With a new comprehensive clinic and new staff, the head and neck cancer program at Rush offers patients the highly specialized expertise and therapies necessary to treat these rare tumors — including those found on the underside of the brain, or skull base which represent only about 3 percent of cancers in patients in the nited States.

2011 Highlights

New clinic: The Coleman Foundation Comprehensive Head and Neck Tumor Clinic began seeing patients this past year, adding to the gowing number of cancer clinics at Rush that bring together a eam of experts — in this case, surgeons, radiation oncologists, peech pathologists, medical oncologists, neuroradiologists and urses — who collaborate to develop individualized plans for each patient.

High volumes: Head and neck surgeon Guy Petruzzelli, MD, PhD, has the experience that translates into better outcomes. He performed more than 300 cancer procedures in 2011.

Review findings: In light of a lack of consensus about the optimal way to identify human papillomavirus-associated squamous cell
carcinoma of the oropharynx, head and neck surgeon Guy Petruzzelli, MD, PhD, and other researchers from Rush published a review of ancillary studies in the journal Pathology Research
International, demonstrating the utility of ancillary tests in the establishment of the HPV status of oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma.

New staff: The head and neck tumor team welcomed a new member, David Sher, MD, MPH, a radiation oncologist who specializes in head, neck and lung tumors. Sher earned his
medical degree from Harvard Medical School and completed a fellowship through the Harvard radiation oncology program.

Multidisciplinary Team

Head and neck surgeons:
Thomas Nielsen, MD; Guy Petruzzelli, MD, PhD

Medical oncologists:
Mary Jo Fidler, MD; John Showel, MD

Neurosurgeons:
Richard Byrne, MD; Lorenzo Muñoz, MD 

Neuroradiologist:
Miral Jhaveri, MD

Radiation oncologists:
Aidnag Diaz, MD, MPH; David Sher, MD, MPH

Head and Neck Tumor Conference
First and third Wednesdays
7 to 8 a.m.
Janet Wolter, MD, Clinical
and Educational Conference Room
1010 Professional Building

Clinical Trials

Researchers at Rush are investigating a variety of new therapies for head and neck cancers. For more information about open clinical trials, visit www.rush.edu/cancerclinicaltrials. To enroll a patient in a clinical trial, call (312) 942-0600.

For more information about the head and neck cancer program or to refer a patient for an initial visit or a second opinion, please call (312) CANCER-1 (226-2371).