Kaunas is the first private oncology clinic in Lithuania

The first private modern oncology clinic in Lithuania was opened in Kaunas. Here, patients can find concentrated specialized oncological care in one place, doctors take care not only of disease diagnosis and treatment, but also of psychological support, primary and secondary prevention, and education. As the founder of the clinic, Egidijus Žilinskas, says, this is a clinic where the fight will be for life, not against cancer.

The modern oncology clinic currently has a group of competent specialists under one roof, whose help may be needed by patients who have received a diagnosis. “We aim to offer patients comprehensive assistance and the knowledge of the best specialists in Lithuania. Together, we want to destroy the myth that cancer is a sentence. It really isn’t. A diagnosis is heard in time, appropriate treatment can help you live a quality life”, E. Žilinskas is convinced.

The clinic will also provide chemotherapy treatment. This service will help oncology patients, who have heard the diagnosis, start treatment faster. E. Žilinskas is convinced that this stage of treatment is a complex process that worries patients as well, so the modern environment of the clinic will help to at least partially ease this path.

Currently, the team of doctors includes well-known experts in their field, including oncologist and chemotherapist Alvydas Česas, oncologist and chemotherapist Assoc. Dr. Sigita Liutkausnienė, oncologist, chemotherapist dr. Laura Kairevičė, hematologist Lina Neverbickienė, psychiatrist Leonas Kačinskas, surgeon prof. Dr. Giedrius Barauskas, gastroenterologist, nutritionist, psychotherapist doc. Dr. Aida Žvirblienė, gastroenterologist prof. Dr. Kęstutis Adamonis, obstetrician oncogynecologist prof. Dr. Daiva Vaitkienė, plastic and reconstructive surgeon prof. Dr. Rytis Rimdeika, dermatologist, dermatovenerologist Daiva Stanienė, doctor of biomedical sciences. Tomas Vaičiūnas, surgeon, oncologist dr. Ieva Ceslevičienė, obstetrician-gynecologist, oncologist prof. Dr. Adrius Gaurilciks.

True, the founder of the clinic, E. Žilinskas, adds that this list of experts is certainly not exhaustive and the aim will be to mobilize a wide team of experts for patients. “We aim for the patients of the clinic to feel confident and be able to go their own way accompanied by doctors of a wide spectrum and the best competences. Medical experts are ready to answer all the questions that patients have, which arise after hearing the diagnosis and going through the treatment process. For this purpose, the “School of Life with Cancer” will operate, where various medical experts or people who have already overcome this disease will share their experiences. Lectures are planned on a different topic every time. We want patients to find this under one roof, devoting both attention and time to the consultation,” asserts E. Žilinskas.

Motivated by a personal story

The founder of the clinic does not hide that he personally had to face the difficulties of oncology patients – his first wife was diagnosed with this disease. “At that time she was expecting her first child and one day she felt sick. When we went to Kaunas clinics, we were told that the fetus was being pushed. Blood counts are good, there are no obvious diseases, but the fetus is still being pushed. The baby’s lungs were matured, and Kristina had a Caesarian section two days later”, according to E. Žilinskas, son Dominykas, who was due to be born at the end of March, welcomed the world on February 6.

Although he was born smaller, the boy grew harmoniously and felt well. Unlike his mother. After giving birth, Kristina could not get out of bed, she felt weak. One day, while carrying the bason, Aegidius saw that the excrement in it was black. This color may be due to iron supplements or other medications, but black stools may indicate possible gastrointestinal bleeding. Gastroenterologist prof. Assoc. Dr. Kęstutis Adamonis performed a stomach endoscopy on the mother, and after discovering several wounds, he took a biopsy. The answer is stage three cancer.

“Kristina never complained. Yes, it used to be that heartburn and indigestion arose, but show me a person who does not have this problem”, E. Žilinskas did not think that the mentioned symptoms were harbingers of a serious illness.

A month after the birth of her son, Kristina’s stomach was removed, and the woman began to learn to live in a new rhythm dictated by the disease. Every step was accompanied by uncertainty and questions that were not relevant until then: how to behave between chemotherapy courses, how to help restore the blood, what foods to choose, what to do if you suffer from insomnia? Communication with doctors did not always go smoothly. Some lacked time, others lacked competence.

“We used to search for information ourselves, communicate with sick people. We have also tried non-traditional treatment methods”, – according to E. Žilinskas, the days became brighter after meeting oncologist and chemotherapist Alvydas Česas. He used to go to Klaipėda in black to see this specialist. At one point, Kristina was in remission. Unfortunately, after more than a year and a half of fighting against an aggressive disease, Kristina died.

So that history does not repeat itself

A. Ches, an oncologist and chemotherapist who works at the clinic, says that, unfortunately, there are many similar stories, but cancer detected in time is controlled, controlled or generally defeated.

“When you get cancer, whether it’s breast, stomach or lung, a person asks: is this a fatal disease? I can say that it is not. Today’s oncology allows us to do great miracles, – based on his long experience, doctor oncologist and chemotherapist A. Česas. – Ten or fifteen years ago, we used to say that when malignant melanoma metastasized, the patient had six months to live, and that was true. Now we can say that there are such patients who live fifteen years after the first immunotherapy. Let’s say, before about 80 percent. of lung cancer patients died within the first two years. Only 3-4 percent. lived for five years. Now we have patients who are surviving five, eight, ten years. This fundamentally changes the situation.”

In each case, according to the oncologist’s chemotherapist, it is necessary to work together, which means to actively monitor patients, conduct tests, and draw up a plan.

“These are very important issues, sometimes even more important than the treatment itself. Therefore, the attitude of all of us is that in the treatment of oncological diseases, cooperation, work of all teams, coordination of work and long-term high-quality monitoring are necessary”, – A. Česas emphasized that the attitude of the patient himself is no less important.

E. Žilinska’s wife Sandra also contributed to the idea of ​​establishing the clinic. She knows about her husband’s past and supported the idea of ​​establishing a treatment facility that would provide concentrated specialized oncology care. The Modern Oncology Clinic operates in Kaunas, in the historical place of the city – Vytautas avenue near the Bus and Railway stations.

Press release