Mesothelioma - Dr. Raja Flores - Mount Sinai Hospital
Raja Michael Flores, M.D., is an American thoracic surgeon, currently Chief of the Division of Thoracic Surgery at Mount Sinai Hospital and Ames Professor of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, both in New York City.
Flores received a B.A. in biochemistry from New York University in 1988 and his M.D. from Albert Einstein College of Medicine in 1992. His internship (1992–1993) and residency (1993–1997) at Columbia-Presbyterian Medial Center were followed by a Thoracic Oncology Clinical Research Fellowship (1997–1998) in Intraoperative Chemotherapy, Mesothelioma and Lung Cancer at Brigham and Women's Hospital/Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and a Cardiothoracic Surgery Residency (1998-2000) at Harvard Medical School, both in Boston, Massachusetts.
Flores is currently an editorial board member for the World Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery, the World Journal of Gastrointestinal Edoscopy and the World Journal of Respirology. He is a reviewer for 13 other journals including Head & Neck, the Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, the Journal of Thoracic Oncology and the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Memberships include the American College of Chest Physicians, the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group and the American Society of Clinical Oncology.
Research
Flores' research has significantly impacted the surgical management of pleural mesothelioma by demonstrating that partial pleural membrane removal is as effective a treatment as lung removal. He was instrumental in creating VATS lobectomy as the standard in the surgical treatment of lung cancer and is considered a pioneer in the use of intraoperative chemotherapy for mesothelioma.
Flores is the author of more than 60 book chapters, reviews, monographs and abstracts and more than 150 publications. He serves as a reviewer for 13 journals and has been an editorial board member on four journals. He is the principal investigator on five clinical trials and has been ranked in the top 1% in his field by U.S. News & World Report.
Flores areas of interest include lung cancer screening, thoracoscopy, VATS lobectomy, extrapleural pneumonectomy for mesothelioma, asbestos, tracheal stenosis, carinal surgery and esophageal cancer surgery. He is the principal investigator for a clinical trial of neoadjuvant gemcitabine and cisplatin followed by extrapleural pneumonectomy and high-dose radiation.
Other research includes:
Publications
Partial list:
Flores, RM; Ihekweazu, UN; Rizk, NP; Dycoco, J; Bains, MS; Downey, RJ; Adusumilli, PS (Jan 2011). "Patterns of recurrence and incidence of second primary tumors after lobectomy by VATS versus thoracotomy for lung cancer". J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 141 (1): 59–64. PMID 21055770. doi:10.1016/j.jtcvs.2010.08.062.
Flores, RM (Feb 2011). "Reply to difference in outcome in the transection of the pulmonary artery and vein". J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 141 (2): 597–8. PMID 21241869. doi:10.1016/j.jtcvs.2010.10.008.
Rai, AJ; Flores, RM (Jan 2011). "Association of malignant mesothelioma and asbestos related conditions with ovarian cancer: shared biomarkers and a possible etiological link?". Clin Chem Lab Med. 49 (1): 5–7. PMID 21158701. doi:10.1515/CCLM.2011.027.
Flores, RM; Ihekweazu, UN; Rizk, N; Dycoco, J; Bains, MS; Downey, RJ; Adusumilli, P; Finley, DJ; Huang, J; Rusch, VW; Sarkaria, I; Park, B (Jan 2011). "Patterns of recurrence and incidence of second primary tumors after lobectomy by means of video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) versus thoracotomy for lung cancer". J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 141 (1): 59–64. PMID 21055770. doi:10.1016/j.jtcvs.2010.08.062.
Flores, RM; Riedel, E; Donington, JS; Alago, W; Ihekweazu, U; Krug, L; Rosenzweig, K; Adusumilli, PS; Carbone, M; Pass, HI (Oct 2010). "Frequency of use and predictors of cancer-directed surgery in the management of malignant pleural mesothelioma in a community-based (Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results [SEER]) population". J Thorac Oncol. 5 (10): 1649–54. PMID 20871264. doi:10.1097/JTO.0b013e3181f1903e.
Ihekweazu, UN; Ludwig, E; Flores, RM (Aug 2010). "PillCam in gastric conduit after Ivor Lewis esophagectomy". Ann Thorac Surg. 90 (2): 673. PMID 20667385. doi:10.1016/j.athoracsur.2009.10.042.
Abbey, AM; Flores, RM (Aug 2010). "Spontaneous resolution of a pericardial cyst". Ann Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 16 (1): 55–6. PMID 20190713.
Rai, AJ; Flores, RM; Mathew, A; Gonzalez-Espinoza, R; Bott, M; Ladanyi, M; Rusch, V; Fleisher, M (Feb 2010). "Soluble mesothelin related peptides (SMRP) and osteopontin as protein biomarkers for malignant mesothelioma: analytical validation of ELISA based assays and characterization at mRNA and protein levels". Clin Chem Lab Med. 48 (2): 271–8. PMID 20131968. doi:10.1515/CCLM.2010.066.
Flores, RM (Apr 2010). "Video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) lobectomy: focus on technique". World J Surg. 34 (4): 616–20. PMID 20082195. doi:10.1007/s00268-009-0340-8.
Flores, RM; Riedel, E; Donington, JS; Alago, W; Ihekweazu, U; Krug, L; Rosenzweig, K; Adusumilli, PS; Carbone, M; Pass, HI (Oct 2010). "Frequency of use and predictors of cancer directed surgery in the management of malignant pleural mesothelioma in a community-based (SEER) population". J Thorac Oncol. 5 (10): 1649–1654. PMID 20871264. doi:10.1097/JTO.0b013e3181f1903e.
Flores, RM; Park, BJ; Dycoco, J; Aronova, A; Hirth, Y; Rizk, NP; Bains, M; Downey, RJ; Rusch, VW (2009). "Lobectomy by video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) versus thoracotomy for lung cancer". J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 138 (1): 11–18. PMID 19577048. doi:10.1016/j.jtcvs.2009.03.030.
Flores, RM; Park, BJ; Dycoco, J; Aronova, A; Hirth, Y; Rizk, NP; Bains, M; Downey, RJ; Rusch, VW (Jul 2009). "Lobectomy by video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) versus thoracotomy for lung cancer". J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 138 (1): 11–8. PMID 19577048. doi:10.1016/j.jtcvs.2009.03.030.
Flores RM, Pass HI, Seshan VE, Dycoco J, Zakowski M, Carbone M, Bains MS, Rusch VW. "Extrapleural Pneumonectomy (EPP) versus Pleurectomy/Decortication (P/D) in the surgical management of malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM): Results in 663 patients. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2008 Mar; 135(3):620-6, 626.el-3. doi:10.1016/j.jtcvs.2007.10.054 PMID 18329481
Garcia, A; Flores, RM (2008). "Surgical Management of tumors invading the superior vena cava". Ann Thorac Surg. 85 (6): 2144–6. PMID 18498851. doi:10.1016/j.athoracsur.2007.12.027.
Flores, RM; Routledge, T; Venkatraman, E; Dycoco, J; Hirth, Y; Rusch, VW (Sep 2008). "The impact of lymph node station on survival in 348 patients with surgically resected malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM): implications for revision of the AJCC staging system". J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 136 (3): 605–610. PMID 18805259. doi:10.1016/j.jtcvs.2008.02.069.
Garcia, A; Byrne, JG; Bueno, R; Flores, RM (Dec 2008). "Aneurysm of the main pulmonary artery". Ann Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 14 (6): 399–401. PMID 19131930.
Flores, RM; Zakowski, M; Venkatraman, E; Krug, L; Rosenzweig, K; Dycoco, J; Lee, C; Yeoh, C; Bains, M; Rusch, VW (2007). "Prognostic Factors in the Treatment of Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma (MPM) at a Large Tertiary Referral Center". J Thorac Oncol. 2 (10): 957–65. PMID 17909360. doi:10.1097/JTO.0b013e31815608d9.
Flores, RM; Krug, LM; Rosenzweig, KE; Venkatraman, E; Vincent, A; Heelan, R; Akhurst, T; Rusch, VW (May 2006). "Induction chemotherapy, extrapleural pneumonectomy, and postoperative high dose radiotherapy for locally advanced malignant pleural mesothelioma. A phase II trial". J Thorac Oncol. 1 (4): 289–95. PMID 17409872. doi:10.1097/01243894-200605000-00004.
Flores, RM; Alam, N (2006). "Treatment of malignant pleural mesothelioma: pleurectomy with adjuvant therapy". Operative Techniques in Thor and Cardiovasc Surg. 11 (1): 57–74. doi:10.1053/j.optechstcvs.2006.02.002.
