HJLR Nov/Dec 2018

Healthcare Journal of little rock I  NOV / DEC 2018 51 David Hays, MD Medical Director CARTI Cancer Center Another technique, called embolization, can be used for tumors that are too big to be treated with ablation. Radioembolization allows for internal delivery of radiation through the arteries supplying blood to the cancer cells, allow- ing concentration of high doses of radia- tion to the cancer with minimal effect on the surrounding healthy tissues. With IR, we can go anywhere in the body, using ar- teries and veins as a highway for treatment. Depending on the procedure planned, we may go directly into the organ, rather than the blood vessels. Since its introduction in 2000, interven- tional radiologists have been the leaders in the use of Y-90 radioembolization to treat liver cancer. Through this technique, the catheter goes straight to the liver, delivering radi- ation directly. Although it often requires two treatments, instead of cutting out the portion with cancer, we can take out the segment with radiation. This is a great op- tion for patients who are not good surgical candidates. When a patient has surgery, they are recuperating for weeks. An IR patient has only two or three days of down time, and they may go back to other treatment right away. It doesn’t disrupt other therapies as much and allows for an integrated contin- uum of care. As previously mentioned, not all tumors are malignant. IR can treat uterine fibroids as well. Fibroids can cause pain and bleed- ing from a woman’s uterus, and traditional treatment has been to remove the uterus. Uterine fibroid embolization is a minimally invasive option that preserves the uterus and greatly reduces recovery time, com- pared to surgical procedures. Preserving the uterus means the patient may be able to bear children after the procedure. Looking forward, we’re excited about how IR will continue to play a role in ad- vances in cancer treatment. Eventually, IR will be involved with immunotherapy, for example. As doctors at CARTI, we are all under one roof, and we meet every Thursday for what is, essentially a case conference to talk about our patients. We are there every week to offer our IR services as well. It is a huge benefit to have such a collaborative multidisciplinary team to deliver unpar- alleled oncology care for the patients of Arkansas. n David Hays,MD joined the staff of CARTI in 2015, and was recently named Medical Director of Imag- ing and Interventional Oncology,overseeing a state- of-the-art Imaging Department in the newly built CARTI Cancer Center. Hays has been instrumental in growing the department to include outside refer- rals to the Imaging Center and increasing service lines.BoardCertified inDiagnostic Radiology,with a Subspecialty in Vascular and Interventional Radiol- ogy, Hays graduated from the University of Arkan- sas forMedical SciencesCollege ofMedicine,where he also completed a residency. Hays then complet- ed a Fellowship at the Angio/Interventional Ra- diology Miami Vascular Institute in Miami, Florida. Edgar D. St. Amour, MD is an interventional ra- diologist from Little Rock. He was raised in Arkan- sas and graduated from the University of Arkan- sas for Medical Sciences College of Medicine. St. Amour completed a diagnostic and interventional radiology residency at Columbia University in New York City, and recently finished a fellowship in vas- cular and interventional radiology at Miami Cardiac &Vascular Institute.CARTI welcomedDr.St.Amour to their staff in June 2018.