Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/748338
developed a keen interest in head a nd neck ca ncer su rger y. R ecog n i zi n g a need in Nor thea st Ohio for a surg ica l specia list in this f ield, he applied a nd was accepted for fellowship training at one of the nation's top ca ncer centers: Memor i a l S loa n-K et t er i n g Ca nc er Center in New York Cit y. A n active pa r ticipa nt in resea rch, Dr. B eddel l received t he Va n Bu ren S u r g ic a l R e s e a r c h Aw a r d i n 2 0 0 7 a nd t he A nd rew Ker r, Jr. Awa rd for Cl i n ica l S cience R esea rch i n 201 3 . T h e A m e r i c a n S o c i e t y o f P l a s t i c Su rgeon s a lso recog n i zed h i m w it h the awa rd for Best Paper for Pediatric or Cosmetic Plastic Surger y in 2014 at its nationa l conference. RESTORING FUNCTION Dr. Beddell offers a wide range of plastic a nd reconstructive ser vices including breast reconstruction, post-cancer sur- ger y a nd reconstruction, sca r revision, skin g ra f ts, a nd tissue impla nts. " My patient s a re pr i ma r i ly adu lts who need reconstructive surger y due to wounds, previous ca ncer surgeries or a defect from a traumatic injury," explains Dr. Beddel l. " I a lso see patients who present with congenita l abnorma lities that a re sti l l present from chi ld hood or that didn't sur face or appea r unti l later in life." Ma lig na nt tumors of t he head a nd neck ca n occur in a va riety of locations including nose, sca lp, throat, tong ue, ea rs a nd gla nds a nd a re of ten disf ig ur- ing, creating a lot of emotiona l stress for the patient. Patients with more severe ca ncers may a lso need reconstructive surger y to re-establish the f unction- a lit y, a s wel l a s the aesthetics, of the a ffected body pa r t. " W hen I look at head a nd neck ca n- cers, I not only think about how we a re going to treat the ca ncer, but I a lso look at bot h t he f unctiona l a nd cosmetic a spects a s I consider the reconstr uc- t ion opt ion s," says Dr. Beddel l, who advocates a multi-disciplina r y treat- ment approach. " It is ver y impor ta nt to prov ide ea ch patient w it h a wel l- rounded pla n of ca re, from the surgeon who removes the ca ncer to the speech la ng ua ge a nd swa l low i ng t herapist . We a ll work towa rds the sa me goa l — to help the patient restore function to as nea r norma l as possible." IMPROVING COSMESIS AND SELF-ESTEEM M a ny pat ient s w it h hea d a nd ne ck ca ncers a lso str uggle w ith depression a nd a nxiety. Dr. Beddell reca lls a young patient he treated during his head a nd neck fel lowsh ip at Memor ia l Sloa n- Ket tering Ca ncer Center. She wa s a n 18 -yea r-old w it h sa rcoma of t he jaw who needed ca ncer su rger y. D u r i n g the surg ica l procedure, her tumor wa s completely removed a long w ith ha lf of her jaw, which wa s reconstr ucted with bone from her leg. "Initia lly it was diff icult to converse w ith her because she wa s so emotion- a l ly d ist raug ht f rom t he d ia g nosis," r e c a l l s D r. B e d de l l . " S h e w a s a l s o depressed w it h t he i n itia l resu lt s of her surger y, which included ex tensive swel ling a nd a life-a ltering cha nge to her physica l appea ra nce." W hen t he pat ient ret u r ned t h ree mont hs later for fol low-up, however, there wa s a sig nif ica nt dif ference in her demea nor a nd her appea ra nce. "It was a pleasure to see not only that the ca ncer had been completely removed, but she a lso had no long-term functiona l deficit. We were able to provide her with a result that was as close to norma l as possible," he says. "She was ver y happy with the results of her surger y, as were her pa rent s, who sa id, ' We have ou r little g irl back.'" EMPLOYING ROBOTIC ASSISTANCE I n a dd it ion t o t r a d it ion a l s u r g ic a l procedures, Dr. Beddell is a lso highly tra ined in the use of Tra nsora l Robotic Surger y (TOR S) to remove head a nd neck cancers that were previously inac- cessible — pr i ma r i ly for ea rly st a ge oropharyngea l T1 and T2 tumors. Using a robot provides a better view of certain a rea s, li ke t he ba se of t he tong ue or tumors in the tonsi ls, a nd a l lows for a more ta rgeted a nd minima l ly inva- sive procedure. W hile robotic-a ssisted surger y ha s been used for ma ny yea rs in specia l- ties such as urolog y, OB-GY N, thoracic surger y and genera l surger y, it has been only recently utilized for head and neck ca ncer surger y. " Robotic a ssista nce prov ides g reat adva nta ges in treatment of head a nd neck ca ncers a nd a l lows patient s to ma i nt a i n t hei r best qua l it y of l i fe," Dr. Beddell expla ins. He is excited to be able to prov ide TORS by the end of this yea r. " We will be the f irst practice in the A kron a rea to offer this cutting-edge treatment to our patients," he says. F o r m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t D r. G reg Beddell and his services, visit www.serenityplastics.com . To refer a patient, call 330 -971-9730. ■ 1 5 M D N E W S .C O M /// M D N E W S C L E V E L A N D /A K R O N / C A N T O N ■ N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R 2 016