George Salti, MD, FACS, renowned surgical oncologist and Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of Illinois at Chicago, has joined the Edward Cancer Center. Dr. Salti will serve as the Co-Medical Director of the Edward Cancer Center and Medical Director of the Edward Hospital Surgical Oncology Program.
Dr. Salti uses advanced surgical techniques to treat melanoma, sarcoma, breast cancer, gastrointestinal and esophageal cancer, pancreatic cancer, hepatobiliary cancer and endocrine tumors.
In addition, Dr. Salti has developed a special interest in – and is one of only a few surgeons in Illinois and the country – treating late stage abdominal cancers with Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy, also known as HIPEC. Only 1,300-1,500 of the procedures are performed annually in the U.S.
HIPEC is done in conjunction with surgery to remove cancerous tumors. With HIPEC, the abdominal cavity is bathed with a heated chemotherapy solution for 90 minutes to attack any remaining cancer cells. According to Dr. Salti, HIPEC is most commonly applied to cancers of the appendix and colon, but also is used in some cases of ovarian, stomach and p
eritoneal cancers.
“HIPEC may provide relief of symptoms, and it has improved the survival rate for some cancers,” said Dr. Salti. “It doubles the survival rate for certain colon cancer patients compared to use of the latest standard chemotherapy. And for patients with malignant growths known as pseudomyxoma peritonei, HIPEC can add up to 20 years to their life expectancy.”
Dr. Salti was previously a surgical oncologist with University Surgical Consultants. He earned his medical degree from the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, and completed his residency in General Surgery and fellowship training in Surgical Oncology at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Dr. Salti is certified by the American Board of Surgery. He is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and a member of the American Hepatobiliary Pancreatic Association, American Society of Breast Surgeons, American Society of Clinical Oncology, American Society of Peritoneal Surface Malignancy, Society for Melanoma Research, Society of American Gastrointestinal Endoscopic Surgeons and the Society of Surgical Oncology.
For more information, visit www.edward.org/cancersurgery. To schedule a patient consultation with Dr. Salti, call (630) 527-3788.
