INDIANAPOLIS – September 17, 2007, St.Vincent Indianapolis Hospital has announced a new collaboration that will expand the St.Vincent Oncology Center of Excellence and provide the best and most current treatment options for patients with cancer statewide. St.Vincent is collaborating with locally based Center for Ear, Nose, Throat and Allergy (CENTA) to provide the highest level of care for patients with cancers of the head and neck, obstructive sleep apnea and patients needing voice restoration following laryngeal cancer treatment. The internationally-recognized group also specializes in the treatment of ear, nose, throat (ENT) and allergy disorders in adults and children, and serves as a regional referral center for tertiary level ENT care.
CENTA is unique in that it provides a range of comprehensive cancer treatment procedures not available in many universities, yet it does so in a private practice setting. CENTA consists of Drs. Eric Blom, Richard Borrowdale, Stephen Freeman, Tod Huntley, Edward Krowiak and Scott Phillips. The practice also includes nurse practitioner Karen Bunnell and social worker Mary Jane Renner.
CENTA has the largest head and neck surgical case volume of any private practice in the country, and its physicians have been at the forefront of this specialty for many years, with some of the following accomplishments:
- The development of the Blom-Singer® voice prosthesis, recognized worldwide as the gold standard for voice restoration after laryngeal cancer surgery
- The world’s longest experience in post-laryngectomy voice restoration
- The world’s longest experience with intraoperative radiation therapy in the treatment of head and neck cancer
- The first use of microvascular free flap reconstruction for head and neck cancer defects in Indiana
- One of the first comprehensive multidisciplinary head and neck tumor clinics in the nation
- The first use of endoscopic thyroid surgical techniques in Indiana
Members of CENTA also hold multiple medical patents. These include recent significant developments in Dr. Blom’s tracheostomy tube technology, which will undergo clinical trials at St.Vincent and nationwide. Dr. Freeman has also developed the Freeman™ Frontal Sinus Stent, used worldwide in endoscopic sinus surgery.
“We are pleased to collaborate with CENTA to complement our existing physicians and clinical staff,” said Michael Wiemann, MD, interim administrative officer of St.Vincent. “This partnership will enhance our research capabilities; ensure the highest level of service for adults with cancers of the head and neck; and further establish our Oncology Center of Excellence as a premier destination for providing a full continuum of exemplary cancer care throughout the state and nation.”
Through the collaboration with St.Vincent, CENTA will expand on its tradition of teaching and research, and will continue its long-standing international head and neck surgical fellowship training program.
“Our new program will offer the latest generation of intra-operative radiation therapy, a multidisciplinary head and neck tumor clinic, and continued participation in a variety of cutting edge clinical trials in cancer and sleep apnea,” said Dr. Freeman. “This association with St.Vincent will also result in the highest level of inpatient care for the head and neck cancer patient. We also intend to use the hospital’s extensive awareness programs to educate the public about prevention of head and neck cancer through the avoidance of alcohol and tobacco.”
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St.Vincent Hospitals and Health Services
Driven by the faith of four Daughters of Charity who arrived in Indianapolis in 1881 with $34.77 in their pockets, the St.Vincent Hospital mission is to treat the poor and sick by following our Core Values of Service of the Poor, Reverence, Integrity, Wisdom, Creativity and Dedication. Our healthcare ministry has grown to include seven Centers of Excellence: Women's, Children's, Orthopedics, Cardiovascular, Neuroscience, Oncology and Bariatrics. The ageless mission of St.Vincent remains unchanged: to minister to the minds, bodies and spirits of those in need.
