Hematology & Oncology Presentations
Prostate Cancer: Controversies in Screening
Rafael Sanchez-Salas is a surgeon and clinician scientist with main interest in minimally invasive treatments in Urological Oncology. He is an established leader in the emerging field of Focal Therapy for the treatment of Localized Prostate Cancer. Dr. Sanchez-Salas earned his Medical degree from the Universidad de los Andes in Mérida, Venezuela; He was Valedictorian of the Class of 1998. He completed his basic Surgical and Urological training at Universidad Central de Venezuela in 2005.
He was awarded with Scholarships from Confederation Americana de Urologia and The European Association of Urology to pursue fellowship training in urological oncology and minimally invasive urological surgery at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in the United States, Clinica Santa Maria in Chile and L’Institut Mutualiste Montsouris (IMM) in France, where after his training he joined their Faculty in 2008 and until 2021. During his time in Paris, Dr. Sanchez-Salas worked extensively on robotic surgery and the development of partial gland ablation in Prostate Cancer. He was responsible for the fellowship program at IMM and he actively participated in the mentoring and training of several young urological surgeons. Dr. Sanchez Salas has recently joined the Division of Urology at Æ»¹ûÒùÔº with the aim of further developing Localized Prostate Cancer and minimally invasive surgery research. Dr. Sanchez-Salas has coined a sound international career as a talented surgical proctor and cancer researcher. His current research priorities include Focal Therapy for Prostate Cancer and its impact on prostatic microenviroment and outcomes. He Chaired the SIU-International Consultation on Urological Disease on Image guided therapy for Prostate and Renal Carcinomas in 2015.
Learning Objectives:
- Understand the strengths and limitations of PCa Screening
- Understand the future potential of MRIs and biomarkers in PCa
- Define the ideal screening population based on patient’s characteristics
Prostate Cancer: Updates on New Treatment Modalities
Ramy Saleh is an Assistant Professor of Oncology at Æ»¹ûÒùÔº. He received his medical degree for the University of Beirut and his MSc from Æ»¹ûÒùÔº. His Clinical interests include GU malignancies, lung cancer and quality improvement.
Ìý
Ìý
Ìý
Learning Objectives:
- Appreciate the different new treatment modalities in metastatic prostate cancer
- Initiate the workup and 1st line therapy in mPC
- Follow up and manage the adverse events
New Radiation Therapies
Dr. Hijal is an Associate Professor of Oncology at Æ»¹ûÒùÔº and the Director of Radiation Oncology at the Æ»¹ûÒùÔº Health Centre. His practice is in breast cancer, lower gastrointestinal tumours and hematology, while his research focuses on patient portals and hypofractionated radiotherapy.
Ìý
Ìý
Learning Objectives:
- Understand the origins of radiation and its therapeutic use
- Understand how hypofractionation is changing the field of radiation oncology
- Name and understand the basic functioning of new technologies developed to improve the therapeutic ratio in radiation oncology
New Advances in Lung Cancer Treatment
Dr Shieh is an assistant professor in the division of respirology and an associate member of the Gerald Bronfman department of oncology at the MUHC. He has a focus on lung cancer therapeutics and diagnostics. He participates in the multi-disciplinary lung clinic as well various thoracic oncology clinical trials.
Ìý
Ìý
Learning Objectives:
- Recognize the impact of lung cancer screening programs
- Review the new systemic treatments available for lung cancer
- Discuss the personalization of lung cancer care
Management of Side Effects of Immunotherapy
Dr. Esfahani is an assistant professor of Oncology at Æ»¹ûÒùÔº and a researcher at the Lady Davis Institute of the Jewish General Hospital. He completed his oncology training at Æ»¹ûÒùÔº, following which he decided to pursue further research in the field of immune oncology. His expertise is in the treatment of skin, head and neck, and renal cancers with a research focus on immune-related adverse events. He co-leads one the largest Canadian multidisciplinary initiatives to study immune-related adverse events and has numerous key publications in this field.
Ìý
Learning Objectives:
- Present a brief overview of the immunotherapy landscape
- Understand the pathophysiology of immune-related adverse events (irAEs)
- Present the different treatment modalities in the management of irAEs
- Case-based discussion of the management principles of irAEs
Overview of Hemoglobinopathies
Dr Naessens is a hematologist at the MUHC where she started working in 2014. She completed her medicine training and internal medicine residency at Æ»¹ûÒùÔº before completing her hematology training at the CHUM, after which she pursued a 2 year hemoglobinopathy fellowship at the University of Toronto. At the MUHC, she is dedicated to the clinical care of hemoglobinopathy patients while remaining active in clinical research as well as medical education. In addition, she also is the medical director of the apheresis collection unit.
Ìý
Learning Objectives:
- Recognize the spectrum of acute and chronic complications of sickle cell disease and its current therapies
- Review the clinical presentations and complications found in severe thalassemic syndromes and its management
- Explore the future treatment options in beta-chain hemoglobinopathies
Follow-up on Radiation Therapy
Joanne Alfieri is an Associate Professor and the Associate Chair (Education) in the Department of Oncology, Æ»¹ûÒùÔº. She is a radiation oncologist who specializes in the treatment of gynaecological and gastrointestinal malignancies at the Æ»¹ûÒùÔº Health Centre where she also leads the Gynaecological Service and Brachytherapy Program. Dr. Alfieri earned her medical degree and her post-graduate radiation oncology training at Æ»¹ûÒùÔº. She completed a Post-graduate Fellowship in Gynaecology Oncology and MRI-guided Brachytherapy at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne, Australia. She has a keen interest in medical education and is the post-graduate residency training Program Director for radiation oncology since 2015. As associate chair for the Gerald Bronfman Department of Oncology of Æ»¹ûÒùÔº she oversees undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate training programs in medical, surgical and radiation oncology.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe the most common general indications for radiotherapy
- List the most frequent side effects of radiation therapy to the chest and pelvis to monitor in follow up (i.e., from the top 4 malignancies)
- Discuss initial management for common radiation-related side effects
- Recognize a complete survivorship plan for a shared care approach between oncologists and family physicians
Screening for Gynecologic Cancers
Dr. Lucy Gilbert is a Professor in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology and the Department of Oncology at Æ»¹ûÒùÔº. She heads the Tertiary/Quaternary Care Gynecologic Cancer Service of the Æ»¹ûÒùÔº Health Centre (MUHC) as well as its Women’s Health Research Unit. Her research focuses on novel therapeutic options for the treatment of ovarian and uterine cancers as well as technologies for their early detection. She has set up a network of satellite clinics as part of the DOvEE (Diagnosing Ovarian and Endometrial Cancers Early) project, which provide open access investigations for women with symptoms associated with gynecologic cancers. Dr Gilbert and her team have recently developed a genomic uterine pap test to identify somatic mutation. A sample is taken from the uterus and then uses machine learning to discriminate cancer from benign /normal samples. This test, which is currently being offered to women aged 45 – 70 years, has the potential to detect these cancers while they are confined to the gynecologic organs and still curable. The project received 6.4M GAPP funding to start the phase III clinical trial which started on May 10, 2021. In recognition of her outstanding leadership in cancer research, Dr Gilbert was recently nominated one of the Top 25 Most Influential Women in Canada 2021.
Learning Objectives:
- Recognize the symptoms of gynecologic cancers
- Appropriate investigations you can
- Recognize when to refer and to whom
High Ferritin, Now What?
Ìý
Æ»¹ûÒùÔº medicine graduate - 2013. Hematology at Universite de Montreal. Alexandra Yeo fellowship in Thrombosis and Hemostasis Working at St Mary's Hospital.
Ìý
Ìý
Ìý
Learning Objectives:
- List the differential diagnosis of a high ferritin
- Review the physiology of iron and relate it to commonly ordered tests
- Identify the pertinent workup for a patient with high ferritin