Posts tagged ‘Timothy Wilson’
Prostate cancer abstract: So few words, so much impact
The title was this: “Expressed Prostatic Secretions Biomarkers Improve Stratification of National Comprehensive Cancer Network Active Surveillance Candidates.”
Prostate cancer, illustrated here, doesn’t always need immediate treatment. The dilemma is trying to decide when “active surveillance” is all that’s necessary. A new abstract, from researchers at City of Hope, could help doctors and patients decide.
And the conclusions were these: “Secondary screening by non-invasive EPS testing may improve patient acceptance of Active Surveillance by dramatically reducing the presence of occult risk factors in patients eligible for Active Surveillance under NCCN guidelines.”
- In between were the details on the number of patients, their risk classifications when it came to the likelihood of the disease’s spread, how the secretions were obtained, various biomarkers and the like.
To those uninitiated in the world of research, this abstract on prostate cancer staging might have seemed standard fare. After all, it consisted of the usual introduction and objectives, methods, results and conclusions – and it was short. That’s the nature of abstracts. (Think of them as a movie trailer for the full-length film.)
But when all was said and done, not only had the researchers – from none other than City of Hope – produced a tidy synopsis of some impressive science, they’d also won the Best Abstract award from the American Urology Association. And they’ll be presenting their work at the association’s annual meeting in San Diego, held May 4 to 8.
“The award provides salience at the meeting and recognizes basic science research that will likely alter clinical practice by moving the presentation to the plenary session,” said Steven Smith, Ph.D., professor of molecular science in the Division of Urology and the principal investigator on the study. “This is a huge national meeting attended by thousands of practicing urologists and scientists.”
In short, City of Hope is helping shape the practice of urology. Continue reading “Prostate cancer abstract: So few words, so much impact” »
‘My cancer diagnosis: What I wish I’d known’ – Bill Brutocao
One in a series of stories asking former patients to reflect upon their experience …
Soon after beginning treatment for prostate cancer at City of Hope in 2008, La Canada attorney Bill Brutocao received even more disturbing news. He was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma.
Former Hodgkin lymphoma patient Bill Brutocao, second from left, advises cancer patients not to become prima donnas. Cancer is hard on one’s family too, he says. He’s shown here with, from left, son Angelo, wife Christina, son Giancarlo and Giancarlo’s wife, Laura. (Photo courtesy Bill Brutocao)
Under the supervision of physicians Kevin Chan, M.D., clinical assistant professor of surgery in the Division of Urology and Urologic Oncology and Leslie Popplewell, M.D., clinical associate professor in the Department of Hematology & Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, Brutocao suspended prostate cancer treatment and began enduring 12 rounds of chemotherapy to battle the lymphoma.
En route to treatment one day, Brutocao noticed signs for a creative writing class at the hospital. He was intrigued, but didn’t sign up. Though he thought the process might be therapeutic, he says, “the last thing I wanted to do was write about my illness.”
Yet, as he began to feel better, he reconsidered writing. He tackled a new genre – children’s literature – and wrote “The Basking Shark Rescue Team.” Arguably, his fanciful characters – Beulah the Basking Shark, Sam the Seagull, Rocky the Otter and Corky the Cormorant – may have rescued their creator from the vortex of illness.
Brutocao, 62, is currently in remission from Hodgkin lymphoma but will require a prostatectomy in February that will be performed by Timothy Wilson, M.D., chief of the Division of Urology and Urologic Oncology at City of Hope and the Pauline and Martin Collins Family Chair in Urology.
Granddaughter Eleanora is just one of life’s pleasures for former Hodgkin lymphoma patient Bill Brutocao. (Photo courtesy of Bill Brutocao.)
Despite his medical challenges, Brutocao is optimistic about the future. Last August, he became a grandfather for the first time (to baby Eleanora). He might retire later this year but for now he’s working part-time as an attorney and also teaching intellectual property law at the University of La Verne Law School in Ontario. He has continued his saga of the Basking Shark gang (even inventing some new characters) in two more published books, “Rocky and the Great Bird Race” and “Sancho at the Music Festival.” And he has two more books in the works.
Compared to what he calls the “esoteric, arcane legal mumbo jumbo” he produces as an intellectual property lawyer, Brutocao finds his children’s books considerably more interesting to write – and read. “You’re only here for a little while,” Brutocao said. “You want to be remembered for something and I’d much rather be remembered as the guy who wrote ‘The Basking Shark Rescue Team.’”
We asked Brutocao to look back at the time of his diagnosis and to ask himself what he knows now that he wishes he’d known then. What wisdom, soothing words, practical tips or just old-fashioned advice would he give his newly diagnosed self? Continue reading “‘My cancer diagnosis: What I wish I’d known’ – Bill Brutocao” »
I, for one, welcome our new robot overlords … uh, surgeons
For such a small gland, the prostate stirs up a lot of debate. It seems that every month brings a new study that raises questions about how best to detect, diagnose and treat prostate cancer. And it’s that time again.
Clayton Lau, right, during a minimally invasive robotic surgery. (Photo by Alicia Di Rado)
This time it’s about the best way to operate.
When a prostate cancer patient chooses to have his cancer removed through an operation, he has a few options: a traditional open surgery, where the surgeon makes an incision across the patient’s entire lower abdomen; and laparoscopic surgery, in which surgeons operate using long, thin instruments inserted through small punctures or slits in the skin.
Robotic-assisted surgery takes laparoscopic surgery a step further. The surgical instruments are mounted on a robot, which surgeons control from a console.
Surgeons have performed robotic surgery for prostate cancer for a decade, but published studies still debate whether robotic surgery is any better than open surgery. City of Hope’s Timothy Wilson, M.D., Pauline and Martin Collins Family Chair in Urology, helped organize an international panel of surgeons to review data to see if they could come up with some answers.
So what did all these surgeons find?
Continue reading “I, for one, welcome our new robot overlords … uh, surgeons” »
How do you take the measure of a man?
Warren Buffett’s recent revelation about his prostate cancer diagnosis re-opened the debate over age and prostate cancer screening and treatment. At 81, Buffett falls outside of the commonly used guidelines that men over 75 don’t need to be screened for prostate cancer.
The United States Preventive Services Task Force made this recommendation in 2008, noting that most men over age 75 who develop prostate cancer die from other causes. Since prostate cancer in older men tends to develop slowly, experts say, these men do not need treatment that can cause incontinence and other side effects.
Interestingly, the task force announced its prostate cancer screening recommendations a year before it unveiled its recommendation that breast cancer screening should begin at 50 instead of the current 40 years of age. There was sustained public outrage over the breast cancer screening recommendations, but little hubbub over the guidelines on prostate cancer.
We should remember that guidelines are created to help the majority of people, and individuals can fall on either side of that bell curve — developing prostate cancer earlier or later in life than the typical patient. Men are encouraged to talk with their doctor about their personal health concerns and whether screening is right for them.
Timothy Wilson, M.D., Pauline and Martin Collins Family Chair in Urology and chief of the Division of Urology & Urologic Oncology, shares his thoughts in this video about the value of prostate cancer screening.
Why should men care about prostate cancer?
Timothy Wilson, M.D., Director, Prostate Cancer Program and Chief of the Division of Urology and Urologic Oncology Cancers at City of Hope, discusses why men should pay attention to prostate cancer, why screening is important, and outlines the many options and dispels fears about treatment side effects.
