March 21, 2016 | Health care professionals gathered at UAMS on March 11 for the opportunity to learn the latest research and treatment innovations in colorectal cancer and gastrointestinal (GI) malignancies.
Offered by the UAMS Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, the 19th Annual Charles William Rasco, III Symposium on Colorectal Cancer and GI Malignancies brought together physicians, nurses, pharmacists, scientists and other health care professionals. Participants had the opportunity to visit booths representing a number of programs and services related to research and treatment of gastrointestinal cancers.
The symposium honors the memory of Charles William Rasco III, who lost his battle with the disease in 1994.
“One of UAMS’ primary missions is education. Events such as the Rasco Symposium are the perfect opportunity to keep up to date on the latest advances in treating colorectal cancer and other gastrointestinal conditions,” said symposium course director A. Mazin Safar, M.D.
Presenters included health care professionals from several UAMS College of Medicine departments and divisions:
- Issam Makhoul, M.D., director of the Division of Hematology/Oncology, and A. Mazin Safar, M.D., associate professor in the Division of Hematology/Oncology, on “Cancer Screening Controversies”
- Jennifer Laudadio, M.D., associate professor in the Department of Pathology, on “Multiplex Gene Testing for GI Malignancies”
- Rang Govindarajan, M.D., professor in the Division of Hematology/Oncology; Sanjay Maraboyina, M.D., assistant professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology; Juan Camilo Barreto, M.D., assistant professor in the Division of Surgical Oncology, on “Virtual Tumor Board – The Use of Radiotherapy in the Adjuvant Setting After Full Resection”
- Frederick Bentley, M.D., professor and chairman of the Department of Surgery, on “Best of Surgery”
- Jeffrey L. Clothier, M.D., professor and executive vice chair of the Department of Psychiatry, on “Depression and Anxiety in the Cancer Patient: Recognition, Diagnostic Considerations and Management”
- Casey Guidry, M.D., assistant professor in the Department of Radiology, on “Radiology Essentials for the GI Oncologist”
- Rajesh Banderudrappagari, M.D., second-year fellow in the Division of Hematology/Oncology, on “Liver-Directed Therapy for Hepatoma – The CAVHS Experience”
Also presenting were Lowell Anthony, M.D., professor of medicine and chief of the Division of Medical Oncology at University of Kentucky Health Care, on “Carcinoid Tumors” and Daniel K. Brown, M.D., staff gastroenterologist at CHI St. Vincent Multi-Specialty Clinic, on “Interventional Gastroenterology in GI Malignancies.”