麻豆传媒

Paul J. Thuluvath, M.D., Chief, Division of Gastroenterology at Mercy Medical Center, and Medical Director for The Melissa L. Posner Institute for Digestive Health & Liver Disease at Mercy leads a top rated physician team of gastroenterology specialists in Baltimore, Maryland, who help patients find the best treatment options for digestive diseases and liver conditions.

As the leader of The Center for Liver and Hepatobiliary Diseases, Dr. Paul Thuluvath provides patients with pioneering treatments and advanced technology to help them manage their illness. He is a recognized national and international authority in liver and biliary diseases and dedicated to medical research and clinical trials that are advancing treatment possibilities for patients. While his patients respect his expertise, they value his bedside concern, empathy and personal care that keeps them encouraged. He welcomes patient questions and family involvement, and is devoted to patient education in the healing process.

Dr. Thuluvath and his team of gastroenterology specialists provide expertise, comprehensive care, advanced facilities for endoscopy procedures and leading edge technology, treatment and pioneering medical research.

Dr. Paul Thuluvath coordinates patient care, when needed, working in collaboration with the specialists of The Institute for Cancer Care at Mercy, The Center for Minimally Invasive Surgery at Mercy, The Center for Interventional Pain Medicine at Mercy, The Lung Center at Mercy, and the Division of Interventional Radiology. This comprehensive approach to diagnosis and treatment of digestive health and liver disease and the expertise of our doctors makes The Institute for Digestive Health and Liver Disease at Mercy a leader in the Mid-Atlantic region.

Authority in Liver and Biliary Diseases

Dr. Paul Thuluvath is a known authority in liver and biliary diseases and pre-and post-liver transplant management. He serves on the Editorial Board for: Hepatology, Liver Transplant, and Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. 

He is a frequent speaker and lecturer at national and international meetings on issues in liver and biliary diseases and has addressed medical groups in China, Germany, India, London, Oman, Philippines, Singapore and the United States.

Dr. Rachel Issaka is a gastroenterologist and clinical researcher focused on decreasing the mortality associated with colorectal cancer, with a special focus on medically underserved populations. Dr. Issaka鈥檚 research includes identifying, measuring and recommending new and improved approaches to screening and follow-up both in Seattle and across the U.S.

The roots of Dr. Issaka鈥檚 research lie in a tale of two clinics. The first was at Northwestern University鈥檚 McGaw Medical Center, a few blocks from Chicago鈥檚 glittering 鈥淢agnificent Mile鈥� commercial district. The second was at a federally qualified health center on the city鈥檚 South Side, several miles and another world away.

Issaka worked at both clinics early in her medical career. She soon noticed a striking difference between the two. Her mostly white, middle- to upper-class patients at Northwestern faithfully followed whatever the doctor ordered. That included getting screened for colorectal cancer, the second-deadliest cancer in the U.S.

But it was different on the South Side. Her mostly African-American and Latino patients there, when encouraged to schedule screening for colorectal cancer, often declined.

Why?

Issaka has never stopped asking why disparities exist and how to achieve health equity in colorectal cancer screening. The questions aren鈥檛 academic. Screening can prevent colorectal cancer by detecting and simultaneously removing precancerous polyps, small lesions that over time can grow and become cancerous.

But despite clear evidence that screening for colorectal cancer saves lives, rates aren鈥檛 where they should be. The screening goal for the U.S. population, according to the American Cancer Society and National Colorectal Cancer Round Table, is 80 percent. The actual rate is about 63 percent across all populations, with even lower rates among racial minorities and those of lower socioeconomic status.

Closing that gap, Issaka noted, could save 200,000 lives over the next 20 years. And it could lessen the socioeconomic inequalities that linger 鈥� or stubbornly grow 鈥� in cancer care and mortality.

鈥淪creening is a way to not only prevent disease but reduce racial and economic disparities,鈥� said Issaka, who is on the faculty of the Hutch鈥檚 Clinical Research Division and the Hutchinson Institute for Cancer Outcomes Research, which is based in the Public Health Sciences Division. 鈥淲e need to close that gap so that every citizen can benefit from the advances in cancer care and prevention.鈥�