Losing one’s mother to cancer is a life-changing event. The difficult journey of seeing her undergo a transformation from the mom she was to how she was when she died creates memories that follow one for the rest of one’s life – they also motivated one LECOM leader to make a profound difference for others.
In 1987, Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) Dental Clinic Director of Patient Care, Dr. Susan Calderbank was 10 years out of Dental School when her mother was diagnosed with colon cancer that had metastasized to her liver. She received chemotherapy every week for 18 months (then the standard treatment for the disease). “Her mouth completely fell apart,” recalled Dr. Calderbank. “She would drink water and blood would drip off of her teeth. It broke my heart and I did not know how to help her except through common sense as we were not taught this in school. There was no internet and very few papers were being written on this topic,” the LECOM leader solemnly recounted.
A year after her mother died, Dr. Calderbank attended a consensus development conference on this very topic at the National Institute of Health (NIH). “Once I learned more, I felt that it was my duty to teach my fellow dentists and hygienists about all that I had learned,” furthered Dr. Calderbank.
Since then, Dr. Calderbank has lectured in 48 states and in several foreign countries. In 2012, she was recruited by the Eugene Myers/Jonas Johnson ENT group in Pittsburgh to visit Pittsburgh two days each week to dentally treat and provide clearance for their cancer patients. “I stayed there until I came to LECOM,” she noted. While there, Dr. Calderbank formed many connections with the oncologists, a factor that made it easier for the assiduously focused doctor to transition to Erie, as the oncologists were eager to have her continue her work with their Erie patients. The association became a natural referral source to the dental clinic.
“Every patient that we see receives a full educational session during their appointment of at least 45 minutes,” explained Dr. Calderbank. “Often, I hear the patients say, ‘No one told me this.’ My students also are appalled when their cancer patients tell them that they could not get a timely dental clearance appointment, even from their own dentists who have treated them for many years,” a fact that roiled the caring doctor.
Dr. Calderbank also has established a significant link between the Hillman Foundation and LECOM. “I had invited one of their representatives to sit in on a cancer patient’s first appointment (with the patient’s approval) and UPMC’s representative was so impressed that when the patient (who had lost his larynx to cancer) indicated that he had no money available for the needed extractions that UPMC’s representative assured the patient and his wife, that the Foundation would cover the expense. The Hillman Foundation has made a commitment that if any UPMC patient cannot pay for needed dental work to enable the start chemotherapy or head and neck radiation, UPMC’s Foundation will cover the cost. That’s a huge community link,” beamed Dr. Calderbank.
The LECOM Director of Patient Care noted that a truly significant result of treating the cancer patients is that the students, upon graduation, will be able to treat any and all cancer patients who come into their practice. “That was one of my key goals in coming here and we have accomplished that,” Dr. Calderbank proclaimed.
Doctor Calderbank explained further that the clearance program is now receiving patients who mostly have breast or prostate cancer where there is metastasis to the bone and the physician is
planning to place them on bisphosphonate therapy.
Physicians send them to us to have a dental clearance before they start the medication. This medication alters bone metastasis and when extracted post-bisphosphonate therapy, the bone may not heal, and the patients may lose a portion or all of their jaw. In treating these patients, there is an educational component that helps them learn how to avoid the future need for extractions. The value of this program is immeasurable to those who are suffering at the deepest level. The information that patients gain in understanding all that is to come upon them through the process is invaluable to those needing treatment.
Dr. Susan Calderbank has honored her mother’s memory in the important and meaningful work that she has undertaken in service at LECOM. Ever-vigilant for new opportunities and in every innovative undertaking, LECOM supports its educators and administrators in the mission to ensure the wellbeing of the residents of each community that it serves.
Aristotle once said that “the work that man does shapes him, but the purpose a man has defines him.” For this caring and deliberative LECOM leader, few words carry more fitting resonance –
Mom would be proud.