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February 18, 2009
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DC OCTUPLETS?
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We recently spoke with Dr. Fady Sharara of the Virginia Center for Reproductive Medicine about a rare (but currently relevant) occurrence: multiple births.
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Fady’s clinic has the highest success rate (pregnancies, not litter size) in the metro area. In terms of the California octuplets, he tells us if a 33-year old woman asked him to implant three embryos, let alone six, most times he’d say no. If she also has limited means and six previous children (like the California mother), Fady says there’s no ethical quandary with saying “I can’t help.”
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Here, Fady in front of his mention in Washingtonian’s Top Doctors list. He says at his clinic, 60% of women under 35 successfully have children. (Point of reference: Two fertile twenty-somethings doing it the old fashioned way only get it right 25% of the time.) He attributes the success rate to being able to transplant a five-day-old embryo during the blastocyst stage. Most other clinics transplant three-day embryos, which have a lower chance of survival.
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| Radiating Treatment |
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Virginia Hospital Center oncologist Dr. Bobby Hong is leaning against a device containing radioactive iridium, which is another way of saying we did whatever he told us. Bobby is learning about Accelerated Partial Breast Irradiation (APBI), which cuts treatment time from six weeks to five days for select women over 45 with small tumors. In the 53 women he’s treated with APBI, he tells us it’s “exceeded expectations.”
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No, Bobby isn’t a beekeeper on the side. That mask immobilizes patients during treatment in the Varian 21Ex linear accelerator (behind him), used for larger irradiation jobs. (For pinpoint accuracy, they’ve got CyberKnife.) Bobby, who joined VHC last year after a chief residency at Loyola, tells us he wants to fully utilize the hospital’s technology, and bring in more. Speaking of bringing in more, he’s expecting his first child on August 5th.
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| Medical Stimulus |
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Yesterday, we sat down with former DC Medical Society prez Joe Gutierrez to get his thoughts on medical provisions in the stimulus package. The bill includes funds for comparing various treatments of the same illness, and Joe worries that this is one step closer to government intervention. But perhaps more importantly, it ignores the reality that the same treatment affects individuals differently.
Don’t worry: If medical writer Curtis Raye became pregnant during his first interview, the radiation probably made him infertile anyway. Send story ideas to Curtis@Bisnow.com
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This newsletter is a journalistic news source which accepts no payment for featured interviews. It is supported by conventional advertisers clearly identified in the right hand column. You have been selected to receive it either through prior contact or professional association. If you have received it in error, please accept our apologies and unsubscribe at bottom of the newsletter. © 2009, Bisnow on Business, Inc., 1323 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20036. All rights reserved.
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