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Spring 2004 DeCesaris Cancer Institute: World’s First “See and Treat® Cancer Care Center of Excellence”Yes, there is such a thing as good news on the subject of cancer. And, in recent months in this region, a great deal of that good news is coming from the Geaton and JoAnn DeCesaris Cancer Institute at Anne Arundel Medical Center. A case in point is the recent announcement of an agreement between GE Healthcare, Varian Medical Systems and AAMC, wherein AAMC has been named the world’s first See and Treat Cancer Care Center of Excellence. This agreement is the first of its kind for any cancer program, anywhere in the world. It reflects the growing collaboration among the world’s leading producers of medical information and diagnostic imaging technology, clinical radiation treatment delivery systems, and the DeCesaris Cancer Institute, a program characterized by its commitment to emerging cancer care technologies. We are detecting cancer earlier...and treating tumors more precisely. Becoming the first See and Treat Cancer Care Center of Excellence has its origins in the Cancer Institute’s acquisition of See and Treat technology from GE Healthcare and Varian Medical Systems. See and Treat describes a suite of imaging and information technology and radiation oncology treatment innovations seen by many as a significant treatment breakthrough in recent years (see Vital Signs, Winter 2004). 
Bonnie Bresnahan, RT(R)(T), supervisor, DeCesaris Cancer Institute, prepare a patient for radiation treatment using the Varian 2100 EX Platinum linear accelerator. “Having the See and Treat Cancer Care technology and capabilities helps us to provide patients with the highest possible standard of care,” said John Surprenant, Chief Administrative Officer and Executive Director of the AAMC’s Geaton and JoAnn DeCesaris Cancer Institute. Mike McCullough, MEngr., clinical medical physicist, said, “We are detecting cancer earlier, pinpointing very small lesions, obtaining more accurate information about the extent of a patient’s disease, and treating tumors more precisely while protecting the surrounding healthy tissues and organs.” The DeCesaris Cancer Institute is using See and Treat Cancer Care technology to treat many forms of cancer, including cancers of the prostate, head and neck, breast, uterus, cervix, lung, liver, brain, spine, pancreas, and kidney. Stanley Watkins, Jr., M.D., Oncologist and Medical Director of the DeCesaris Cancer Institute has helped guide the AAMC Cancer Institute into the future. He said, “We made a decision some time ago to commit to the companies we believed would continue to set the pace,” he says. “Not only has that made integration of upgrades and new systems more effective, it’s also laid the groundwork for a longstanding relationship with these companies, which has led, ultimately, to the Center of Excellence agreement.” 
The DeCesaris Cancer Institute’s staff poses near the entrance of the newly renovated and expanded facility in the Donner Pavilion on the AAMC campus. The program Dr. Watkins refers to has four basic components as its foundation. First, AAMC commits to acquiring and employing each new generation of See and Treat Cancer Care technologies when they are released. Second, clinicians from AAMC will participate in a special See and Treat Medical Advisory Board, and provide Varian and GE with clinical feedback and ongoing input for continuous improvement. This shared pool of experience ensures that current patients and future generations will benefit from clinical and technological advances in detection and treatment of cancer. Third, AAMC’s DeCesaris Cancer Institute will serve as a model for clinicians from other cancer programs to observe. Finally, a demanding and extensive information-reporting requirement must be met and maintained. Dr. Watkins said, “Our roster of physicians,radiation therapists andoncology nurses, physicists and dosimetrists has grown in size and depth, with credentials that place them in the top tier of people in their fields. It’s a highly productive and exciting equation between the best people getting the utmost performance from the next generation of diagnostic and treatment technology.” “Maryland’s cancer statistics generally and Anne Arundel County’s specifically have placed us squarely on the front line in the fight against cancer. The See and Treat technology and Center of Excellence designation are signals to the community that the resources, the people and technology, to gain the upper hand in that fight are here, now, and will remain here for some time to come,” he said. Good news, indeed, that seems destined to keep getting better. |
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