Yes, you should continue to see your regular doctor or nurse practitioner for your diabetes while you are also seeing an oncologist for cancer care.
Your oncologist (also called a cancer doctor) is a specialist who focuses only on cancer. Cancer doctors have years of extra training on how to diagnose and treat cancer. Cancer treatments are constantly changing, and cancer doctors keep up with all these changes. However, because they are so focused on cancer, most cancer doctors don’t feel comfortable taking care of health issues outside of cancer treatment.
Because of that, you should continue to see your regular doctor for your other health problems, including your diabetes. If you don’t, your diabetes may go out of control and cause serious problems. That could lead to having to go to the hospital. If your diabetes goes out of control, your cancer treatment doses may need to be cut back, which makes them less effective. That’s why it’s important to continue to see the doctor or nurse practitioner who manages your diabetes while you’re getting cancer treatment.
If you have cancer, be aware: your diabetes still needs care.
