Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/325083
M EE T T H E CCC S T T E A M MEDICAL ONCOLOGY AND HEMATOLOGY + Faheem Ahmed, MD — Marble Falls + Rebecca E. Barrington, MD, FACP — Kerrville + Sridhar Beeram, MD — San Antonio, Uvalde + Suneetha Challagundla, MD — San Antonio, Boerne, Floresville + Linda Couch, MD, PhD — San Antonio + Sreedevi Daggubati, MD — New Braunfels, Seguin + Mark C. DeLeon, MD — Fredericksburg + Anu Dham, MD — San Antonio, Pleasanton/Jourdanton + Thomas D. Fisher, MD — San Antonio, Marble Falls + David J. Friedman, MD, PhD — San Antonio, Hondo + David H. Gordon, MD, FACP — San Antonio + Vijay K. Gunuganti, MD — San Antonio + Gregory J. Guzley, MD, FACP — San Antonio + Allyson L. Harroff, MD — San Antonio + Ed L. Hesita, MD — San Antonio + Irene Kazhdan, MD, PhD — San Antonio, Boerne + Roger M. Lyons, MD, FACP — San Antonio + J. Dean McCracken, MD, FACP — San Antonio, Pleasanton/Jourdanton + Jesse E. Medellin, MD — San Antonio + Manuel A. Santiago, MD — San Antonio, Uvalde + Abram Trevino, MD — New Braunfels, Seguin + Sushma Vemulapalli, MD — San Antonio + Sharon T. Wilks, MD, FACP — San Antonio + Alexander Zweibach, MD, PhD — New Braunfels BREAST SURGERY + Kathryn A. Wagner, MD — San Antonio GYNECOLOGIC ONCOLOGY + Antonio Santillan-Gomez, MD, MBA, FACOG — San Antonio RADIATION ONCOLOGY + Michael J. Gagnon, MD — San Antonio + R. Scott Lawson, MD — New Braunfels + Bryan C. Lin, MD — San Antonio, New Braunfels lends a personal dimension to cancer care for CCCST patients. "We want to thank family members for their hard work," Dr. Trevino says. "They make up an important part of our treatment team, and we acknowledge that in a nonclinical setting. Last year, more than 100 patients and family members attended the annual event. As a CCCST oncologist at our patient barbecue, it is great to feel you are part of a wider community." At New Brau n fels, t he recent ly acquired Varian Clinac 21EX linear accelerator offers nuanced radiation therapy to target tumors and spare healthy tissue, Dr. Trevino says. With a range of dosage and electronic energy choices, the linear accelerator has the ability to conform radiation to irregular tumor shapes. Treatments last only a few minutes, making them significantly quicker than conventional radiation therapy, Dr. Trevino says. For cancer diagnosis, combined PET/ CT offers detailed images of the body's interior while locating cancers with pin- point accuracy. Traditionally, patients would have to travel for diagnostics with such advanced technology and wait at the imaging center for contrast dye and radioactive imaging media to be absorbed by the body. CCCST provides PET/CT diagnosis to patients at a variety of locations, including New Braunfels and Kerrville, by means of a mobile unit, which travels from one practice location to another. In addition to advanced radiotherapy and imaging, CCCST offers personal- ized medicine to many cancer patients, tailoring treatments to the patients' genet ic ma keup or t he molec u la r pathways involved in the creation of a particular tumor. Even for such highly specialized care, patients may not have to leave their own communities. "I am excited to be affiliated with this reputable and ethical group of physicians who are highly recognized," Dr. Trevino says. "Many are internation- ally known and well-published. "We offer standardized care accord- ing to proven guidelines, keep patients informed about their prognosis and treatment options, and get to know patients so we can understand their quality-of-life goals and concerns," he continues. "The level of trust between physicia ns a nd patients is unprec- edented in my experience." CCCST gives back to communities in many ways, including participating in the American Cancer Society's Relay For Life and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Light the Night, as well as hosting reg ular patient and family events at the clinics, such as annual Patient Days. Geographically Dispersed, Medically Connected C C C S T 's m o d e l o f i nt e g r a t e d medicine distributed among multiple locations means providers live in many of the communities they ser ve and know their patients well, while offering innovative technology and treatments. "We offer the sa me level of ca re patients will find in a large city or a major academic center," Dr. Trevino says. "The treatment plans we provide Mark DeLeon, MD, the only medical oncologist and hematologist in Fredericksburg, sees patients at 204 W. Schubert St.