Ochsner Health, MD Anderson partnership expands expert cancer care from Baton Rouge to Slidell | Sponsored: Ochsner Health

The partnership between Ochsner Health and MD Anderson Cancer Center continues to gain momentum. Now, more cancer patients throughout South Louisiana have access to some of the most innovative treatments, select clinical trials, advanced treatment protocols and specialized, collaborative care. Through this partnership, Ochsner MD Anderson Cancer Center locations are the first and only providers in Louisiana with fully integrated cancer programs based on the same protocols and practice standards as MD Anderson in Houston. Now, Ochsner MD Anderson Cancer Center is expanding from Baton Rouge to Slidell Memorial Hospital (SMH).

Regardless of the individual diagnosis, Ochsner’s partnership with MD Anderson ensures adult patients receive innovative care and access to advanced treatments and select clinical trials. Patients can also be assured that their physicians at Ochsner MD Anderson Cancer Center meet the same rigorous criteria as required at MD Anderson and that physicians are board-certified in their subspecialties.

Ochsner’s collaboration with MD Anderson began in 2023 with seven facilities across southeastern Louisiana, including two Baton Rouge locations in this initial phase: Ochsner Cancer Center – Baton Rouge and Ochsner Medical Complex – The Grove. The new SMH partnership began this month, establishing the Ochsner MD Anderson Cancer Center at Slidell Regional Cancer Center, A Campus of Ochsner Medical Center. Through this new affiliation, SMH became one of eight Ochsner MD Anderson locations in Louisiana. For SMH, the partnership provides earlier access to clinical therapies, advanced technologies and adds new therapies to its existing chemotherapy, radiation and support services.

“Our patients are people we go to church with and who we see at the grocery store,” said Lisa Reso, director of cancer services at Slidell Regional Cancer Center. “They are truly our friends and neighbors. This partnership ensures that they will receive the best of both worlds – advanced innovation and expertise combined with the personal touch that we give as a community hospital.” Reso also said the center’s existing multidisciplinary approach, which brings together oncologists, surgeons, specialists and support staff around each patient, will deepen.

“We have had a comprehensive care model for a few years. Now, we will be able to add to that with more specialists and services. That’s exciting for us,” she said. “We’re going to be able to move to the next level of care faster than we could have ever done before.”

Jennifer Perone, MD, surgical oncologist at Ochsner MD Anderson Cancer Center in Baton Rouge, agrees. “The program brings together experts across oncology, radiology, surgery, nutrition, pain management and other specialties,” Dr. Perone said. “We provide a nurse navigator to help keep patients on schedule with different treatments and ensure patients and their caregivers understand what’s going on so they can make informed decisions.”

Ochsner dietitians are available to help ensure patients get the right nutrition for maintaining strength. The physical rehab team and pain management team offer evolving therapies before, during and after treatment. The cancer center also provides acupuncture, a treatment option that has been shown clinically to help with pain and nausea side effects of chemotherapy and other medications.  

At every location, patients receive the top-level clinical care they expect from Ochsner and MD Anderson with increased access for new patients, convenient online scheduling for established patients and extended infusion hours. 

“We also offer specialized services like chemotherapy infusion centers, genetically based treatment that’s based on each patient’s unique genome and advanced therapies like CAR T-cell therapy for certain blood cancers. That’s especially important for giving patients access to advanced care in their own community,” Perone said.

In Slidell, Chief Executive Officer Sandy Badinger said the Slidell Regional Cancer Center is adding four new comprehensive care rooms to prepare for the additional services to meet MD Anderson’s rigorous standards.

“We’re really excited to get our clinicians and team aligned with everything that is needed to make this partnership successful,” she said.

Matthew McElveen, MD, medical director of Slidell Regional Cancer Center, said he and other physicians most often treat patients with breast, lung, and upper and lower gastrointestinal cancers. Multidisciplinary teams have been built around those conditions, and Dr. McElveen said the complexity of modern cancer therapies makes those collaborations more essential than ever.

“Often, the differences in treatment can be very subtle but very important. We get together with Ochsner specialists to talk about cases already. Our partnership with MD Anderson is going to bring that to a new level,” Dr. McElveen said. “We’ll be working with physicians who are extremely specialized and spend all day looking at those subtle differences. They can help us understand why one therapy might work better than another. Having that assistance in the decision-making process is extremely important.”

These expectations mirror the real-world experience of patients in the Baton Rouge region, who have trusted Ochsner MD Anderson with their cancer care for more than two years. Jaclyn Isabella, MD, a colon and rectal surgeon with the center in Baton Rouge, says the multidisciplinary model is crucial, especially with rare or complicated cancer cases. 

“Physicians on the care team typically take part in tumor boards in which they review complex cases and collaborate on the best treatment approach. The treatment team can play a crucial role in identifying patients who are potential matches for cancer clinical trials, which often provide access to the very latest innovations in treatment,” Dr. Isabella said.

By expanding the partnership, Ochsner MD Anderson provides high-quality clinical care and the largest clinical trials network in Louisiana and Mississippi to more patients when and where they need it most. With the creation of Ochsner MD Anderson Cancer Center at Slidell Regional Cancer Center, Ochsner MD Anderson Cancer Center locations are now open in Slidell, Baton Rouge, New Orleans, Covington, Kenner and Gretna.

Ochsner Health is the leading nonprofit healthcare provider in the Gulf South, delivering expert care at its 47 hospitals and more than 370 health and urgent care centers. To learn more about how Ochsner empowers people to get well and stay well, visit ochsner.org. To learn more about Ochsner MD Anderson Cancer Center and the comprehensive cancer care available to local patients, visit ochsner.org/EndCancer.