“The alternative would have been a much larger operation with a longer recovery and less-than-ideal radiation planning,” Lawrence said. “This allowed us to perform a less invasive surgery and helped the patient recover quicker and continue their treatment sooner.”
Teamwork across specialties improves patient care
The milestone highlights the collaboration among spine surgeons, radiation oncologists, medical oncologists, nurses, operating room staff and emergency medicine teams involved in caring for patients with spinal tumors.
“I give huge credit to everyone involved," Lawrence said. “This is true multidisciplinary care.”
As advances in cancer treatment allow patients to live longer, that collaboration will become more important than ever, Lally said.
“We’re seeing cancer become more of a chronic disease. Our goal is to work together to preserve critical structures like the spine for as long as possible while helping patients maintain their quality of life.”
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Bringing carbon fiber spinal implant technology to South Carolina also means more patients can access advanced spine cancer care without leaving the state.
“We’re able to offer patients treatment options they might otherwise have to travel elsewhere to receive,” Lawrence said. “We can take care of an enormous range of complex problems here at a very high level.”
For Lally, providing that level of care is ultimately about honoring the trust that patients place in their care team.
“Every patient inspires me,” he said. “They give me the opportunity to learn something new, and we owe it to them to make sure we’re offering the latest, most advanced treatments available. This is one more example of us doing exactly that.”
