Bryan Hemming Endowed Fellowship in Head and Neck Cancer

Ivan El-Sayed, MD and William R. Ryan, MD

Faculty member as a Clinical Instructor

UCSF Bakar Cancer Hospital at the UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay, UCSF Medical Center At Parnassus, UCSF Medical Center at Mt. Zion, San Francisco General Hospital, and the SFVA Hospital

The fellow will participate in head and neck oncologic, endocrine, and skull base surgery with Patrick K. Ha, MD, Ivan El-Sayed, MD, William R. Ryan, MD, Jonathan George, MD, MPH, and Chase M. Heaton, MD. Reconstructive surgery, including microvascular free flap surgery (approximately 125 per year), is usually performed within the service along with Facial Plastics and Reconstructive surgeons, P. Daniel Knott, MD, Rahul Seth, MD, Andrea Park, MD, and the ablative/reconstructive surgeon, Chase M. Heaton, MD. Skull base surgery is frequently done in concert with Neurosurgery. The fellow acts as an attending surgeon in educating Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery residents, as well as directly with attendings in the OR. Surgical experience includes an average of 10-20 major cases weekly, including resection and reconstruction of tumors of the oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, esophagus, skin, parotid, thyroid, parathyroid, paranasal sinuses, skull base, and neck. Traditional, endoscopic, and transoral robotic surgical procedures are performed where appropriate. The fellow may gain experience with in-clinic and intraoperative ultrasound, sentinel lymph node biopsy, and sialendoscopy, all of which are techniques in regular use by members of the faculty team.

The fellow will work with the head and neck attendings and their patients and actively participate in a weekly tumor board that discusses an average of 15 new patients and 25 patients total weekly. There will be the opportunity to follow selected patients through their non-operative treatment as well, with Medical Oncology and Radiation Oncology. In addition, the fellow has teaching responsibilities associated with journal club, a head and neck dissection course, and departmental grand rounds.

Clinical research is expected. Opportunities to interact with the Oral Cancer / Head and Neck Oncology basic science research arm also exist and are encouraged if the fellow wishes.

Call 1 week every 12 weeks: about 4 weeks/year. Privileges are also granted at the San Francisco General Hospital and Veterans Administration Medical Center to facilitate call.