Columbus Cancer Care
Columbus Cancer Care's medical director, Dr. Joan Keit, has been practicing radiation oncology since 1994, helping cancer patients become survivors. Columbus Cancer Care opened in 2011 to bring high-quality radiation treatments to Platte County, so people could receive cancer care close to home.
Board certified in radiation oncology, Dr Keit believes strongly believes in the value of every person who walks into her cancer center. Compassion is at the core of her mission, values and patient-centered care. Originally from Staten Island, New York, Dr. Keit attended Villanova University in Villanova, Pennsylvania, and the State University of New York at Stony Brook School of Medicine, where she graduated with honors. Her internal medicine internship was at Staten Island University Hospital in New York, and her residency was at Hahnemann University in Philadelphia. The American Cancer Society awarded her a clinical Oncology Fellowship.
Dr. Keit has also been awarded the American College of Radiation Oncology Fellowship. She has received honors for her work in patient care, particularly in bringing technologies such as Tomotherapy and HDR prostate brachytherapy to Nebraska and expanding an oncology radio-pharmaceutical practice in Omaha & Columbus.
The staff at Columbus Cancer Care believes in providing the highest level of care with respect, compassion and the use of state-of-the-art technology.
Services
TomoTherapy®
The equipment used for TomoTherapy looks like a computed tomography (CT) system. During the treatment, the patient lies on a couch that moves continuously through a rotating ring. As the ring turns and the couch moves, the system delivers radiation from all angles, minimizing damage to surrounding healthy tissue.
Advantages of TomoTherapy®
- It treats a tumor while avoiding critical organs such as the spine, bronchi, esophagus, heart, bladder and other healthy surrounding tissues.
- If the cancer changes position, the doctor will see that by taking new medical images every day.
- It has a helical treatment delivery, which means radiation is aimed at the tumor from many different directions. This makes it the ideal treatment for curved areas, such as breasts.
- It has the ability to sculpt small, powerful and precise beamlets of radiation to treat hard-to-reach tumors, such as rectal and brain tumors.
- This treatment often has reduced side effects compared to standard external beam radiation treatments.
Stereotactic radiosurgery
Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) is a treatment for certain brain tumors that delivers high-dose radiation in a single appointment. It is considered “surgical” because it affects the treatment area so dramatically. SRS uses 3D imaging and a head stabilizing device to achieve this precision and avoid damaging healthy brain tissue.
Stereotactic body radiotherapy
We use SBRT to treat very small tumors in the lungs, liver, spine or brain, delivering a high dose of radiation to tumors in a short amount of time. A patient undergoes SBRT over the course of one to five days, rather than several weeks, which is much more convenient for scheduling. This type of therapy also has fewer effects on nearby organs and, in some cases, better cancer control rates.
4D treatment planning
Sometimes, tumors move during radiation treatments. We use 4D treatment planning, also known as “gating,” to track tumor movements while the patient is breathing, which is especially useful for tumors in or near the lung. By following the tumor motion during breathing, we can more accurately “hit a moving target,” which allows for greater precision and less normal tissue radiation exposure.
Radiopharmaceutical therapy
We can give radioactive medicines orally or intravenously to treat a variety of cancers. We offer:
- Xofigo (radium-223) to treat prostate cancer bone metastasis.
- Radioactive iodine to treat thyroid cancer, benign goiter and hyperthyroidism.
- Samarium to treat bone metastasis.
- Yttrium to treat lymphoma.
Contact Us
Columbus Cancer Care
3764 39th Ave.
Columbus, NE 68601
402-562-4840
