The Colorectal Oncology Center

The staff and physicians of The Colorectal Oncology Center at St. Joseph Medical Center have consistently led efforts to educate our community on the importance of screening, and continues to be aggressive about screening as the single most important tool for prevention and treatment of colorectal cancers. When there is a diagnosis, the Center is skilled in treating the most common to the most complex conditions, and provides individualized treatment pathways for patients.

Surgical director Dr. Howard Berg leads an expert multidisciplinary team that includes colorectal surgery, gastroenterology, medical and radiation oncology, and other support services that are committed to the successful treatment of patients.

 
Dr. Robert Akbari, a colorectal surgeon, is board certified in both general and colorectal surgery. He received his undergraduate degree from Vassar College and his medical degree from Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine in Hershey, PA. Dr. Akbari’s general surgery training was completed at Western Pennsylvania Hospital in Pittsburgh, PA. He also completed an endorectal ultrasound/research fellowship at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and a colorectal fellowship at the University of Minnesota.

Diagnosis and Treatment
Colorectal cancer can almost always be caught in its earliest and most curable stages with regular screening colonoscopy exams. Other diagnostic tools may include:

• Sigmoidoscopy
• Endorectal ultrasound
• Surgical biopsy

Treatment of colorectal cancer depends on the size and location of the tumor, the stage of the disease and the patients overall health. Surgery is the most common treatment for cancer that has not spread beyond the colon wall, and may be performed wither laproscopically or through an open procedure. Whenever possible, surgeons avoid a colostomy for colon and rectal cancer patients. Depending on the extent of the cancer, patients may also receive additional treatment with chemotherapy or radiation therapy.