MedStar Health: Radiation Oncology at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital

A brain or spine tumor diagnosis can be overwhelming, but the team at MedStar Georgetown offers options to limit toxicity to the surrounding brain and eradicate tumors with precision and experience. Our radiation oncologists provide streamlined access to top-tier advanced technology with a multidisciplinary approach through the Comprehensive Brain Tumor Center, where a team of specialists from neuro-oncology, neurosurgery, neuropathology, and neuroradiology also weigh in determine the best treatment plan for your individual case.

Radiation oncologist Dr. Keith Unger is one of the most experienced GI specialist in the region, offering treatment options for the most complex GI cases, including proton, CyberKnife, and intraoperative radiation therapy. Under his leadership, we collaborate on your case with a multidisciplinary team of GI experts in weekly tumor boards and through the Pancreas and Liver Disease Program to determine the best treatment modality for each individual patient. Clinical trials also are available for qualified individuals.

Our lung cancer and thoracic malignancies specialists Dr. Nitika Paudel and Dr. Andrew Satinsky are determined to provide timely, optimal care when expediency matters. You will meet us in our multidisciplinary lung clinic, where in one appointment you will encounter your main specialist team of Dr. Paudel, along with medical oncology and thoracic surgery to provide a cohesive and expedited treatment plan. Your lungs are sensitive to the effects of radiation, so our team employs expertise in the latest technologies to minimize the effects of radiation on the uninvolved lung and nearby organs, like the heart.

When treating the breast, our breast cancer specialists Dr. Sonali Rudra and Dr. Andrew Satinsky take great care to select approaches that will preserve quality of life so that patients not only live, but live well. Through our dedicated team-based approach, we offer shortened courses of radiation, bringing the traditional three or four week treatment down to five days for qualified patients. We also offer partial breast irradiation rather than whole breast for some patients. We continue to innovate, advancing breast cancer research with access to clinical trials and treatments using proton therapy, intraoperative radiation therapy.

With the ability to precisely track and target the prostate’s movement and location, the expert team at MedStar Georgetown treats men with prostate cancer using the most advanced technologies available. We’re part of a multidisciplinary team of urologists, medical oncologists, genetic counselors, radiologists, therapists dedicated to prostate cancer care. When accuracy and precision matter, our short-course radiation option allows us to safely and effectively treat patients in five treatments, when it used to take 40. Along with Dr. Anatoly Dritschilo, the radiation oncology team at MedStar Georgetown continues to advance prostate care through access to clinical trials and treatment options including proton therapy, IMRT, and brachytherapy.

Radiation oncologist Dr. Peter Ahn is part of the most experienced head and neck cancer team in the region, and with that experience comes an expertise in all of the latest technology, all under one roof.  Multidisciplinary clinics offer access to a wide variety of options from robotic surgery to immunotherapy. Our intensive radiation treatments are supported by a dedicated team, there with you every step of the way, with resources and services committed to preserving your ability to talk, eat, breathe, and swallow, including nutrition and speech and language therapy.