Surgeons Specialize In Treating Variety Of Cancer Sites
A surgical oncologist is a physician who specializes in surgeries used to treat certain types of cancer. They typically have fellowship training beyond their general surgery training. At Premier Health, we have surgical oncologists who perform specialized procedures for melanoma, pancreatic cancer, and cancers of the colon, rectum, liver, and other parts of the digestive tract.
Each cancer specialty takes a multidisciplinary approach to patient care and treatment, bringing together surgeons who collaborate with oncology navigators, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, radiologists, and others.
The Liver Cancer Center of Ohio combines the skills of both surgical and interventional oncology specialists to treat liver cancer. Surgical oncologists James Ouellette, DO, FACS, and Matthew Doepker, MD, both certified physicians with MD Anderson Cancer Network®, work closely with interventional radiologist Shannon Kauffman, MD. Premier Health is among a small group of programs in the country to take this collaborative approach. Oncologists, gastroenterologists, primary care physicians, and other care providers also contribute to care.
For patients with melanoma, our surgical oncology team now offers T-VEC, a local immunotherapy treatment that kills melanoma cells in the skin and lymph nodes. T-VEC uses a virus to infect and kill cancer cells while avoiding normal, healthy cells. T-VEC is injected directly into melanoma tumors. The virus replicates within the cells, causing them to rupture and die.
