BUILDING - Yale-New Haven Hospital

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FRANK DETTERBECK, M.D.
Why the cancer hospital is important for patients
As a thoracic surgeon, I know firsthand how important the cancer
hospital is to patients with cancer.
The cancer hospital is important for patients because cancer
care has become more complex, involving multiple diagnostic
tests, several specialist physicians and both inpatient and outpatient
care. Integrating all of this and bringing it together under one
roof will make things much more convenient for patients and their
families. It will also make it easier for physicians to work together in
teams in caring for patients.
While the building will be a really great thing, the people and
the organization are even more important. We have organized our
care around multidisciplinary teams that focus on specific types of
cancer. This makes the care more efficient, and the collective
expertise is crucial in delivering top quality care.
The insights from research have reached a level where we can
really make a difference for patients. The interaction between the
clinicians and researchers is what has put us at the forefront of cancer
care. It is exactly this collaboration that earns us the distinction
of being one of only 39 comprehensive cancer centers recognized
by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), and the only one in southern
New England. In fact, Yale Cancer Center was one of the first
NCI-designated comprehensive cancer centers in the United States
when this program began in 1972.
Yes, a lot has happened here in the last year. Construction of
the new cancer hospital is underway, an unprecedented number of
new physicians – many nationally recognized experts – have joined
those already at Yale, and we have restructured our services around
multidisciplinary teams with focused expertise. Suffice it to say,
these are exciting times and YNHH is an exciting place to be.
Frank Detterbeck, M.D., is chief of thoracic surgery and surgical director of
the thoracic oncology program at YNHH. He came to YNHH in July 2005
from the University of North Carolina Hospital at Chapel Hill, where he
founded a multidisciplinary thoracic oncology program. During the summer
of 2005, he spoke on behalf of the proposed cancer hospital at aldermanic
meetings and hearings in New Haven.