Saturday, April 14, 2018 • Page 1B
Team-Focused Approach Can Improve Care for Breast Cancer Patients Memorial Hermann Greater Heights For The Leader Cancer is complex. As a result, it often requires various treatment therapies. That’s why Memorial Hermann Greater Heights Hospital uses a team approach to deliver quality cancer care. The Hospital’s Breast Care Center is fully accredited by the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers, which signifies the highest standards of care for patients with diseases of the breast. Many Medical Disciplines Contribute to Each Care Plan Members of the Memorial Hermann Greater Heights Breast Care Team work collaboratively to develop a plan of care and to monitor patients to meet their unique medical, physical and emotional needs throughout their cancer journeys. Team members include affiliated physicians who specialize in general and plastic surgery, medical oncology, radiation oncology, radiology and pathology, along with rehabilitation specialists and Oncology Nurse Navigator Angela Sisk, MSN, RN, OCN (“Sisk”). Sisk uses her decades of experience as an oncology nurse to guide, educate and support cancer patients from a possible cancer diagnosis through survivorship. She explains how the team approach begins. “We ask newly diagnosed breast cancer patients to meet with a breast surgeon, a medical oncologist – the doctor who manages che-
motherapy – and a radiation oncologist before treatment begins,” says Sisk. “Then these specialists, along with other members of the Breast Care Team, present the patient’s case at a weekly conference. The team discusses evidence-based guidelines and appropriate care before finalizing their recommendation for the patient’s individualized treatment plan.” Each physician brings a different skill set to the care team, looking at each case differently. Team member W. Mike Ratliff, MD (“Dr. Ratliff”), an affiliated surgeon who specializes in diseases of the breast, praises the multidisciplinary approach to patient care. “After everyone presents their findings and recommendations, we will reach consensus on a patient’s treatment plan,” says Dr. Ratliff. “Sometimes one physician will ask, ‘Have you considered this?’ or ‘Should we do that?’ I have no doubt this collegiality has led to improved care for breast cancer patients.” Sisk documents treatment recommendations into each patient’s medical records. The physician who treats the patient first shares the proposed plan, including the order of specific therapies. Maximum time is allowed for questions and acceptance of the plan. “I try to allay my patients’ fears and encourage them emotionally because breast cancer is largely a very treatable disease,” says Dr. Ratliff. “If you can help them and reassure them, then they can say, ‘I can do this,’ and that’s a neat thing to see.”
Directory
chiropractic care
Northwest ChiropraCtiC George G. Junkin, D.C. D.A.C.B.N. Nutritionist 11500 NW Frwy - Suite 201 Houston, Texas 77092 Tel: 713-686-0828 www.drjunkin.com Photo supplied With a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach to Breast Cancer Care, physicians affiliated with Memorial Hermann Greater Heights Cancer Center monitor their patients’ medical, physical and emotional needs throughout the cancer journey.
Weekly Meetings and Constant Support After treatment begins, the Memorial Hermann Greater Heights Breast Care Team meets weekly to discuss each patient’s progress. As Nurse Navigator, Sisk serves as the liaison between patients and the Breast Care Team. She is passionate about sharing community and hospital resources with her patients to enhance each one’s physical, emotional and spiritual wellbeing.
“I look at the whole person and always assess barriers to care, whether they’re financial, transportation or psychosocial,” says Sisk. “I call patients at high-stress times, which include before and after surgery and during chemotherapy.”
as witnessed by Dr. Ratliff. “Obviously we’d like for no one to have breast cancer, but with improved treatment options, patients are experiencing better outcomes, living longer and often being cured, and that’s very gratifying,” says Dr. Ratliff.
Making Significant Strides in Breast Cancer Care Breast cancer treatment has significantly improved over the past three decades,
To learn more about breast cancer care at Memorial Hermann Greater Heights Hospital, contact Angela Sisk at 713.867.2062.
Breast Cancer Team Affiliated Surgeons: Ronnie Adams, II, MD W. Mike Ratliff, MD Christophe Salcedo, MD
Affiliated Medical Oncologists: Peter Farha, MD Kevin Hude, MD Shahab Khan, MD Julio Peguero, MD
Affiliated Radiation Oncologist: Aparna Surapaneni, MD Nurse Navigator: Angela Sisk, MSN, RN, OCN
What’s the science behind gluten free? If there was a wanted poster of the most maligned protein, gluten would be on it. Whether it be the prevalence of gluten free recipes or the prominent gluten free labels on many grocery store items, gluten is enemy number one. But should it be? Dr. Pippa Evans, a family doctor in Houston who was formerly a staff physician at Duke Medical Center, said that the biggest problems gluten is known to cause are for those with Celiac Disease. Celiac Disease is an autoimmune disorder in individuals who have variants in one of two specific genes. It wasn’t until after World War II in Europe that doctors discovered the connection between gluten and celiac due to the decrease in the availability of wheat and the declining mortality rates in celiac patients. In the United States, a 1980 article in the Journal of Gastroenterology and a 1993 JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association piece helped entrench the celiac/gluten connection in people’s minds. The JAMA article, authored by celiac expert Dr. Alessio Fasano, noted that Celiac Disease is actually present in 1 in 133 Americans, which is ten times higher than what researchers originally thought. Dr. Evans notes that although eliminating wheat is the way to get rid of most gluten in your diet, gluten is only one of the proteins present in wheat. And that for those who don’t have a true gluten allergy, or gluten sensitivity, elminating wheat can prevent people from getting many research demonstrated benefits of whole grains, such as the prevention of coronary artery disease and diabetes. “Gluten has been vilified,” said Dr. Evans. “Pork rinds don’t have gluten but that doesn’t mean they are good for you. In the 1980s, people weren’t eating eggs because of the literature linking high cholesterol and heart attacks. But we missed a step.” Dr. Evans explains that the cholesterol level in eggs isn’t nearly as harmful as saturated and trans fat on blood cholesterol – and eggs have other nutrients that are helpful. “Gluten can be a scapegoat for dietary woes,” said Dr. Evans, who notes that for some people a gluten sensitivity is dose dependent. “But if you do
internal Medicine/Pediatrics Nutrition/ Weight Loss
Ana M. Torres, M.D. , P.A. 713.863.9200 427 W. 20th St. Ste #503 Houston, TX 77008 www.Thetorrescenter.com
obstetrics / Gynecology
Dr. Stephanie Fulton
By Betsy Denson betsy@theleadernews.com
See Gluten P. 6B
Preferred Health
Stephanie Fulton, M.D.
1740 W. 27 St. Suite 301 Houston, TX 77008 713-880-2727 www.fultonobgyn.com
Major Hospitals Photo supplied The Houston Food Bank is looking for additional distribution sites in the near North to serve more seniors.
Houston Food Bank serves seniors in the local community By Kim Hogstrom For The Leader The Leader’s readers enjoy living in some of the most desirable areas in Houston. Still, these communities are old by Houston’s standards, and more than a few of the original residents are aging along with them. This vulnerable population often lives on a fixed income falling well below the national average. The number of local seniors trying to survive in poverty is, at best, alarming. According to Healthcare CEO, an agency dedicated to the study of healthcare in Texas, 43 percent of Houston’s senior households have in-
comes less than $30k, and 23 percent of the city’s residents 60 and older qualified for food stamps last year. Even with help, can these members of our community afford to pay their bills - and still eat? In many cases, the answer is “no,” but the Houston Food Bank is stepping in to help. The agency is working to provide additional assistance to Houston’s senior citizens through increased distribution of its free Senior Box Program. The Houston Food Bank is the country’s largest, and won “Feeding See Foodbank P. 6B
Memorial Hermann Greater Heights 1635 North Loop West Houston, Texas 77008 Tel: 713-867-2000 memorialhermann.org Physician Referral 713.222.CARE
St. Joseph Medical Center in The Heights 1917 Ashland Street Houston, Texas 77008 Tel: 713-757-1000 Physician Referral 713-757-7575
QUALITY CARE FOR WOMEN, DELIVERED DAILY IN THE HEIGHTS. Our family-centered approach focuses on making your childbirth experience as memorable and positive as possible. From the time you learn you are pregnant until your child is born, you and your baby benefit from specialized medical care delivered by our highly skilled affiliated physicians and nurses. Our Level II Neonatal Intensive Care Unit provides advanced care for preemies and babies with special medical needs. And we provide the added reassurance of expedited access to a higher level of care when needed at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital in the Texas Medical Center. To schedule a tour or obtain a physician referral, call 713.222.CARE.
Located at Loop 610 and Ella Boulevard memorialhermann.org/heights