Few journeys are as disorienting as a cancer diagnosis, where families suddenly face a bewildering sequence of appointments, specialists and decisions with little sense of where to start. A Johannesburg practice called Treating Cancer was founded on a more straightforward premise: a single coordinated team that walks with each patient from the very first consultation, through active treatment and into the period that follows. Under the guidance of Dr Prinitha Pillay, a specialist radiation oncologist, the practice unites medical, surgical and radiation expertise in one place, sparing patients the burden of stitching together their own care from separate sources.

With August 2026 sharpening national attention on preventive health and early screening, Treating Cancer is drawing attention to what a multidisciplinary model can offer people who have just been diagnosed or are still weighing their choices. Because case numbers keep climbing and a great many patients are only diagnosed at a late stage, dependable guidance and thorough treatment planning have never counted for more. The practice works to lift some of that burden by having its team examine every case together before a single treatment decision is settled.

The heart of the approach is a multidisciplinary team drawing on medical, surgical and radiation oncologists, a medical physicist, radiotherapists, specialised nurses and a nutritionist. Because every case passes before this whole group, no plan rests on a single viewpoint. Dr Pillay, a seasoned oncologist, assembles the clinical information the team requires, then weighs each option's risks and benefits and considers how it might shape a patient's quality of life. What emerges is a plan built around the person, not a standardised route applied to everyone.

A full spectrum of contemporary cancer therapies is available to patients. Among them are chemotherapy, radiation therapy, targeted therapy and immunotherapy, stereotactic radiotherapy, brachytherapy, radiofrequency ablation, nuclear medicine and up-to-date surgical oncology methods. On the radiation side, the practice relies on advanced tools including external beam radiotherapy, intensity-modulated radiotherapy and image-guided radiation therapy, all of which make it possible to concentrate a strong dose on the tumour while protecting the surrounding healthy tissue. Everything is provided at state-of-the-art facilities fitted with current technology.

The range of cancers managed here is extensive, spanning breast, gynaecological, gastrointestinal, thoracic, head and neck, genitourinary, neurological, bone, musculoskeletal, dermatological, ocular and paediatric cancers. Such scope allows both patients and the doctors who refer them to rely on one practice across many different diagnoses, confident that specialists from the relevant fields have weighed in on each case.

Ease of access is built into the model on purpose. Because Dr Pillay sees and treats patients at the facility they prefer, unnecessary expenses can be kept in check, and the Johannesburg base is easy to get to whether someone is travelling from another province or from overseas. Treatment timetables can be adapted for those juggling responsibilities at work or at home, and patient information is held in confidence at every stage. Consultation hours run from 7am to 7pm.

Care here extends past the treatments alone to the lived experience of cancer itself. Supportive and nutritional care are woven into the plan, and specialised nurses assist patients with the everyday demands that treatment brings. The practice describes its purpose as standing shoulder to shoulder with patients rather than addressing a disease in isolation, casting its work in terms of courage and dignity instead of illness alone.

Much of the practice's standing comes from Dr Pillay's own record. Her qualifications include a BSc Hons and MBBCh from the University of the Witwatersrand, an MSc from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, an MMed from Wits and a Fellowship in Radiation Oncology of the College of Medicine of South Africa. Ahead of her move into oncology, she devoted years to humanitarian medicine with Doctors Without Borders, serving in places as varied as Lesotho, Sudan, Sierra Leone and both cities and rural areas of South Africa, and she held the office of President of Doctors Without Borders in South Africa. In 2011 the Mail and Guardian counted her among its top ten Women in Health, and she went on to work as a technical specialist on HIV and tuberculosis with Wits while campaigning for stronger access to care in rural communities.

For someone newly diagnosed, everything begins with a consultation where Dr Pillay goes over the medical information already collected and describes what the multidisciplinary review will entail. The referring doctor stays in the loop throughout, and the practice shapes its scheduling to suit that doctor's needs alongside the patient's. Coordinating in this way is meant to cut down the number of separate visits a patient must make and to keep everyone involved aligned on a single plan.

The focus on advanced radiation technology mirrors just how far the discipline has moved. Approaches like intensity-modulated radiotherapy and image-guided radiation therapy allow a tumour to be targeted with greater precision, which can help shield nearby organs and tissue. Paired with chemotherapy, targeted therapy and immunotherapy when suitable, this spread of options lets the team match treatment to the specific type and stage of a cancer rather than leaning on any one technique.

Access to care has run like a thread through Dr Pillay's whole career, from her humanitarian service to her advocacy for rural health, and it still guides how the practice runs day to day. By treating patients at the facility of their choice and holding costs down wherever it can, Treating Cancer seeks to put specialist oncology within reach of people who might otherwise find travel or the expense of a long course of treatment out of reach.

For anyone looking for an oncologist in Johannesburg, the broader picture is worth keeping in mind. Integrative, comprehensive cancer care that brings several specialists together under one plan is winning growing recognition as a sensible way to guide patients clearly through a complicated illness. Treating Cancer puts one-on-one relationships at the core of that journey, setting out to support not just the patient but the family and friends travelling it with them.

Patients, families and referring doctors can explore the full picture of the practice, the cancers it treats and its treatment options on the Treating Cancer website at https://treatingcancer.co.za/.

About Treating Cancer

Treating Cancer is the Johannesburg practice of Dr Prinitha Pillay, a specialist radiation oncologist registered under practice number PR0876046. The practice delivers comprehensive, multidisciplinary cancer care that unites medical, surgical and radiation oncology with supportive services including nursing and nutrition. Its treatments span chemotherapy, radiation therapy, targeted therapy and immunotherapy, stereotactic radiotherapy, brachytherapy and nuclear medicine, all provided at state-of-the-art facilities in South Africa.

Media Contact
Treating Cancer
Email: [email protected]
Phone: +27 66 272 6582
Website: https://treatingcancer.co.za