Radiation oncologist Sumit Sood, MD, prides himself on bringing University of Minnesota expertise to his patients at the University of Minnesota Physicians Radiation Therapy Center in Wyoming. There, they gain access closer to home to the University’s advanced cancer-fighting treatments and technologies.
Patients from the Twin Cities’ northeast suburbs, outstate Minnesota, and Wisconsin travel far and wide to be treated at the Center with radiation therapies. They come for its sophisticated technology, multidisciplinary care, and patient-focused approach.
Sood, who joined the clinic in 2018 from Kansas City, was attracted to working in a setting that embraces attentive patient care and belongs to the University of Minnesota system. “We treat each patient like our family members. People say that, but I genuinely think we do,” says Sood. “The people who work in this clinic are amazing.”
At the clinic, located in the Fairview Lakes Medical Center, Sood treats adults with most kinds of cancer, including lung, breast, prostate, and head and neck tumors. He works seamlessly in a team with patients’ medical oncologists, surgeons, and others to develop the best plan for the individual. The specialists don’t take a set-it-and-forget-it approach. They constantly review patients’ cases to make sure their plans fit changing circumstances.
Sood takes advantage of all the latest tools, technologies, and therapies at the Center, including stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT). This technology, using the Varian TrueBeam radiation system, delivers high doses of radiation to a tightly targeted area. This often reduces the number of treatments needed. The clinic also offers image-guided radiation therapy and other innovative technologies to attack tumors.
As a radiation oncologist, Sood enjoys staying on top of new technologies and treatments as they develop. He aspires to help keep the Center on the cutting-edge with new evidence-based therapies that are more effective, shorten treatment, reduce the treatment field, and mitigate side effects.
It’s equally important to Sood that he forge strong relationships with clients and support them through radiation treatment. He strives to ease patients’ worries and help them during a stressful time with clear communication about expectations, their experience, and outcomes.
There’s nothing more rewarding to Sood than celebrating successes with patients after treatment eliminates cancer and they show no evidence of the disease. “It’s always amazing to see our patients live their life and enjoy the quality of life they have,” he says. “That to me is why you do this job.”