In Praise of Dr. Robert Cameron, by TC McNamara
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John McNamara |
John McNamara succumbed to mesothelioma in November of 2007, following a trip to Washington DC to speak with congress about asbestos exposure and the ravages of mesothelioma. John was treated by Dr. Robert Cameron.
The following is from the website www.thejohnmcnamarafoundation.org, a labor of love produced by John’s wife, TC McNamara. TC has been a tireless advocate for the complete eradication of asbestos in the United States and is well known in Washington DC for her tenacity, passion, and desire to help others suffering with mesothelioma.
Our Featured Doctor – Dr. Robert Cameron
It is our goal to feature a Mesothelioma specialist each month, to provide the Meso community with as much information about each specialist as we can. Hopefully we will provide you, the newcomer to this family with additional information about each doctor that you may not know, and hopefully we will also learn of the many new doctors out there that have provided excellent care, hope, and skill to this understaffed nightmare. So with much gratitude, respect, and love we honor Dr. Robert Cameron at UCLA as our first doctor. Besides for giving my family so much support and extended time with John, our hero we so appreciate his care and devotion, he showed and continues to show our family. Is the surgeon still involved?
We found that Dr. Cameron, followed us through every step he guided us as to what our next step was, and offered more hope than we could have imagined. His compassion to help meso patients and their families is so overwhelming, that when you meet him you find the man behind the title is a caring gentle soul.
Dr. Robert Cameron has been at the forefront of developing innovative therapies to extend the lives of hundreds of mesothelioma patients for more than two decades. His “less is more” philosophy guides his treatment approach while his resolve and compassion leads him to continue treating patients long after surgery.
Dr. Cameron’s Technique
As you have or will find, most doctors ask, why a tedious surgery known as a pleurectomy with decortication can save the lungs of mesothelioma patients. For eight hours, Dr. Cameron slowly peels tumor from the lung, diaphragm, and if necessary, pericardium, using mostly his fingers. He performs this longer, technically more involved surgery and is less compensated for the work financially than surgeons who sacrifice the lung in an extrapleural pneumonectomy.
Why?
Because he strongly believes this is the best option for mesothelioma patients. Because less is more in this case, because the lung is usually healthy, because people live better with both lungs, because no clinic trial has proven that removing the lung gives more life, and because it leaves doors open to seek further aggressive treatment when necessary.
Resolve
As Director of the Mesothelioma Program at the University of California at Los Angeles, Dr. Cameron advises patients on more than their surgical options, he continues to guide treatment for the rest of their lives. He developed a protocol for patients to successfully undergo radiation when their lung remains. He discusses the best chemotherapy protocols with oncologists and always tailors treatment to the individual. Most importantly, he recognizes the need to understand the mechanisms of mesothelioma so that treatment for the disease can improve. Dr. Cameron’s approach to commute mesothelioma from a fatal disease to a disease that can be maintained much like high blood pressure or diabetes has had promising results.
No cure yet exists for any of these diseases, but continued research provides more options for patients. So when Dr. Cameron is not operating, he works in the laboratory to develop treatment such as interferon-alpha, a natural immune enhancement that helps prevent future recurrences. The John McNamara Foundation along with The Pacific Heart, Lung & Blood Institute is honored to support Dr. Cameron’s research aimed at developing more options and better treatment. His dedication is what ultimately provides hope for current patients and the generations of patients to come.
December 4, 2008