Choosing a Top Doctor for Cancer Can Make All the Difference in the World

A recent article in a leading national magazine has dramatically presented to the public findings regarding the impact of using top doctors and top hospitals when seeking treatment for various cancers.  And it is very apparent that taking charge of your healthcare and having the ability to find and access these top doctors at top hospitals can be a matter of life or death.

Newsweek’s “What You Don’t Know Might Kill You” (October 17, 2009) makes the point, through citation of various clinical outcomes studies  and individual case stories that, while we may have some of the best cancer treatment available in world available in America, there isn’t any guarantee that a particular patient will receive it.  John J. Connolly, Ed.D., President and CEO of Castle Connolly Medical Ltd., publishers of America’s Top Doctors® for Cancer, and a former President of New York Medical College, was struck by the article's focus on the millions of cancer cases annually that are neither “straightforward” re treatment approaches, nor hopeless, but fall in the middle. And for these millions of people - and their loved ones - outcomes can vary significantly as a function of treating doctors and hospitals. “There are differences between leading medical centers and specialty hospitals versus the smaller local community hospitals,” said Dr. Connolly, referring to the studies, “as well as even differences among top centers.”  “Critical to all this is the physician, and the team of physicians, and that’s where we believe that top doctors can make all the difference in the world – whether pertaining to initial diagnosis and staging of the cancer, treatment approaches and options, and/or the on-going management of the patient. Castle Connolly does all of the groundwork so a person can simply pick up the book and find a top doctor in their area," said Dr. Connolly.

 Castle Connolly, the nation’s leading source for identifying top doctors, has just released America’s Top Doctors® for Cancer 5th edition.  This consumer guide contains the detailed profiles of more than 2,200 of the nation’s leading cancer specialists for adults and children across more than 40 medical specialties.  Other valuable insight contained in this guide is information on how to locate clinical trials, carefully controlled studies of   new, cutting edge and experimental therapies that may not have been approved yet. 

America's Top Doctors® for Cancer (5th edition, $29.95) is available at all major bookstores, via the toll-free number 1-800-399-3627 or online at http://www.castleconnolly.com/books. 

Castle Connolly Medical Ltd. is a healthcare information and research company noted for its print and online resources to help consumers identify Top Doctors across the United States.  Its physician-led research team surveys tens of thousands of physicians and hospital executives to identify screen and select those physicians regarded by their peers as leaders..  Castle Connolly publishes America's Top Doctors® for Cancer annually.