Live Well Dayton: Cancer Care

LIVE WELL DAYTON ›› CANCER CARE

Cutting Cancer Down to Size

Surgical options bring the best cancer care to the Dayton area

BY JENNIFER PAT TERSON LORENZET TI

DAYTON MAGAZINE . February/March 2019

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Dayton Physicians Network offers World Class Cancer Care and Urology Services throughout the Miami Valley- Close to Home.

Call us at 937-293-1622 or visit www.daytonphysicians.com 1. Centerville 2300 Miami Valley Dr. Centerville, Ohio 45459 2. Englewood 9000 North Main St. Dayton, Ohio 45415 3. Kettering 3120 Governor’s Place Blvd.

Kettering, Ohio 45409 4. Troy 3130 N. County Rd. Troy, Ohio 45373 5. Franklin 501 Atrium Dr. Franklin, Ohio 45005 6. Greenville 1111 Sweitzer St. Greenville, Ohio 45331

LIVE WELL DAYTON ›› CANCER CARE

W

hen people think of cancer treatment they often think of chemotherapy and radiation therapy, both mainstays of effective treatment.

But for many cancer patients the battle against cancer begins with the surgeon, who can set the tone for the remainder of the treatment time and potentially ease the path to a successful outcome.

Dr. Sameep Kadakia is a surgeon with Premier Health. Dual fellowship trained in both otolaryngology and reconstructive surgery he is the only surgeon in the Dayton area to bring this unique skill-set to cancer treatment.

“Head and neck cancers can be challenging for families,” he says, noting that these cancers are often difficult both from a systems and a surgical viewpoint. Operating on these conditions requires him to understand trauma surgery, skull- and neurology-based surgery, and reconstructive procedures, all with the goal of giving the patient the best chance at resuming their normal life.

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His dual focus allows him to approach cancer surgery from a holistic perspective.

Not only does he work to remove cancers in delicate areas of the head and neck he does so with an eye to what it will take to reconstruct and repair any defects that remain. “It’s continuity of care,” he says.

“How are we going to do the reconstructive (work)?”

Kadakia was attracted to the Dayton area both for work and for personal reasons.

“Dayton is a great place to live and raise a family,” he says. He also found that there has been a 10- to 15-year period in which patients with these cancers have needed to travel to Columbus or Cincinnati for their treatment. “This can be quite taxing for the family. This is a population that wants to stay local,” he says. He is happy to be part of a team that can also provide medical oncology, radiation therapy, primary care and physical therapy all near home.

He says he sees many patients who have more advanced tumors that are challenging to treat surgically. “(The tumors)

Dr. Minia Hellan, Kettering Health Network

HEALTH PROFILE

From Routine to Recovery

Regular screenings make early detection possible

For years, Carolyn Welcelean has made a point to get regular checkups and screenings. This dedication to what she calls a “really strong regimen” may have saved her life.

In March, Welcelean had a routine ultrasound to screen for breast cancer. The following week, the staff in the Kettering Breast Evaluation Center at Soin Medical Center asked her to return for a biopsy.

When breast cancer is found early there is a better chance that treatment will be effective. After Welcelean’s biopsy, she had a lumpectomy—a surgery where the physician removes the cancer and a small part of the surrounding tissue, but not the breast itself. This was a different procedure than what she originally planned, but after learning more about her options she worked with the physicians to create a plan to meet her needs.

Surgery was followed by radiation treat-

ments, where she was the first patient to receive treatment at Soin Medical Center’s new radiation therapy center. Receiving treatment at Soin Medical Center had special meaning to Welcelean, a previous volunteer at the hospital’s cancer center and current employee in the hospital’s patient registration department.

the patients but also the family,” she says.

“I’m just a little pebble in a big pond, but this little pebble likes to help other people.”

“They’re extremely people-oriented and friendly and make you feel very comfortable,” she says. “Having a place where it’s all in one area makes it so much easier for both the family and the patient and it is such a blessing for so many people.”

“It’s very important to take care of your health,” she says. “You can let it go really easy and just not think about it, but it’s not going to go away.”

A positive perspective

Schedule a mammogram today by calling Kettering Breast Evaluation Centers at 1-800-373-2160 or request an appointment at ketteringhealth.org/breasthealth

Welcelean has always felt the desire to give back and her attitude during this experience was no different.

“I was one of the very first volunteers up at the cancer center because my husband had passed away from cancer and I wanted to be able to give back not only to

Welcelean’s takeaway from her treatment: keep up with regular screenings and appointments, because “no one can always dodge the bullet.”

Make your health a priority

LIVE WELL DAYTON ›› CANCER CARE

Dr. Rebecca Tuttle, Kettering Health Network

involve structures that are more difficult (to manage),” he says, noting that part of being an effective surgeon is being “humble enough to know when to stop.”

He urges people to have anything worrisome looked at sooner rather than later.

“Anytime you see something abnormal check it out. Have a low threshold for going in to see a physician,” he says.

Kadakia is passionate about the work he does with cancer patients, a passion which has been building since his residency.

“It’s an honor and a privilege to care for these patients.”

Finding the right specialist in surgical oncology is essential to receiving the best care for a patient’s particular needs. At Kettering Health Network two surgeons who are ranked in the top decile in the U.S. offer support for cancer patients as part of Kettering’s team approach. Dr. Rebecca Tuttle is highly experienced in general surgery and surgical oncology, and, for some cases, she uses a new technique called intraperitoneal chemotherapy in

which chemotherapy drugs are introduced directly into the abdomen to target certain cancers.

Dr. Minia Hellan also focuses on surgical oncology, plus nanoknife ablation, laparoscopic surgery and robotic-surgical techniques. These robotic techniques “are less invasive, heal faster and have less risk of infection,” says Elizabeth Koelker, executive director of the oncology service line for Kettering Health Network.

Koelker points out the importance of having experts in multiple disciplines all working together to provide cancer care.

She tells of walking the hallways and hearing physicians and therapists from several disciplines have informal conversations seeking best approaches for specific patients, an interdisciplinary approach that she says Kettering intended to foster.

She celebrates the fact that Kettering’s team of experts that address mind, body and spirit of the patient can help patients get interdisciplinary care while having support to address the emotional and

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LIVE WELL DAYTON ›› CANCER CARE financial toll that cancer can take on a patient and their family.

Cancer care in Dayton has a bright future. Dr. Linda Barney is an associate professor of surgery, associate director of the general surgery residency program at Miami Valley Hospital and director of the Division of General Surgery at Wright State Physicians. She says patients not only have access to a wide range of experts and technologies to help them in their recovery they also have access to a number of clinical trials that may be suitable for specific situations.

The training that future surgeons receive is particularly robust, and much has changed in recent years. There is the opportunity to learn laparoscopic and robotic-surgery techniques, which are commonly used in surgeries involving the gastrointestinal tract and the pelvis, such as those involving urological, gynecological and lower pelvic cancers.

Even though medical education today involves learning about a great deal of

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technology that has become commonplace in the past two to three decades, Barney says students “still need to learn the tried and true.” The ability to use conventional techniques as well as minimally invasive ones allows the surgeon the most flexibility in treating the specific patient’s needs.

According to the American Cancer Society, both men and women have a onein-three lifetime risk of developing cancer, with some cancers more common than others. For example, men have a one-innine chance of developing prostate cancer but a one-in-435 chance of developing Hodgkin’s disease. Women have a one-ineight chance of developing breast cancer but only a one-in-833 chance of developing laryngeal cancer.

The hard facts are that most of us will know someone or be someone who has to deal with a malignancy at some point in life. With the talents and resources of the area’s cancer surgeons and the teams of other experts getting beyond this scary diagnosis is more likely than ever. n

Dr. Linda Barney, Wright State Physicians

HEALTH PROFILE

937.245.7200 | wrightstatephysicians.org/surgery

The physicians and staff at Wright State Physicians are committed to providing patients with expert care. Wright State Physicians educates tomorrow’s physicians while providing exceptional health care in collaboration with the Dayton community.

Wright State Physicians is composed of more than 100 physicians affiliated with the Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine. The group provides primary and specialty care in a wide range of specialized diagnostic and treatment services throughout the Dayton region.

Wright State Physicians provides breast cancer care through its Department of Surgery. Linda Barney, M.D., and Melissa Roelle, M.D., are two leading experts in the treatment of breast cancer. They serve patients as experienced and trusted physicians in the Wright State Physicians Department of Surgery.

Linda Barney, M.D. Dr. Linda Barney’s areas of expertise include general surgery and laparoscopic surgery, trauma surgery and breast care. She is an associate professor of surgery at the Boonshoft School of Medicine, director of the Division of General Surgery at Wright State Physicians and associate director of the General Surgery Residency Program at Miami Valley Hospital.

To make an appointment with Dr. Barney, call 937.245.7200 or 937.208.2552.

Melissa Roelle, M.D. Dr. Melissa Roelle’s areas of expertise include general surgery and breast care. She is an assistant professor of surgery at the Boonshoft School of Medicine, a surgeon with Wright State Physicians and medical director of the High Risk Breast Cancer Center at Miami Valley Hospital South.

To make an appointment with Dr. Roelle, call 937.245.7200 or 937.208.2552.

Wright State Physicians Department of Surgery Miami Valley Hospital 30 E. Apple St., Suite 5253 Dayton, OH 45409 937.245.7200