Dr. Ajmel Puthawala

Cyber Knife and Radiation Oncology

As part of Orange Coast Memorial’s new Patient Care Pavilion, Orange County CyberKnife and Radiation Oncology Center combines state-of-the-art technologies with preeminent radiation oncologists. Included is the most advanced full-body CyberKnife robotic radiosurgery system available -- a non-invasive, pain-free alternative to surgery for the treatment of both cancerous and non-cancerous tumors anywhere in the human body. It is the first and only CyberKnife of its kind in Orange County.

The Orange County CyberKnife and Radiation Oncology Center also features the Varian RapidArc enabled linear accelerator, which is considered a major advance in radiation therapy technology, delivering treatments two to eight times faster than the nearest delivery option available. These fast and accurate treatments reduce patient discomfort and minimize tumor motion. Both of these amazing technologies require no invasive techniques, and are viable options for patients looking for an alternative to typical surgical procedures.

Dr comes on the show to discuss The Cyberknife along with other available treatment options such as Hyperthermia and Brachytherapy.

Named after a famous Indian physician, Dr. Ajmel Puthawala grew up in Ahmedabad, India, a city of great educational, philosophical, and medical traditions. Encouraged to study medicine at an early age, Dr. Puthawala excelled in science.

After graduating with his medical degree from Gujarat Unversity in Ahmedabad, he then interned at a local hospital. Attracted to the U.S. by the advanced discoveries in medicine, Dr. Puthawala emigrated in 1971, first to New York where he did his internship and residency, then to the University of San Diego Hospital in 1975, where he was chief resident.

After meeting Dr. Nisar Syed in 1976, the two set up a practice at Southern California Cancer Center, an affiliate of University of Southern California. Together, they have fought cancer using radiation therapy, in particular Brachytherapy, for the past 35 years.

Dr. Puthawala has held positions as Attending Radiation Oncologist at both the Southern California Cancer Center/California Hospital and the Hospital of the Good Samaritan in Los Angeles, and has been the Associate Director of Radiation Oncology, as well as the Clinical Hyperthermia Director, at the Todd Cancer Institute located at the Long Beach Memorial Medical Center in Long Beach, California. He also has practiced at the Saddleback Memorial Medical Center in Saddleback, California.

Dr. Puthawala currently serves as a clinical professor of radiation therapy at the University of California, Irvine and is also a clinical professor in radiation therapy at the University of Southern California Los Angeles. Dr. Puthawala is a Past President of the American Brachytherapy Society, a former editor of Brachytherapy, An International Journal, and Endocurietherapy/Hyperthermia Oncology: An International Journal. He has been a Fellow of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology, the American College of Radiation Oncology, and the American College of Radiology. He has published more than seventy articles in various peer reviewed medical journals. Dr. Puthawala also retains memberships in numerous oncologic and radiologic societies, both in the United States and Europe.

As one of a handful of internationally recognized pioneers of modern Brachytherapy, Dr. Puthawala has, along with Dr. Syed, developed innovative Brachytherapy techniques and achieved an enviable 90% career success rate fighting both primary and recurrent cancers. Now, with the opening of the Orange County CyberKnife and Radiation Oncology Center, he and his team will have even more life-saving technologies at their fingertips.

“We are in an era of great discovery,” says Dr. Puthawala. “Applying the cutting edge elements of this science to the benefit of our patients is the most exciting thing about our new venture.”

Melanie Cole, M.S.

12 / 30 / 2009