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Wilmot Cancer Institute Batavia Welcomes New Physicians, Nurse Practitioners

By Press Release

Press release:

Cancer patients in the Batavia area have new options for oncology providers as the team at UR Medicine’s Wilmot Cancer Institute (WCI) Batavia grows, adding two new physicians and two new nurse practitioners. The team additions will help improve access and enhance cancer care for patients in the area.

Khush Aujla, M.D., recently joined WCI Batavia as a radiation oncologist. He sees patients at WCI Batavia on Mondays and Thursdays. Prior to joining the team, he completed his residency in Radiation Oncology at URMC. Aujla also completed a medicine internship at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, where he also earned his Doctorate of Medicine and bachelor’s degrees.

Kevin Mudd, M.D., continues to work on the Radiation Oncology team as well, seeing patients three days per week.

Julie Natale, DNP, FNP-C, joined the WCI Batavia Radiation Oncology team as a nurse practitioner, working in Batavia two days per week. She previously worked as the nurse manager for Radiation Oncology at the James P. Wilmot Cancer Center in Rochester.

Bruce Yirinec, M.D., joined WCI Batavia as of Oct. 1 as a medical oncologist. He previously worked at Rochester Regional Health’s Clifton Springs Hospital. Yirinec completed fellowships in Hematology at URMC and at the University of Virginia Medical Center. He earned his Doctorate in Medicine degree from Dartmouth Medical School.

Jennifer Richard, AGPCNP, also joined the team, working as a nurse practitioner on the Medical Oncology side with Yirinec. She previously worked with Strong Memorial Hospital’s Memory Care Program and the URMC Stroke team. Prior to that, she worked as a registered nurse at the inpatient unit on the sixth floor of the Wilmot Cancer Center in Rochester.

“I’m so excited to expand our clinical presence in Batavia,” says Jonathan W. Friedberg, M.D., M.M.Sc., director of Wilmot Cancer Institute. “The community has embraced Wilmot, and our goal remains that our patients will have access to the best cancer care, including innovative clinical trials, in Genesee County.”

To contact WCI Batavia for more information or to set up an appointment, call (585) 344-3050 for Radiation Oncology or (585) 602-4050 for Medical Oncology.

Batavia man dedicates bell plaque he created for radiation therapy patients

By Billie Owens

Cancer survivor Mike Mager, above, had the bell plaque engraved with brief instructions: “When treatment is complete, we announce it with this bell. Ring once for what you have endured. Ring twice for today. Ring once more for the future.”

 

Submitted photo and press release:

When Mike Mager, of Batavia, finished his seven weeks of radiation therapy, he was relieved and happy. But after the 33 grueling treatments in Wilmot Cancer Institute’s Radiation Oncology facility at Strong Memorial Hospital, he wished he could have done more to mark the occasion.

“It was like crossing the finish line, but there wasn’t anything there,” Mager says.

As he continued his recovery, he decided to change that. Mager, who does carpentry in his free time, found a bell and created a plaque for it.

The bell, now hanging in a corridor near the treatment rooms, was dedicated on Tuesday, Jan. 9. It’s low enough for pediatric patients or adults in wheelchairs to reach and ring when they’ve finished treatment.

“Mr. Mager is very creative to create a beautiful piece of art for patients who have completed their radiation treatment course,” says Yuhchyau Chen, M.D., Ph.D., chair and the Richard T. Bell Endowed Professor of Radiation Oncology at Wilmot.

“We hear the lovely bell chime 20 to 30 times per week on average. Our patients are so appreciative of Mr. Mager's kindness and consideration. With this bell, patients share a common bond in completing treatment and starting the new chapter and new hope in cancer survivorship.”

In 2016, Mager was diagnosed with a head and neck cancer. He underwent complex surgery with Paul van der Sloot, M.D., to remove the tumor before he began the intensive radiation therapy with Deepinder Singh, M.D.

“My doctor said the first week would be easy but the last weeks would be hell,” Mager recalls.

By that final week, the side effects of the treatment left him feeling so sick and dehydrated that he required IV fluids.

“It’s an achievement to make it through what I went through,” Mager says, and he wanted the bell to reflect that.

He had the bell plaque engraved with brief instructions: “When treatment is complete, we announce it with this bell. Ring once for what you have endured. Ring twice for today. Ring once more for the future.”

“It takes a special heart to convey feelings like this,” says Singh, Mager’s radiation oncologist. “Dedicating this bell is important to our patients and our department. It recognizes how hard our staff works to take care of our patients, and it is inspiring to those going through the ups and downs of treatment.”

Even though more than a year had passed between when Mager finished treatment and when he rang the bell, he said he looked forward to it.

“It made me feel complete,” he says.

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UR Medicine’s Wilmot Cancer Institute is the Finger Lakes region’s leader for cancer care and research. As a component of Strong Memorial Hospital, Wilmot Cancer Institute provides specialty cancer care services at the University of Rochester Medical Center and a network of locations throughout the region. The Institute also includes a team of 100 scientists who investigate many aspects of cancer, with an emphasis on how best to provide precision cancer care. To learn more, visit wilmot.urmc.edu

Wilmot Cancer Institute in Batavia to host Survivors Night with the Muckdogs

By Billie Owens

Press release:

For the second year, UR Medicine’s Wilmot Cancer Institute (WCI) will host Survivors Night on Friday, July 28 at Dwyer Stadium with the Batavia Muckdogs. Anyone who has been impacted by cancer is invited, including patients, survivors and caregivers.

The game starts at 7:05 p.m. and fireworks will follow. 

More than 15.5 million cancer survivors are living in the United States today and that number is expected to exceed 20 million by 2026. In Genesee County alone, approximately 400 people are diagnosed with cancer each year. The purpose of Survivors Night is to unite those impacted by cancer to celebrate cancer survivorship.

“Cancer is something that touches almost everyone at some point in life and Survivors Night is a way for us all to come together for a fun family night to celebrate life beyond cancer,” says Tiffany Paine-Cirrincione, associate director, Advancement and Community Events for Wilmot Cancer Institute.

“We encourage anyone in the community who is a cancer survivor or patient, or who has loved or cared for someone with cancer, to join us.”

Tickets for the game cost $4 each, and participants receive a Wilmot Warrior Walk T-shirt for each ticket purchased. They can be purchased at WCI Batavia, 262 Bank St., Batavia. Questions can be directed to Karen Soria at (585) 344-3050.

Wilmot Cancer Institute in Batavia adds 'RapidArc' technology, speeds up radiation treatments

By Billie Owens

Press release:

UR Medicine’s Wilmot Cancer Institute Batavia has added RapidArc technology to its linear accelerator, the machine that delivers beams of high-energy radiation to treat a variety of cancers.

With RapidArc, the radiation beam is shaped and reshaped to tumor’s contours as the treatment is delivered in a seamless 360-degree rotation of the machine. It allows the radiation to be delivered in small, multiple doses with increased precision.

For patients, this means that each treatment will take less time, alleviating the need to hold still for long periods, and the additional precision protects healthy tissue, leading to fewer side effects. This technology can be used for many types of cancer.

“RapidArc is a system that allows this dose to be delivered over a smooth rotation of the machine rather than what we call stop-and-shoot radiation treatment,” says Kevin Mudd, M.D., radiation oncologist at Wilmot Cancer Institute Batavia.

Typically, radiation treatments would require several movements of the treatment gantry, stopping each time to target the next portion of the tumor, which could take 10 minutes or more, Mudd says. RapidArc requires only one or two non-stop rotations of the machine to deliver the same treatment in less time — as little as two to four minutes.

That time difference can be very important for patients, who must lie completely still during treatment.

“Prostate cancer patients, for example, must receive their radiation treatments with a full bladder, and cutting their treatment time in half makes the experience much more comfortable,” says Megan Menzie, RTT, lead radiation therapist.

During its nonstop rotation, RapidArc automatically shapes the radiation beam to fit the contours of the tumor, keeping it tightly focused and protecting nearby healthy tissue. This precision is especially important for patients with head and neck cancers, for example, whose salivary glands, taste buds and spinal cord need to be protected.

“This is the only RapidArc between Buffalo and Rochester, and we’re pretty excited to have it here in Batavia,” Mudd says.

Wilmot Cancer Institute Batavia adds more precision technology for radiation therapy

By Billie Owens

Press release:

UR Medicine’s Wilmot Cancer Institute Batavia has installed a new linear accelerator, which delivers beams of high-energy radiation to treat a variety of cancers. This new machine provides image-guided and intensity-modulated radiation therapy treatments, which can more precisely and effectively target tumors.

“Because about half of all cancer patients receive some type of radiation during the course of their treatment, technology like this can have a significant impact for many people,” said Kevin J. Mudd, M.D., radiation oncologist at Wilmot Cancer Institute Batavia. “Precision is extremely important in delivering radiation therapy, and we are excited to offer these cutting-edge options to patients in our community.”

Radiation therapy kills cancer cells by damaging the cells’ DNA. Using a linear accelerator, a beam of radiation is delivered from outside the body to the tumor. To protect nearby healthy tissues and organs, that beam must be tightly focused to the size and contours of the tumor.

That process can be complicated by the tumor’s location and how it shifts as a patient breathes and as nearby organs move. A prostate tumor, for example, can move as much as 8 millimeters a day depending on factors such as how full the bladder is.

With image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT), high-quality digital CT images of the tumor and/or x-rays of bony landmarks near the tumor are captured real-time and compared to those taken during treatment planning for each daily treatment. This allows Mudd and his team to verify the tumor position in the alignment with radiation beams. If needed, they can make fine adjustments of the patient’s position to align with the radiation beams and deliver the treatment with extreme precision.

Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) uses 3-dimensional digital images to guide treatment. Based on these images, the radiation dose is shaped to the exact size and contours of the tumor, minimizing radiation exposure to surrounding tissues. The radiation oncologist can then aim thin beams of radiation of varying intensities at the tumor from many angles.

“Both of these technologies allow us to target the radiation beam more effectively while protecting healthy tissue and organs. This gives us clinical advantages particularly for prostate cancer, head and neck cancers, lung cancer, brain tumors, and tumors of the gastrointestinal tract,” said Mudd, who has provided radiation oncology services in Batavia for 15 years. “For patients, this can mean fewer side effects and lower risk of long-term complications.”

“The enhanced features of radiation treatment technology also enable us to continue building access to cutting-edge clinical trials through the combined radiation and chemotherapy service on site at Wilmot Cancer Institute Batavia,” said Yuhchyau Chen, M.D., Ph.D., chair of UR Medicine Radiation Oncology. “With Dr. Mudd and his team, patients in the Batavia area can be confident that they will receive high-quality care with advanced cancer treatment technology closer to home.”

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UR Medicine’s Wilmot Cancer Institute is the Finger Lakes region’s leader for cancer care and research. As a component of Strong Memorial Hospital, Wilmot Cancer Institute provides specialty cancer care services at the University of Rochester Medical Center and a network of locations throughout the region. The Institute also includes a team of 100 scientists who investigate many aspects of cancer, with an emphasis on how best to provide precision cancer care. To learn more, visit wilmot.urmc.edu.

Wilmot Cancer Institute to host free talk at Terry Hills on 'Advances in Lung Cancer'

By Billie Owens

On Wednesday, Nov. 18, Wilmot Cancer Institute Batavia will host a free community health talk titled “Advances in Lung Cancer.”

This free presentation is open to the public and will be held from 6-7 p.m. at the Terry Hills Restaurant, 5122 Clinton Street Road, Batavia. Refreshments will be served.

It will feature Wilmot Cancer Institute Batavia’s radiation oncologist Kevin J. Mudd, M.D., and medical oncologist Nayana R. Kamath, M.D., of Interlakes Oncology and Hematology. Mudd and Kamath will discuss how you can reduce your risk for lung cancer, options for screening, and advances in treatment. Their presentation will conclude with a question-and-answer session.

About 140 people in Genesee, Orleans and Wyoming counties are diagnosed with lung cancer each year. Although incidence of lung cancer has been declining since the early 1990s, the disease remains the second most-common cancer in the United States.

To learn more about this presentation, please call (585) 276-5788.

Wilmot Cancer Institute to host free talk on breast cancer and an open house

By Billie Owens

In October, Wilmot Cancer Institute Batavia will host a free Community Health Talk and an Open House at its newly renovated building. The events, which are open to the public, are an opportunity to learn more about how to reduce your risk for cancer and about the services that are available in Batavia for those who need cancer care.

Oct. 5 — “Breast Cancer: How to Reduce Your Risk”

This free presentation will feature Wilmot Cancer Institute Batavia’s radiation oncologist Kevin J. Mudd, M.D., and medical oncologist Nayana R. Kamath, M.D., of Interlakes Oncology and Hematology. It will focus on lifestyle changes that can help women reduce their risk of developing breast cancer, the most common non-skin cancer among women. The presentation will conclude with a question-and-answer session.

The presentation will be held from 6-7 p.m. at the Terry Hills Banquet Facility, 5122 Clinton Street Road, Batavia. It is free and open to the public, and refreshments will be served. If you have any questions about this free presentation, please call (585) 276-5788.

Oct. 29 — Open House at Wilmot Cancer Institute Batavia

Meet the staff and tour the newly renovated Wilmot Cancer Institute Batavia building at 262 Bank St. With Wilmot’s Kevin J. Mudd, M.D., and Nayana Kamath, M.D., of Interlakes Oncology and Hematology, the full-service cancer center provides both radiation oncology and medical oncology services, as well as hematology care. The building features a CT simulator and linear accelerator for radiation therapy and an infusion center where patients can receive chemotherapy and other intravenous treatments. The team at Wilmot Cancer Institute Batavia will be on hand to answer questions and show the state-of-the-art technology the clinic offers.

The Open House is free and open to the public, and refreshments will be served. To learn more, call (585) 276-5788.

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