shares knowledge and experience with other world-class clinicians across 51 hospitals in seven states. The extent and power of our network is one of the reasons more than 2,000 new brain and nervous system cancer patients – and 50,000 new cancer patients overall – choose Providence each year.

Providence is well known for offering options – and hope – to patients seeking the most advanced procedures and therapies to treat brain and nervous system cancers. As a patient, you have the opportunity to participate in one of more than 35 clinical trials for brain tumors conducted across the Providence network.

The Power of Our Network

Part of the Providence Cancer Institute of Orange County

From diagnosis to recovery and beyond, we’re with our patients every step of the way. We’ve integrated three nationally accredited cancer programs – Mission, St. Joseph and St. Jude – to provide you with:

  • Board-certified cancer specialists who collaborate across locations to provide convenient, connected care close to your home or work.
  • Innovative screening that can detect more than 50 types of cancer through a single blood draw.
  • Patient navigators for each cancer type who will help you manage your treatment and find the resources you need.

Learn More About the Providence Cancer Institute of Orange County

Doctor sitting with patient
Senior woman looking hopeful as she gazes out window

Find Clinical Trials

Are you looking for a clinical trial for yourself or for a patient? We’d love to help you find one!

Research and Clinical Trials

Looking for a Different Location?

Contact Us