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BUILDING ON A COLLABORATIVE TEAM OF EXPERIENCED, HIGHLY TRAINED AND COMPASSIONATE SPECIALISTS, VASSAR BROTHERS MEDICAL CENTER HAS BROADENED THE SCOPE OF ADVANCED SERVICES IT OFFERS AND IS EQUIPPED TO PROVIDE THE FULL SPECTRUM OF ONCOLOGY CARE TO PATIENTS IN THE MID HUDSON VALLEY. THE GROWTH OF Health Quest Medical Practice, P.C. (HQMP), through the addition of clinicians with wide-ranging expertise, ha s ex pa nded the medica l oncolog y team at Vassar Brothers Medical Center's Dyson Center for Cancer Care. Patients now have access to specialists and subspe- cialists who jointly tailor treatment plans to their specific tumor type or disease state, fostering improved coordination of care and peace of mind. In addition, the multi- disciplinary approach combined with the availability of clinical trials means patients may receive leading-edge care without the expense and other logistica l burdens involved in traveling to facilities outside the region. MEDICAL ONCOLOGY A prima r y focus of oncolog y ca re at Vassar Brothers Medical Center is col- laboration. One way Vassar Brothers Medical Center ensures rigorous collabora- tion and precisely tailored treatment is by following a tumor-specific model of care that allows patients to see multiple special- ists on the same day. "If, for example, a patient has a new diagnosis of a lung mass or lung cancer, he or she would go to the multidisciplinary thoracic clinic," says James Leonardo, MD, PhD, FACP, Medical Director of Medical Oncology at HQMP. "The providers par- ticipating in that clinic all have expertise in lung cancers. Patients see surgery, radiation and medical oncologists with unique experience in that area. That's where the tumor specificity comes in — as cancer treatments become so complex, it is now a necessity to have local specialists with a high degree of knowledge about specific types of cancer. We have those here." The tumor board approach is used for thoracic cancer, esophageal cancer and breast cancer. Gastrointestinal tumor Vassar Brothers Medical Center Delivers Comprehensive Cancer Services to the Mid Hudson Valley BY HANNAH STUART ELEVATING ONCOLOGY: Cliff Connery, MD, FACS, FCCP, Medical Director of the Dyson Center for Cancer Care and Medical Director of the HQMP Division of Thoracic Oncology, discusses a plan of care with a patient. Photos © Paul Friedman 0 6 0 6❱❱❱❱❱ C O V E R F E A T U R E