Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Houston, Texas
The Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center is part of the VA Houston Health Care System in Houston, Texas. It is one of just three VA medical centers in the country that offers specialized mesothelioma treatment for veterans afflicted with the rare, asbestos-related disease, as well as cutting-edge research and clinical trials investigating the discovery of new treatment options. The mesothelioma treatment center is staffed by three of the top mesothelioma specialists in the country.
The main campus of the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center provides primary care and specialty health services, including expert cancer diagnosis and care. The center has been affiliated with Baylor College of Medicine since 1949 and is one of the country’s largest VA hospitals. It serves Harris County and 27 surrounding counties, as well as veterans from around the country who are referred to the center because of the specialized care that it offers. Veterans who come from out of the area may have travel benefits that coordinate their travel and appointments to Houston. Once they arrive in Houston their hotel stay is generally covered by the VA, and once they begin treatment, their families are offered accommodations at no cost at the on-campus Fisher House.[1]
Specialists at the VA work with patients, their primary care physician, and other health care providers to develop specialized treatment plans which may include surgical removal of tumors, immunotherapy, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and palliative care.
Among the advantages of the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center being affiliated with Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center is the ability to coordinate care between the two, so that if a patient is diagnosed and evaluated at the VA, if the care they require extends beyond the technical abilities of the VA, arrangements are made for the treatment to be provided at St. Luke’s.
Pleural Mesothelioma, Peritoneal Mesothelioma, and Lung Cancer Care at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center
The Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center surgical and medical oncology staff work collaboratively as part of the same organization and faculty as the surgical oncologists and medical oncologists at Baylor College of Medicine and Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center. This multidisciplinary approach allows the physicians at all three organizations to work seamlessly together in caring for veterans being treated for malignant mesothelioma at the VA Center. The comprehensive care being provided at the VA in Houston leverages the support and the facilities available at the Baylor Lung Institute and the Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center Mesothelioma Treatment Center.
Veterans suspected of having malignant pleural mesothelioma undergo full evaluations that take about two weeks. This includes tests like CT scans and biopsies for staging the disease and a physiologic assessment that determines what protocols the patient can endure. With that information, a treatment plan is created that may include surgery such as decortication and pleurectomy, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and radiation therapy. Patients diagnosed with malignant peritoneal mesothelioma can undergo cytoreductive surgery with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy, which is currently performed at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center, though the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center is exploring adding the equipment required to perform the surgery onsite.
Notable Staff and Mesothelioma Specialists
The Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center shares its surgical and oncologic team with the Mesothelioma Treatment Center at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center,[2] which is led by R. Taylor Ripley, MD. Dr. Ripley is also a member of the Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center at Baylor St. Luke’s and is widely recognized as an expert in mesothelioma. He specializes in thoracic surgical oncology and is an expert in robotic thoracic surgery. When speaking of the care offered by the multidisciplinary team, he stresses the team’s deep knowledge. “It’s important to go to a place where the people understand the details and can walk them through the most valuable way of taking a step-by-step approach to the necessary treatment processes.”
Thoracic surgery at the VA Medical Center is led by Dr. Lorraine Cornwell, whose cardiothoracic surgery team provides state-of-the-art thoracic oncologic surgical services to vets with malignant mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, esophageal cancer, and other malignancies. Dr. Cornwell specializes in minimally invasive surgery including Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic (VATS) lobectomy and the use of the DaVinci robot.
Patients diagnosed with peritoneal mesothelioma are treated by Dr. Eugene A. Choi, a board-certified surgical oncologist specializing in the management of gastrointestinal cancers and peritoneal surface malignancies.
