Multidisciplinary Care of the Head and Neck Cancer Patient

This book identifies key treatment challenges and unique care considerations in patients with head and neck cancers, providing a comprehensive guide to patient management that illustrates the critical importance of a multidisciplinary approach in achieving optimal oncological, functional, and survival outcomes. It covers all relevant specialties, including dental and oral medicine, medical oncology, radiation oncology, surgical oncology, and reconstructive surgery. It highlights the vital role played by ancillary head and neck cancer services, such as speech and swallowing therapy, occupational and physical therapy, and nutritional therapy in offering essential physical and psychological support from the time of diagnosis onward. The closing chapters address post-treatment issues, including those relating to survivorship, surveillance, and end-of-life care. Multidisciplinary care is perhaps even more important for patients with head and neck cancers than for other cancer patients, and in addressing all its aspects this book is invaluable for a wide range of practitioners.

Ellie Maghami, MD, is the Norman and Sadie Lee Foundation Endowed Professor in Head & Neck Cancer and Chief of the Division of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at the City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA, an NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center. Dr. Maghami received her medical degree at Washington University, St. Louis, and continued her otolaryngology training at University of California, Los Angeles. She is a fellowship graduate of the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and a diplomat of the Council for Advanced Training in Oncologic Head and Neck Surgery. Dr Maghami is a member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, setting evidence-based practice guidelines in Head and Neck Oncology. Her current research focuses on minimally invasive surgical technologies, surgical quality and outcomes, and survivorship issues.

Allen S. Ho, MD, is an Assistant Professor of Surgery at the Samuel Oschin Comprehensive Cancer Institute at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA.  He serves as Director of the Head and Neck Cancer Program and Co-director of the Thyroid Cancer Program at Cedars.  Dr. Ho graduated from Harvard with a degree in Neurobiology, attended UCLA School of Medicine, and completed residency training at Stanford.  He finished his head and neck surgical oncology fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.  Dr. Ho has published in journals including Nature Genetics, Cancer, Thyroid, Head & Neck, and JAMA Oncology. His research interests encompass thyroid cancer active surveillance, head and neck imaging surveillance, and cancer proteomics.