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Exceptional Prostate Care Gets Even Better

The Prostate Center at Montefiore

Dealing with prostate cancer can be stressful for men. Not only do they have to deal with a difficult diagnosis, they often spend weeks, even months, waiting to see specialists. They're also often confused about what to do when their doctors recommend different treatments. Now men in the New York City area have another option for prostate screening, diagnosis and treatment. The new Prostate Center at Montefiore offers patients a higher level of coordinated prostate care.

"What sets us apart from other facilities is that we have a true multi-disciplinary approach to fast track patient care," says Reza Ghavamian, MD, director of Urologic Oncology and Robotic Urologic Surgery at Montefiore Medical Center and associate professor of Clinical Urology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Dr. Ghavamian heads the center's multidisciplinary team of specialists, including Cy Stein, MD, a medical oncologist, and Chandan Guha, MB, BS, PhD, a radiation oncologist.

"Patients who seek care at the center see all the specialists they need-which may include a urologist, radiation oncologist, medical oncologist, radiologist and pathologist-in one day," he continues. "The specialists work together to devise the best treatment plan for each patient and meet with patients to discuss treatment alternatives."

Expert Screening and Treatment
Specialists at the center thoroughly screen patients for prostate cancer performing digital rectal exams and prostate-specific antigen testing. When patients have prostate cancer, the center staff offers a complete array of cutting-edge surgical and radiation therapy treatments.

Montefiore's experienced prostate surgeons, for example, offer innovative minimally invasive robotic surgery to remove the prostate. Patients who undergo these procedures have shorter hospitals stays, fewer complications and quicker recoveries.

"It's not always what we remove but what we leave behind that's important," Dr. Ghavamian says. "Both open and robotic procedures are equally effective in removing cancerous prostates. But when we perform robotic surgery, we're able to leave behind important nerve structures that help men regain their urinary and sexual functions quicker. That's important for patients because they have to live the rest of their lives with the outcomes."

Specialists at the center also offer two types of radiation therapy for prostate cancer. Implant therapy implants small, radioactive seeds directly into the cancerous prostate tumor delivering highly localized doses of radiation. Image Guided Intensity Modulated external beam radiation therapy precisely sends high levels of radiation directly to the cancer cells. During this procedure, radiation oncologists at Montefiore use the new Calypso® GPS System to locate the tumor and monitor the prostate's motion continuously. This advanced technology helps target cancer cells, thereby avoiding harm to healthy tissues that surround a tumor.

Center offers Immediate Care
"Having a formal center offers patients medical and psychological advantages," says Shalom Kalnicki, MD, FACRO, chairman of Radiation Oncology at Montefiore Medical Center and professor of Radiation Oncology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Dr. Kalnicki was instrumental in helping to establish the new center.

"They receive treatment recommendations and care right away, which helps reduce their stress and anxiety," he continues. "We not only offer a complete line of advanced treatments for prostate cancer, we also care for the whole patient and provide them with personalized and attentive care."

For more information or to schedule a consultation with Dr. Ghavamian or Dr. Kalnicki, please call 718-405-8280.