ELITE 8 continued...
Members of the Genitourinary Multidisciplinary Clinic, led by Dr. Damian Laber (center), discuss treatment options.
includes speech pathologists and others urges everyone on the team to look at each case through both a short and a long lens.”
Looking Ahead Never one to rest on past accomplishments, Dr. Miller continues to look forward to the next stages of multidisciplinary care. “We are working with members from across our clinic teams to work out how they can work together and learn from each other more effectively even as each team continues to hone its own work,” he said. “In addition, we will continue to look across the spectrum of cancers and the unique needs of our regional health landscape to identify new multidisciplinary opportunities. ■
BRAIN TUMOR CLINIC OPENS AT BROWN The latest addition to the Brown Cancer Center multidisciplinary clinical service is the Brain Tumor Clinic, which saw its first patients in the summer of 2009. According to Edward C. Halperin, MD, clinic radiation oncologist and dean of the UofL School of Medicine, Kentucky’s dire health statistics called for a specialized clinic for tumors of the brain and spine. “Nationally, roughly half of all brain tumors are metastasized cancers from the lung, breast or melanoma,” Dr. Halperin explains. “Kentucky has the highest adult smoking rate in the country, along with the lowest lung cancer survival and high rates of both breast cancer and melanomas.” Dr. Halperin explains that, in Kentucky, brain tumors metastasized from other cancers outnumber primary brain tumors ten to one, accounting for 30 percent of cancer-related deaths. “With the focused care of a multidisciplinary team, we can make a difference in the quality and longevity of life for many patients from across the region,” he said.
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Like other Brown Cancer Center multidisciplinary teams, the Brain Tumor Clinic weaves together the expertise of health professionals from across the spectrum, including neurosurgery, neurology, radiation oncology, medical oncology, neuroradiology, pathology, nursing, social work, and psychology. In all, approximately 15 health care professionals are actively involved in reviewing and mapping a treatment plan for each case. Patients may attend conference meetings — increasing their own education about their diagnosis, and giving the team the opportunity to work with the patient in developing a strategy. “A patient may check in for an initial work-up at 9 a.m., meet with the conference at 11 a.m., and have the group decision by early afternoon,” Halperin explained. “By the time a patient leaves the clinic, he or she will have had the opportunity to meet and ask questions of physicians and health professionals on the team without having to make multiple trips or appointments.” The Brain Tumor Clinic, still in its early months, is seeing a handful of patients. However, Dr. Halperin’s experience as a member of the Duke University Brain Tumor Clinic leads him to expect the clinic to grow to roughly 150 new cases per year when it reaches maturity.
J A M E S G R A H A M BROWN CANCER CENTER