by Pat Kramer for Hope News (City of Hope)
Carlos Garberoglio, M.D., has joined City of Hope as clinical director of the Division of Surgery’s Department of General Oncologic Surgery.
As an academic cancer physician, Garberoglio not only specializes in the surgical treatment of melanoma and malignancies of the breast and gastrointestinal system, but also is a highly regarded professor of surgery.
He joined City of Hope’s staff in July 2006 after serving at Loma Linda University Medical Center for 16 years. Garberoglio spent the last decade at Loma Linda as chief of surgical oncology and is credited for developing Loma Linda’s Breast Health Center, along with providing direction and support for expanding the medical center’s tumor boards.
Colleagues know him best, however, for his clinical work pioneering the use of minimally invasive surgery.
“Since the early ’90s, when laparoscopic technology became available, I have used and been a proponent for minimally invasive surgery for cancer patients, whenever possible,” Garberoglio said. “We started with laparoscopic cholecystectomy for the removal of the gall bladder and further utilized the same and more advanced techniques in the treatment of cancer-related surgeries.”
City of Hope surgeons’ philosophy — to provide the least invasive, proven treatment possible for cancer patients — attracted the surgeon to his new position. “I feel it was time to move to an institution that is fully dedicated to cancer care, which will allow me to focus and expand my goals in cancer, research and teaching,” he said. “I believe our philosophies for care are very similar.”
Along those lines, Garberoglio strongly believes in combining cancer treatment strategies. “During my early training in general surgery, I found that treatment of cancer patients was not only surgical, but also involved many other specialties,” he said. “This multidisciplinary, multimodality approach is what attracted me most. I have always believed in a team approach; I believe this approach is also best for the patient.”
Through his ties to clinical research networks, Garberoglio encourages patients to participate in clinical trials to access up-and-coming therapies. He also has contributed to important studies utilizing proton therapy as a precise radiation treatment option for breast cancer patients.
In addition, Garberoglio serves as an advisor in the biomedical industry, offering expertise on emerging strategies such as the use of oncolytic viruses — vectors that aim to kill cancer cells.
Garberoglio attended medical school at the University of Rosario in Argentina. He later was a research fellow at the University of Chicago and completed his general surgical residency at the State University of New York at Stonybrook. Garberoglio then spent two years as a surgical oncology fellow at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York.
An avid soccer fan and world traveler, Garberoglio has attended every World Cup since 1994. Garberoglio and his wife, Maria, a pediatrician/neonatologist at Loma Linda University, have four children.