Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/976263
includes genetic testing and counseling to help determine patients' risk of developing ca ncer in the future and nurse navigators to help patients understand their plan of treatment + Low-dose CT Lung Cancer Screening program designed to reduce lung cancer deaths through early detection In 2012, the entire north wing of the seventh floor at St. Francis was completely renovated to become what is still the area's only dedicated medica l a nd surg ica l cancer treatment center. The Via Christi Cancer Institute fea- tures 40 private patient rooms; family gathering, sleep and laundry rooms; a gym; prayer and meditation room; movie theater; dedicated massage, yoga and art therapy rooms to help patients cope with the physical and emotional stress of cancer; and two radiation therapy rooms. It a lso houses the Blood and Marrow Transplant Center, established by Via Christi, Cancer Center of Kansas and the American Red Cross in 1989. The center, which is under the med ica l d i rect ion of CCK's Ba ssa m Mattar, MD, features six patient rooms d e s i g n e d s p e c i f i c a l l y for p a t i e nt s undergoing marrow and stem cell trans- plantation and has been accredited for autologous transplant since 1999. S t . F ra nci s ' f i f t h-f loor Ch i ld L i fe Center cares for children fighting cancer and its 21 chair second-floor ambulatory infusion center provides a comfortable environment for patients receiving chemo and other therapies. " We were the first in the area to become accredited by the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer," says Claudio Ferraro, Executive Leader for Oncolog y Services at Via Christi. "It's a testament to our long-standing commitment to qua lity and providing the best possible environment for receiving or providing cancer care." ■ Shaker Dakhil, MD Medical Director, Oncology Services Via Christi on the Leading Edge of Cancer Care, Clinical Trials THE SISTERS OF the Sorrowful Mother were a head of their time when they recruited Irish oncologist Harry Hynes, MD, who had just completed his fellowship training at the Mayo Clinic, to Wichita. At the time, cancer care was a much-needed but uncommon level of specia lt y ca re outside of major metropolitan areas. During his lifetime, Dr. Hynes cared for t housa nds of patients a nd ser ved as principa l investigator for Wichita's community clinica l oncolog y program, t he f i rs t t o be es t a bl i shed i n a m id- size market. His chosen successor, Cancer Center of Kansas oncologist Shaker Dakhil, MD, ha s continued to ensure that patients throughout Kansas have access to the latest cancer research and clinical trials through the Wichita NCORP and its relation- ships with programs such as the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston a nd Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, a nd participating physicians nationwide. Funded by the Nationa l Cancer Institute and based at Via Christi Hospita l St. Fra ncis, the Wichita NCOR P recruits participants for investigational studies designed to determine new ways to treat, prevent, detect, dia g nose, a nd control cancer and improve qua lity of life. Since its launch 35 years ago, the program has enrolled more than 18,000 participants in clinical trials and repeatedly has been recognized as one of the nation's leaders in patient accrua l. Via Christi also has continued to estab- lish St. Francis as a comprehensive center for cancer care. In 2000, Via Christi built an outpatient cancer center on its St. Francis campus that today oers a full complement of radiation and CyberKnife therapy under the medica l direction of radiation oncologist David Bryant, MD. It a lso houses Via Christi's: + Ca ncer Wellness progra m, which oers exercise therapy specia lly designed to help cancer sur vivors maintain their fitness before and after treatment + Ca ncer Outreach a nd R isk Assessment progra m, which Pavan Reddy, MD, and Patty Tenofsky, MD Co-Medical Directors, CORA Bassam Mattar, MD Medical Director, Blood and Marrow Transplant David Bryant, MD Medical Director, Radiation Oncology M D N E W S . C O M /// M D N E W S G R E AT E R K A N S A S ■ 2 018 C A N C E R C A R E ❰❰❰❰❰ 3 1