Medical Reports: Cancer Care

WSVN -- You could call Maria Wrona a cancer survivor, since she has battled the disease four times!

Maria Wrona: "Once it starts you just move on."

She's had breast cancer in both breasts and recently the cancer came back.

Maria Wrona: "Chemo, radiation and now I am getting ready to go through a second set of chemo."

This time Maria chose to get her treatment at a new center for cancer patients called First Line Oncology. Dr. Edward Kaplan is the mastermind behind this state of the art facility where he wanted to create a calming and relaxing atmosphere for patients.

Dr. Edward Kaplan, 1st Line Oncology Medical Director: "They'll say gee whiz who designed this place? I'm so relaxed here and look at these images and these photos and pictures."

The outside of the building looks more like a quaint hotel than a medical center, and once inside you notice the calming colors, clean lines and nature pictures, Dr. Kaplan says it all helps with the healing process.

Dr. Edward Kaplan: "By eliminating stress and by making the patient feel comfortable, making the environment feel safe, they really do get better quicker or they develop fewer side effects."

The center has the latest technology including image guided radiation therapy which targets the patient's tumor.

Dr. Edward Kaplan: "We can actually see inside the patient every day. We see their tumor, we can see if their tumor changes in size."

Dr. Kaplan is also working on a cancer treatment breakthrough! He calls it ento-therapy in which tiny seeds deliver chemotherapy directly to the site of the tumor.

Dr. Edward Kaplan: "So you are able to deliver a thousand times more concentration of the medication into the tumor itself than you can through any other means."

And because the medication would bypass the circulatory system unlike traditional chemo there would be no toxic side effects like nausea and hair loss, something Maria could appreciate!

Maria Wrona: "I was bald. I was bald, oh my goodness, and now I am fully haired again."

And even though she is facing chemo once again, Maria says it's important to always stay positive!

Maria Wrona: "I'm 62 and I want to make sure that I'll be here for a long time for my grandchildren and my mother."

Dr. Kaplan has won a grant from the State of Florida and is applying for funding from the National Cancer Institute in the hopes of getting his chemotherapy seeds into clinical trials.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

1st Line Oncology
4848 Coconut Creek Parkway
Coconut Creek, FL 33063
Tel: (954) 379-4848
www.1stLineOncology.com