St. Luke's Advantage Fall 2012

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Non Profit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Cedar Rapids, IA Permit No. 91

1026 A Avenue NE PO Box 3026 Cedar Rapids, IA 52406-3026

Advantage

We apologize for mailing problems such as duplicate copies. If you have questions or concerns, please call us at 319/369-7475 or Advantage@crstlukes.com. © 2012 by St. Luke’s Hospital, Cedar Rapids, IA

Fall 2012

Connect with St. Luke’s at stlukescr.org

Healthcare information on your phone or computer

LiveWell update

Looking for great health information?

Stop Diabetes Before It Starts

Take a look at St. Luke’s new website stlukescr.org. It offers: Results. It’s easy to find what you need, thanks to our new search feature. Online chats. Ask hospital departments questions about your medical records, upcoming events and classes, St. Luke’s job opportunities and more.

News and events. You’ll find a news ticker of up-to-date health information on main hospital pages. Find a doctor or clinic. Search for healthcare providers based on location or specialty.

Tuesday, November 13 • 6:30 p.m. Speakers: Dr. Rao (see page 2) and Dr. Eugene Nassif Diabetes is running rampant in America, and you have the power to stop it. Learn how you can reverse the trend and stop diabetes before it starts, or at least lower your risk. If you’ve already been diagnosed with diabetes, attend to learn valuable tips.

Arthritis Is A Pain! Monday, December 3 • 6:30 p.m Speakers: Dr. Cherascu (PCI Rheumatology) and The Arthritis Foundation Living with arthritis can be challenging, but there are many things you can do to ease your pain and enjoy the activities you want to. Learn the basics about the condition as well as various treatment options. All events are free. Classes are held at St. Luke’s Hospital, 3rd floor Nassif Heart Center classrooms. Register by calling 319/369-7395 or visit stlukescr.org/livewell.

Mobile website. At stlukescr.org/m get Urgent Care and ER wait times, turn-by-turn directions and health information for users on the go!

$99

Heart Scan

Breast cancer treatment

in half the time

St. Luke’s new technology reduces treatment time for select cancer patients. Imagine receiving radiation during surgery to the precise site where your tumor was just removed. St. Luke’s offers that option, called intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT), for certain cancer patients. This new technology applies a concentrated dose of radiation to the tumor site during surgery. “It eliminates weeks of radiation

treatment and applies radiation precisely where most cancers recur,” said Robert Brimmer, MD, Physicians’ Clinic of Iowa general surgeon. “For example, select breast cancer patients will only need three weeks of wholebreast radiation therapy following surgery. Patients who don’t receive IORT typically require six weeks of whole-breast radiation.” Jody Meyer, of Cedar Rapids, was diagnosed with breast cancer in December of 2010. “I had a lumpectomy followed by four chemotherapy treatments over a 12-week period and about six weeks of radiation treatment,” Meyer said. “I was constantly fatigued. It was overwhelming.” Meyers works full-time and scheduled her treatments over her lunch hour. “It was a tough time for me physically and mentally,” she said. “If IORT had been available to me when I was treated for breast cancer – I would have gone for it in a heartbeat.”

Jody Meyer is now cancer free thanks to her treatment at St. Luke’s.

New procedure IORT uses specialized equipment to deliver a single, targeted dose of radiation to a tumor site during surgery. St. Luke’s is the only hospital in Cedar Rapids to offer IORT. “I would seek this treatment out for myself if I or any family member was diagnosed with breast cancer,” said Kerri Nowell, MD, Physicians’ Clinic of Iowa general surgeon. “It will allow women to get back to their families, work and normal activities in much less time than the ‘traditional methods’ we’ve had up to this point, and the best part is the desired effect is the same – to get rid of the cancer.” continued

International research trial Intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT) is a precise, less invasive cancer treatment for early stage breast cancer. It’s a new technique and is now available at St. Luke’s through an international research trial. “To date, IORT has not been used as standard treatment of breast cancer,” said Robert Brimmer, MD, Physicians’ Clinic of Iowa general surgeon. “We’re hoping that our research will provide one more standard option for select breast cancer patients.”

St. Luke’s Heart Scan can help men and women between the ages of 40 and 70 identify their risk for heart disease. All that’s needed is a doctor’s referral. Call 319/369-8909 to learn more or schedule yours.

Living Longer. Living Well.


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