Bone cancer is a rare disease, but if you’re the one who has it, you want to know that the expertise to treat it is available. Spencer Frink, M.D. is one of only two orthopedic oncologists in South Texas. He is part of the triple threat of surgical oncologists at Surgical Oncology Associates. For cancers of the bone, Dr. Frink is the physician you want on your team. Research has shown that outcomes are better when an orthopedic oncologist is involved in the treatment of bone cancers.

The additional training orthopedic oncologists possess can really make a difference in limb preservation, pain management, mobility and survivability, as it did recently for one of Frink’s patients. She had not walked for six months and was in constant pain. After treatment she is walking again and her pain is manageable. In another case, in a 16-hour surgery, Frink and two other surgeons from Surgical Oncology Associates removed a tumor the size of a basketball and a major portion of the patient’s pelvis, then reconstructed it. They were able to get the entire tumor, and the patient is doing well and up and walking again.
 
Stories like these are possible due to the specialized training and education Frink has undertaken which includes a fellowship in orthopedic oncology at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. “Being able to cure or at least improve the quality of life for patients is very rewarding,” says Frink. “Helping them beat the disease, get rid of their pain, return to mobility and back to enjoying life – I feel good about that.” With current chemotherapy and surgical intervention Frink says 60 to 70 percent of the people with cancers that have not metastasized beat their disease.

To find out more about Surgical Oncology Associates, visit www.surgoncsouthtexas.com or call (210) 946-1400