› Forums › General Melanoma Community › Specialist recommendations in So Cal?
- This topic has 45 replies, 9 voices, and was last updated 10 years, 3 months ago by
kylez.
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- January 24, 2014 at 4:43 pm
Hello everyone,
Thank you in advance to anyone who can offer some input. My dad was diagnosed last week and it's looking pretty high risk. We are bracing ourselves and preparing for a fight. He is a member of Kaiser in Orange County and we quickly realized that they do not have any melanoma oncologists on their staff anywhere. So, that being said, we are in the process of identifying the best options for specialized care and treatment available in the Southern California area. We received one recommendation for Dr. Michael Wong at USC from a family friend who is an oncologist, but are also looking for other local recommendations so that we have options and ensure he will truly get the best possible care available. I know that there are several centers in the LA area as well as La Jolla.
Any input, suggestions, info, etc…is extremely appreciated!!
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- January 24, 2014 at 6:10 pm
HI OzzyieK.
You are very wise to get your dad to a Mel specialist rather than a general onc.The treatment options for melanoma have changed radically in the last few years, and you want someone who has kept up and, preferably, been a part of the treatment testing. When I was looking for a Dr. I wanted someone with direct research experience. This was my thinking anyway.
I think there are other Kaiser folks here on the board, and hopefully they'll chime in, as if I remember right there are Kaiser Mel drs in So Cal. But I could be remembering wrongly. I'm not with Kaiser, but I'm also in So Cal (Huntington Beach). We are fortunate to have a small fortune of Mel specialists in the area.I have been a patient of Dr. Steven J O'Day for 5+ years, and can't speak more highly of him. He's a top notch "rock star" Mel dr., and a truly nice guy on top of that! I gladly make the trek up to Beverly Hills to see him. Here's his info:
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Beverly Hills Cancer CenterAddress: 8900 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills, CA 90211Phone:(877) 351-0088
I've also been to the Angeles Clinic and have been seen by Drs. Boasberg and Hamid. Both were fine Mel Drs, who are very skilled and knowledgeable Drs and who are a part of research programs. If Dr O'Day wasn't available, I'd probably be there.
Here's their info:
The Angeles Clinic and Research Institute
2001 Santa Monica Boulevard, Suite 560W
Santa Monica, California 90404
(310) 582-7900I think both UCLA and USC have programs, but I'm not sure. St John's Hospital and the John Wayne Cancer Center used to, but I'm not sure about it now. I have a friend who's going to a Dr in Orange (out of Hoag?) but she's early stage and I don't know much info on it.
I hope you can find a good match for your father,
Blessings,
Julie
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- January 24, 2014 at 6:32 pm
I agree agree with Julie. I would pick Dr. O'day first at the Beverly Hills Cancer Center.
As for The Angeles Clinic, I would highly recommend Dr. Boasberg.
I have seen both Dr. Boasberg & Dr. Hamid. I did not like Dr. Hamid because he does not take time with you and always seems rushed. When I was going to Dr.Hamid, I usually would see his Nurse Practioner because he was too busy to see me. On occasion, when I did see Dr. Hamid was not a very good listener because he likes to hear himself talk. Dr. Boasberg is the complete opposite of Dr. Hamid. If you end up at the Clinic, pick Dr.Boasberg for your doctor.You will love him.
UCSD Moores Cancer Center in La Jolla also has a wonderful Doctor who name is Dr.Greg Daniels. Dr. Daniels is caring and is down to earth. I would consider him one of the best doctors that I have seen. UCSD also has many clinical trials if you need one.
Here is Dr.Daniel's contact info:
858 534 3804 or 858 822 6267
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- January 24, 2014 at 6:32 pm
I agree agree with Julie. I would pick Dr. O'day first at the Beverly Hills Cancer Center.
As for The Angeles Clinic, I would highly recommend Dr. Boasberg.
I have seen both Dr. Boasberg & Dr. Hamid. I did not like Dr. Hamid because he does not take time with you and always seems rushed. When I was going to Dr.Hamid, I usually would see his Nurse Practioner because he was too busy to see me. On occasion, when I did see Dr. Hamid was not a very good listener because he likes to hear himself talk. Dr. Boasberg is the complete opposite of Dr. Hamid. If you end up at the Clinic, pick Dr.Boasberg for your doctor.You will love him.
UCSD Moores Cancer Center in La Jolla also has a wonderful Doctor who name is Dr.Greg Daniels. Dr. Daniels is caring and is down to earth. I would consider him one of the best doctors that I have seen. UCSD also has many clinical trials if you need one.
Here is Dr.Daniel's contact info:
858 534 3804 or 858 822 6267
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- January 24, 2014 at 6:32 pm
I agree agree with Julie. I would pick Dr. O'day first at the Beverly Hills Cancer Center.
As for The Angeles Clinic, I would highly recommend Dr. Boasberg.
I have seen both Dr. Boasberg & Dr. Hamid. I did not like Dr. Hamid because he does not take time with you and always seems rushed. When I was going to Dr.Hamid, I usually would see his Nurse Practioner because he was too busy to see me. On occasion, when I did see Dr. Hamid was not a very good listener because he likes to hear himself talk. Dr. Boasberg is the complete opposite of Dr. Hamid. If you end up at the Clinic, pick Dr.Boasberg for your doctor.You will love him.
UCSD Moores Cancer Center in La Jolla also has a wonderful Doctor who name is Dr.Greg Daniels. Dr. Daniels is caring and is down to earth. I would consider him one of the best doctors that I have seen. UCSD also has many clinical trials if you need one.
Here is Dr.Daniel's contact info:
858 534 3804 or 858 822 6267
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- January 24, 2014 at 6:10 pm
HI OzzyieK.
You are very wise to get your dad to a Mel specialist rather than a general onc.The treatment options for melanoma have changed radically in the last few years, and you want someone who has kept up and, preferably, been a part of the treatment testing. When I was looking for a Dr. I wanted someone with direct research experience. This was my thinking anyway.
I think there are other Kaiser folks here on the board, and hopefully they'll chime in, as if I remember right there are Kaiser Mel drs in So Cal. But I could be remembering wrongly. I'm not with Kaiser, but I'm also in So Cal (Huntington Beach). We are fortunate to have a small fortune of Mel specialists in the area.I have been a patient of Dr. Steven J O'Day for 5+ years, and can't speak more highly of him. He's a top notch "rock star" Mel dr., and a truly nice guy on top of that! I gladly make the trek up to Beverly Hills to see him. Here's his info:
-
Beverly Hills Cancer CenterAddress: 8900 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills, CA 90211Phone:(877) 351-0088
I've also been to the Angeles Clinic and have been seen by Drs. Boasberg and Hamid. Both were fine Mel Drs, who are very skilled and knowledgeable Drs and who are a part of research programs. If Dr O'Day wasn't available, I'd probably be there.
Here's their info:
The Angeles Clinic and Research Institute
2001 Santa Monica Boulevard, Suite 560W
Santa Monica, California 90404
(310) 582-7900I think both UCLA and USC have programs, but I'm not sure. St John's Hospital and the John Wayne Cancer Center used to, but I'm not sure about it now. I have a friend who's going to a Dr in Orange (out of Hoag?) but she's early stage and I don't know much info on it.
I hope you can find a good match for your father,
Blessings,
Julie
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- January 24, 2014 at 6:10 pm
HI OzzyieK.
You are very wise to get your dad to a Mel specialist rather than a general onc.The treatment options for melanoma have changed radically in the last few years, and you want someone who has kept up and, preferably, been a part of the treatment testing. When I was looking for a Dr. I wanted someone with direct research experience. This was my thinking anyway.
I think there are other Kaiser folks here on the board, and hopefully they'll chime in, as if I remember right there are Kaiser Mel drs in So Cal. But I could be remembering wrongly. I'm not with Kaiser, but I'm also in So Cal (Huntington Beach). We are fortunate to have a small fortune of Mel specialists in the area.I have been a patient of Dr. Steven J O'Day for 5+ years, and can't speak more highly of him. He's a top notch "rock star" Mel dr., and a truly nice guy on top of that! I gladly make the trek up to Beverly Hills to see him. Here's his info:
-
Beverly Hills Cancer CenterAddress: 8900 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills, CA 90211Phone:(877) 351-0088
I've also been to the Angeles Clinic and have been seen by Drs. Boasberg and Hamid. Both were fine Mel Drs, who are very skilled and knowledgeable Drs and who are a part of research programs. If Dr O'Day wasn't available, I'd probably be there.
Here's their info:
The Angeles Clinic and Research Institute
2001 Santa Monica Boulevard, Suite 560W
Santa Monica, California 90404
(310) 582-7900I think both UCLA and USC have programs, but I'm not sure. St John's Hospital and the John Wayne Cancer Center used to, but I'm not sure about it now. I have a friend who's going to a Dr in Orange (out of Hoag?) but she's early stage and I don't know much info on it.
I hope you can find a good match for your father,
Blessings,
Julie
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- January 24, 2014 at 7:59 pm
I go to Dr Bartosz Chmielowski at UCLA.
Access to trials and a vast knowledge of Melanoma.
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- January 25, 2014 at 7:02 am
We see Dr. Kosty at Scripps Green in La Jolla but currently going to Dr. Hamid at Angeles Clinic in Los Angeles. He has been Awesome with us. We had also traveld out to Moffitt Cancer center in Florida and MD Anderson in Texas last year and both specialists at both places recommended Dr. Hamid since we live in Southern California.
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- January 25, 2014 at 7:02 am
We see Dr. Kosty at Scripps Green in La Jolla but currently going to Dr. Hamid at Angeles Clinic in Los Angeles. He has been Awesome with us. We had also traveld out to Moffitt Cancer center in Florida and MD Anderson in Texas last year and both specialists at both places recommended Dr. Hamid since we live in Southern California.
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- January 25, 2014 at 7:02 am
We see Dr. Kosty at Scripps Green in La Jolla but currently going to Dr. Hamid at Angeles Clinic in Los Angeles. He has been Awesome with us. We had also traveld out to Moffitt Cancer center in Florida and MD Anderson in Texas last year and both specialists at both places recommended Dr. Hamid since we live in Southern California.
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- January 26, 2014 at 1:27 am
I don't think Kaiser members can easily go 'out of network'. I spent a year with Kaiser with stage IV melanoma. During 'open season' at my employer I was able to switch to a PPO which has allowed me to go to an NCI cancer center.
I don't know the status of Kaiser's 'ABC' (melanoma and maybe renal) program at Riverside, today. Like if they have a replacement for their melanoma specialist, who I saw there during 2010 before IPI was approved. At that time, given the choice of biochemo or IL-2 by Kaiser Riverside, I did IL-2 per my (obtained outside of Kaiser) second opinion. Last I talked to their nurse, they're doing 'tons of IPI' these days. Send me a private message on this board if you want the contact info for the nurse in the ABC program who I believe is still at Riverside and would know the status of everything there.Your Dad's best option at this time may be getting support from Kaiser to participate in an external clinical trial. Doing that is very iffy but has been done (not by me). I've heard you find the right oncologist and be persistent.
– Kyle
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- January 26, 2014 at 1:29 am
[… I've heard you need to keep knocking on doors until you find the right oncologist who will support a pateint's participation in a clinical trial.] And you'd think it would be in Kaiser's interests to facilitate that for every single stage III / IV melanoma patient.
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- January 26, 2014 at 1:29 am
[… I've heard you need to keep knocking on doors until you find the right oncologist who will support a pateint's participation in a clinical trial.] And you'd think it would be in Kaiser's interests to facilitate that for every single stage III / IV melanoma patient.
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- January 26, 2014 at 1:29 am
[… I've heard you need to keep knocking on doors until you find the right oncologist who will support a pateint's participation in a clinical trial.] And you'd think it would be in Kaiser's interests to facilitate that for every single stage III / IV melanoma patient.
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- January 26, 2014 at 1:27 am
I don't think Kaiser members can easily go 'out of network'. I spent a year with Kaiser with stage IV melanoma. During 'open season' at my employer I was able to switch to a PPO which has allowed me to go to an NCI cancer center.
I don't know the status of Kaiser's 'ABC' (melanoma and maybe renal) program at Riverside, today. Like if they have a replacement for their melanoma specialist, who I saw there during 2010 before IPI was approved. At that time, given the choice of biochemo or IL-2 by Kaiser Riverside, I did IL-2 per my (obtained outside of Kaiser) second opinion. Last I talked to their nurse, they're doing 'tons of IPI' these days. Send me a private message on this board if you want the contact info for the nurse in the ABC program who I believe is still at Riverside and would know the status of everything there.Your Dad's best option at this time may be getting support from Kaiser to participate in an external clinical trial. Doing that is very iffy but has been done (not by me). I've heard you find the right oncologist and be persistent.
– Kyle
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- January 26, 2014 at 1:27 am
I don't think Kaiser members can easily go 'out of network'. I spent a year with Kaiser with stage IV melanoma. During 'open season' at my employer I was able to switch to a PPO which has allowed me to go to an NCI cancer center.
I don't know the status of Kaiser's 'ABC' (melanoma and maybe renal) program at Riverside, today. Like if they have a replacement for their melanoma specialist, who I saw there during 2010 before IPI was approved. At that time, given the choice of biochemo or IL-2 by Kaiser Riverside, I did IL-2 per my (obtained outside of Kaiser) second opinion. Last I talked to their nurse, they're doing 'tons of IPI' these days. Send me a private message on this board if you want the contact info for the nurse in the ABC program who I believe is still at Riverside and would know the status of everything there.Your Dad's best option at this time may be getting support from Kaiser to participate in an external clinical trial. Doing that is very iffy but has been done (not by me). I've heard you find the right oncologist and be persistent.
– Kyle
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- January 26, 2014 at 1:38 am
One more thing — I don't know everything about Kaiser, for sure, so maybe there's a way they'll refer out of network for a speciality like melanoma that they perhaps no longer support (don't know if that's 100% true or only 99%). Or will your Dad need to pay on his own? If Kaiser can refer your Dad 'out of network' that would obviously be great.
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- January 26, 2014 at 3:31 am
We are at N Cal Kaiser and went to Kaiser Riverside for Biochemo and the care there was excellent. And Kaiser NorCal also referred us for treatment at UCSF two different times (clinial trials) and also for TIL therapy at NIH in Maryland. Kaiser worked very well with outside referrals. Might have been just Northern CA Kaiser, but we felt we had access to every treatment and that Kaiser worked with the folks they referred us to in order to cover and share costs. Kaiser helped pay for transportation too.
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- January 27, 2014 at 2:10 am
The care I received at Riverside was also topfilight. They knew their stuff backwards and forwards with IL-2. Dr. Gailani, the pharmacist who whipped up the witches brew for me each time, the surgeons who installed the PICC lines each cycle, the lead nurse and the other nurses taking care of me, to name some of them.
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- January 27, 2014 at 2:10 am
The care I received at Riverside was also topfilight. They knew their stuff backwards and forwards with IL-2. Dr. Gailani, the pharmacist who whipped up the witches brew for me each time, the surgeons who installed the PICC lines each cycle, the lead nurse and the other nurses taking care of me, to name some of them.
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- January 27, 2014 at 2:10 am
The care I received at Riverside was also topfilight. They knew their stuff backwards and forwards with IL-2. Dr. Gailani, the pharmacist who whipped up the witches brew for me each time, the surgeons who installed the PICC lines each cycle, the lead nurse and the other nurses taking care of me, to name some of them.
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- January 26, 2014 at 3:31 am
We are at N Cal Kaiser and went to Kaiser Riverside for Biochemo and the care there was excellent. And Kaiser NorCal also referred us for treatment at UCSF two different times (clinial trials) and also for TIL therapy at NIH in Maryland. Kaiser worked very well with outside referrals. Might have been just Northern CA Kaiser, but we felt we had access to every treatment and that Kaiser worked with the folks they referred us to in order to cover and share costs. Kaiser helped pay for transportation too.
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- January 26, 2014 at 3:31 am
We are at N Cal Kaiser and went to Kaiser Riverside for Biochemo and the care there was excellent. And Kaiser NorCal also referred us for treatment at UCSF two different times (clinial trials) and also for TIL therapy at NIH in Maryland. Kaiser worked very well with outside referrals. Might have been just Northern CA Kaiser, but we felt we had access to every treatment and that Kaiser worked with the folks they referred us to in order to cover and share costs. Kaiser helped pay for transportation too.
-
- January 26, 2014 at 1:38 am
One more thing — I don't know everything about Kaiser, for sure, so maybe there's a way they'll refer out of network for a speciality like melanoma that they perhaps no longer support (don't know if that's 100% true or only 99%). Or will your Dad need to pay on his own? If Kaiser can refer your Dad 'out of network' that would obviously be great.
-
- January 26, 2014 at 1:38 am
One more thing — I don't know everything about Kaiser, for sure, so maybe there's a way they'll refer out of network for a speciality like melanoma that they perhaps no longer support (don't know if that's 100% true or only 99%). Or will your Dad need to pay on his own? If Kaiser can refer your Dad 'out of network' that would obviously be great.
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