Goshen Health's specialized treatment improves and extends the life of patients with advanced abdominal cancers

GOSHEN, Ind. - A specialized treatment is extending the lives of patients with advanced abdominal cancers, and it's only being done in a number of places including Goshen.

The procedure, called hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy, is known as HIPEC. According to Dr. Sharmila Roy Chowdhury, the procedure combines chemotherapy and surgery into a single operation.

Following the surgical removal of the visible tumors, a high concentration of heated cancer-fighting drugs is delivered directly to the cancerous area in the abdomen.

She says only a select number of patients are candidates for this procedure. It is effective for people who have appendix cancer, colorectal cancer, ovarian cancer and mesothelioma.

“We are helping many of these patients who don’t have the financial capability to travel to a bigger city, state that they get their treatment. We are letting them get the same level of care they could get elsewhere.”

Some of the benefits, according to Dr. Chowdhury, include a higher ability to kill cancer cells and it’s a single treatment done in an operating room instead of many chemotherapy sessions.

Chowdhury says being able to offer this care to Michiana is important.

“We are happy here at Goshen Center for Cancer Care that we have this type of treatment available. This type of treatment is usually available at university hospitals and across the United States, it’s available in 100 or so hospitals, so we’re very happy that we’re able to offer it here in our small town in a rural setting and patients don’t have to travel to larger cities for this type of treatment.”

For more information, head to GoshenHealth.com.