UCLA or Stanford/UCSF

I live in the Bay Area, actually close to Stanford, but I go to UCSF Melanoma Center for treatment as they are the best for melanoma specialists in Northern California. So, I highly recommend them from my personal experience. I have heard good things about UCLA as well, so maybe someone with experience down there can chime in about them. Either way, it is good to hear you're helping your friend out in finding a good melanoma center with top notch melanoma specialists as that is the #1 thing to do after being diagnosed. 

Here is UCSF's site for the Melanoma Center: https://www.ucsfhealth.org/clinics/melanoma_center/

All the best,

I live in the Bay Area, actually close to Stanford, but I go to UCSF Melanoma Center for treatment as they are the best for melanoma specialists in Northern California. So, I highly recommend them from my personal experience. I have heard good things about UCLA as well, so maybe someone with experience down there can chime in about them. Either way, it is good to hear you're helping your friend out in finding a good melanoma center with top notch melanoma specialists as that is the #1 thing to do after being diagnosed. 

Here is UCSF's site for the Melanoma Center: https://www.ucsfhealth.org/clinics/melanoma_center/

All the best,

I live in the Bay Area, actually close to Stanford, but I go to UCSF Melanoma Center for treatment as they are the best for melanoma specialists in Northern California. So, I highly recommend them from my personal experience. I have heard good things about UCLA as well, so maybe someone with experience down there can chime in about them. Either way, it is good to hear you're helping your friend out in finding a good melanoma center with top notch melanoma specialists as that is the #1 thing to do after being diagnosed. 

Here is UCSF's site for the Melanoma Center: https://www.ucsfhealth.org/clinics/melanoma_center/

All the best,

Hi Charlie,

I'd HIGHLY recommend USC in Los Angeles. USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center is one of the best in the US. My Mom was is now being seen by Dr. James Hu who is her oncologist, Dr. Eric Chang, who is is radiation-oncologist and Dr. Naveed Wagle, who is her neuro-oncologist. And I feel that she would not be doing as well as she is if we had not taken her there for all of her treatments.

At 78 my Mom was diagnosed with stage IV in November of 2013 and she is doing great despite the stage IV diagnosis ending up with 28 brain mets!  99% of everything is gone, which is completely amazing. She's had Yervoy and Gamma Knife Radiation, that got most of it, but is now on Keytruda because she had 1 brain met with a reoccurrence and a new brain met about 12 and 10 months ago…. We were told last month that they can only see 1 treated brain met and the evidince of the other 26 is gone. – 1 was removed by craniotomy.

We did have some very bad experiences in the beginning so I'd recommend that he: 1) see only melanoma specialists, 2) be treated a facility that has a team with experience with gamma knife radiation (40% of melanoma patients end up with brain mets), 3) keep all treatment at one facility, 4) always ask about all the options and newest treatments, and 5) get a second or third opinion.

My Mom had a MRI done in November or 2013. She was diagnosed as Stage IV. We did not find out that she had brain cancer until we saw a 3rd melanoma specialist. The radiologist missed it and the two  melanoma specialists we saw at a clinic in Beverly Hills and then UCLA never even looked at her scans. They read the reports and it wasn't until we saw the 3rd melanoma specialist that we found out about the brain mets. She was about to go into a clinical trial and we were very lucky to have found out before too much time past or damage was done. 

She also had a problem with the doctor who did the gamma knife procedure the following month. He only treated 8 of 9 brain mets and said one was a blood vessel. Even though another radiologist said a month later that the "blood vessel" was a brain met he said it wasn't. 4 months later my Mom had another bad call and we were told that the brain met the neuro-oncologist who read my MRI saw was something to watch not treat. 

Since my Mom was being treated at USC (with Yerovy, which was started 4 days after gamma knife radiation treatment) her doctor had her seen by his radiologist the next day. We ended up moving all of her treatment to USC and it was the best decision we ever made. – She was treated for 17 new brain tumors a week later. – And the neuro-oncologist  at Cedars told us to just watch and see!

If you are going to be taking your friend to see the doctors I also recommend that you be sure to hand carry all of his reports and scans and make sure that any doctor he choose looks at the images not just the reports. Good doctors will want to look at these images and start testing him for the BRAF gene, which will give your friend more options with treatment. A recorder also helps so you can keep a record of what the doctor said too.

Today my Mom is 80, is full of energy, has not known lasting issues and does just about anything she wants. I would not be able to say this today if we had not have sought out other doctors or felt that we needed to when we were told to to watch and wait…

Good luck!

Hi Charlie,

I'd HIGHLY recommend USC in Los Angeles. USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center is one of the best in the US. My Mom was is now being seen by Dr. James Hu who is her oncologist, Dr. Eric Chang, who is is radiation-oncologist and Dr. Naveed Wagle, who is her neuro-oncologist. And I feel that she would not be doing as well as she is if we had not taken her there for all of her treatments.

At 78 my Mom was diagnosed with stage IV in November of 2013 and she is doing great despite the stage IV diagnosis ending up with 28 brain mets!  99% of everything is gone, which is completely amazing. She's had Yervoy and Gamma Knife Radiation, that got most of it, but is now on Keytruda because she had 1 brain met with a reoccurrence and a new brain met about 12 and 10 months ago…. We were told last month that they can only see 1 treated brain met and the evidince of the other 26 is gone. – 1 was removed by craniotomy.

We did have some very bad experiences in the beginning so I'd recommend that he: 1) see only melanoma specialists, 2) be treated a facility that has a team with experience with gamma knife radiation (40% of melanoma patients end up with brain mets), 3) keep all treatment at one facility, 4) always ask about all the options and newest treatments, and 5) get a second or third opinion.

My Mom had a MRI done in November or 2013. She was diagnosed as Stage IV. We did not find out that she had brain cancer until we saw a 3rd melanoma specialist. The radiologist missed it and the two  melanoma specialists we saw at a clinic in Beverly Hills and then UCLA never even looked at her scans. They read the reports and it wasn't until we saw the 3rd melanoma specialist that we found out about the brain mets. She was about to go into a clinical trial and we were very lucky to have found out before too much time past or damage was done. 

She also had a problem with the doctor who did the gamma knife procedure the following month. He only treated 8 of 9 brain mets and said one was a blood vessel. Even though another radiologist said a month later that the "blood vessel" was a brain met he said it wasn't. 4 months later my Mom had another bad call and we were told that the brain met the neuro-oncologist who read my MRI saw was something to watch not treat. 

Since my Mom was being treated at USC (with Yerovy, which was started 4 days after gamma knife radiation treatment) her doctor had her seen by his radiologist the next day. We ended up moving all of her treatment to USC and it was the best decision we ever made. – She was treated for 17 new brain tumors a week later. – And the neuro-oncologist  at Cedars told us to just watch and see!

If you are going to be taking your friend to see the doctors I also recommend that you be sure to hand carry all of his reports and scans and make sure that any doctor he choose looks at the images not just the reports. Good doctors will want to look at these images and start testing him for the BRAF gene, which will give your friend more options with treatment. A recorder also helps so you can keep a record of what the doctor said too.

Today my Mom is 80, is full of energy, has not known lasting issues and does just about anything she wants. I would not be able to say this today if we had not have sought out other doctors or felt that we needed to when we were told to to watch and wait…

Good luck!

Hi Charlie,

I'd HIGHLY recommend USC in Los Angeles. USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center is one of the best in the US. My Mom was is now being seen by Dr. James Hu who is her oncologist, Dr. Eric Chang, who is is radiation-oncologist and Dr. Naveed Wagle, who is her neuro-oncologist. And I feel that she would not be doing as well as she is if we had not taken her there for all of her treatments.

At 78 my Mom was diagnosed with stage IV in November of 2013 and she is doing great despite the stage IV diagnosis ending up with 28 brain mets!  99% of everything is gone, which is completely amazing. She's had Yervoy and Gamma Knife Radiation, that got most of it, but is now on Keytruda because she had 1 brain met with a reoccurrence and a new brain met about 12 and 10 months ago…. We were told last month that they can only see 1 treated brain met and the evidince of the other 26 is gone. – 1 was removed by craniotomy.

We did have some very bad experiences in the beginning so I'd recommend that he: 1) see only melanoma specialists, 2) be treated a facility that has a team with experience with gamma knife radiation (40% of melanoma patients end up with brain mets), 3) keep all treatment at one facility, 4) always ask about all the options and newest treatments, and 5) get a second or third opinion.

My Mom had a MRI done in November or 2013. She was diagnosed as Stage IV. We did not find out that she had brain cancer until we saw a 3rd melanoma specialist. The radiologist missed it and the two  melanoma specialists we saw at a clinic in Beverly Hills and then UCLA never even looked at her scans. They read the reports and it wasn't until we saw the 3rd melanoma specialist that we found out about the brain mets. She was about to go into a clinical trial and we were very lucky to have found out before too much time past or damage was done. 

She also had a problem with the doctor who did the gamma knife procedure the following month. He only treated 8 of 9 brain mets and said one was a blood vessel. Even though another radiologist said a month later that the "blood vessel" was a brain met he said it wasn't. 4 months later my Mom had another bad call and we were told that the brain met the neuro-oncologist who read my MRI saw was something to watch not treat. 

Since my Mom was being treated at USC (with Yerovy, which was started 4 days after gamma knife radiation treatment) her doctor had her seen by his radiologist the next day. We ended up moving all of her treatment to USC and it was the best decision we ever made. – She was treated for 17 new brain tumors a week later. – And the neuro-oncologist  at Cedars told us to just watch and see!

If you are going to be taking your friend to see the doctors I also recommend that you be sure to hand carry all of his reports and scans and make sure that any doctor he choose looks at the images not just the reports. Good doctors will want to look at these images and start testing him for the BRAF gene, which will give your friend more options with treatment. A recorder also helps so you can keep a record of what the doctor said too.

Today my Mom is 80, is full of energy, has not known lasting issues and does just about anything she wants. I would not be able to say this today if we had not have sought out other doctors or felt that we needed to when we were told to to watch and wait…

Good luck!

Hello,

Your friend is lucky to have you in his corner.  Its a tough fight, and having a support network is helpful.  I'm being seen, and sometimes treated at UCSF.  For me, the visit requires a 5-hour plane ride, hotel stays, etc.  But exactly as Jenn noted above, I also receive some limited care, and many of my regular infusions at my local hospital under the direction of a general oncologist.  Once a specialist puts a treatment plan in place, you may be able to avoid the travel for at least some treatments.  On another note, perhaps because of my logistical challenges, UCSF seems to really be efficient for me.  I will get a CT scan in the morning, visit my doctor just hours later with results of the scan, then if due, my regular infusion all in a one-day visit.  I have been so pleased with my care at UCSF I would recommend them highly.

Gary

Hello,

Your friend is lucky to have you in his corner.  Its a tough fight, and having a support network is helpful.  I'm being seen, and sometimes treated at UCSF.  For me, the visit requires a 5-hour plane ride, hotel stays, etc.  But exactly as Jenn noted above, I also receive some limited care, and many of my regular infusions at my local hospital under the direction of a general oncologist.  Once a specialist puts a treatment plan in place, you may be able to avoid the travel for at least some treatments.  On another note, perhaps because of my logistical challenges, UCSF seems to really be efficient for me.  I will get a CT scan in the morning, visit my doctor just hours later with results of the scan, then if due, my regular infusion all in a one-day visit.  I have been so pleased with my care at UCSF I would recommend them highly.

Gary

Hello,

Your friend is lucky to have you in his corner.  Its a tough fight, and having a support network is helpful.  I'm being seen, and sometimes treated at UCSF.  For me, the visit requires a 5-hour plane ride, hotel stays, etc.  But exactly as Jenn noted above, I also receive some limited care, and many of my regular infusions at my local hospital under the direction of a general oncologist.  Once a specialist puts a treatment plan in place, you may be able to avoid the travel for at least some treatments.  On another note, perhaps because of my logistical challenges, UCSF seems to really be efficient for me.  I will get a CT scan in the morning, visit my doctor just hours later with results of the scan, then if due, my regular infusion all in a one-day visit.  I have been so pleased with my care at UCSF I would recommend them highly.

Gary