About our Team

Anal Cancer

Appendiceal Cancer

Cancer of the Small Intestine

Colorectal Cancer

Esophageal Cancer

Gallbladder & Bile Duct Cancer

Gastric (Stomach) Cancer

Gastrointestinal Carcinoid Tumors

Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors (GIST)

Liver Cancer

Research & Clinical Trials

Support Services

Your First Appointment

Gastrointestinal Cancer Unit at Moores UCSD Cancer Center

UCSD is one of the few sites in the United States with state-of-the-art, innovative therapies and technologies to help you fight gastrointestinal cancer. The Gastrointestinal (GI) Cancer Unit provides screening, diagnosis and treatment for cancers affecting the digestive system, from the esophagus to the anus.  Gastrointestinal cancers include tumors located in the following areas:

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• anus
• colorectal (colon and/or rectum) area
• esophagus
• gallbladder & bile duct
• liver
• pancreas
• small intestine
• stomach (gastric)
• Less common cancers such as appendix/pseudomyxoma peritonei, carcinoid tumors, and gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST). 

Since there are numerous types of GI cancer with many therapeutic approaches, our multidisciplinary team of physicians, surgeons and radiologists meet weekly to review each new case, so that you receive specialized care tailored to your unique needs.  Our physicians have seen your specific cancer many times before.  We know how to treat you with the very latest therapies offering the best outcomes.  

While some individuals may feel anxious about seeing a doctor, or fear the consequences of a cancer diagnosis, we promise that we’ll provide with you all the information you need to make an informed decision tailored to your unique situation.  You’re not alone – we’ll be with you every step of the way. 

The Power of Academic Medicine

As San Diego’s only academic medical center, we have world-renowned specialists who take advantage of technologies and therapies not available elsewhere in the region. Here are just a few of the exciting and innovative projects with which our team is involved:

• Dr. Andrew Lowy performs heated intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC), a procedure unique to only a few top cancer centers in the United States. 
• Dr. Tony Reid leads the Clinical Research unit at UCSD and has pioneered the use of gene therapy and viral vectors to selectively kill tumor cells and enhance the immune response to the cancer.  In addition, he has pioneered therapies directed at choking off the tumor’s blood supply and targeted therapies directed at inhibiting cancer pathways.  
• Dr. Claude Sirlin’s Liver Imaging Group has developed a non-invasive procedure that can detect the smallest of liver tumors. Additionally, whenever possible, UCSD’s surgeons utilize minimally invasive procedures with a laparoscope or da Vinci robot, which means a smaller incision, faster patient recovery, and documented better outcomes. An advantage to minimally invasive surgery is its mild affect on the body’s immune system, which helps stop residual cancer cells from spreading after surgery. 

UCSD is the only San Diego institution with a comprehensive GI Endoscopy Unit which offers technologies such as endoscopic ultrasound, cholangioscopy (evaluation of the bile duct), double balloon enteroscopy (evaluation of the small intestine), and endoscopic removal of early cancer and precancerous duodenum, colon and rectum tumors.

Several new therapies are available through UCSD’s clinical trials.  For example, there’s a new drug in the taxane family that has significantly fewer side effects than previous medications. Additional therapies include immune system boosters, drugs that target a tumor’s blood supply, and new antibodies that attack cancer.