How to Make an Appointment

To make an appointment, please call 412-647-2811, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. Through this service, you will speak with an oncology information specialist so that we may gather the necessary information from you to schedule your first appointment. You may be asked about your insurance coverage, your PCP's (primary care physician) contact information including phone and fax number, other details about your health and previous tests you have may have had. You will be asked to hand-carry your medical records and test reports to your first appointment.

Subsequent visits

Follow-up care after your initial visit may take place at a hospital-affiliated or community-based UPMC Cancer Centers location convenient to you. Depending on the kind of follow-up care that is prescribed by your oncologist or other specialist (radiation oncologist, hematologist, surgical oncologist, etc.) who may be consulted regarding your treatment, you may be asked to consent to specific treatment services designed to target the cancer. Your doctor will discuss the various choices you have to treat your particular type of disease and recommend a plan of action.

Possible treatment options may include, but are not limited to:

• surgery
• biological therapy
• chemotherapy
• radiation therapy
• bone marrow and stem cell transplantation
• experimental drug treatments through clinical trials.

The majority of patients at UPMC Cancer Centers receive treatment on an outpatient basis. All UPMC Cancer Centers network locations provide outpatient services and, depending on the location, may include specialists from medical oncology, radiation oncology, nursing, pharmacy, psychology, social services, nutrition, clinical research and health education.

If, during the course of your treatment it becomes necessary for you to become an inpatient, your physician at UPMC Cancer Centers will direct you to go the hospital he or she designates for your continuing care. The Admitting Department will contact you the day before your admission to verify your stay and to obtain information necessary to complete the pre-admission process.

After hours assistance

To ensure that patients and families have access to medical and nursing personnel during off hours, on weekends and on holidays, UPMC Cancer Centers provides 24-hour telephone coverage. When calling 412-647-2811 after hours, this phone number reaches an answering service. They will advise you how to proceed. You may be directed to contact the on-call nurse for symptom management and any other problems related to cancer care. (The nurse has access to an on-call physician, if circumstances require.)

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