Elin R. Sigurdson, MD, PhD, FACS
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- Patient Stories
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Clinical Locations
Primary Location
Fox Chase Cancer Center
333 Cottman Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19111
Chief, Division of General Surgery
Director, Surgical Research
TRDG Member, Breast Cancer; Colorectal and SI Cancer; Esophagus, Pancreas, and Liver Cancer
Associate Chief Academic Officer
Specialties
Key Awards
- Philadelphia Magazine Top Doctors, 2009-2017
- America’s Top Doctors® 2017
- Best Doctors in America® 2013, 2014
Treatment Philosophy
I joined the surgical oncology department at Fox Chase Cancer Center in 1992 as director of surgical research.
My specialty is surgical treatment of patients with colorectal and breast cancer. At Fox Chase, we have been improving techniques by performing laparoscopy to remove colorectal cancer, which allows patients an earlier return home and less pain. Our colorectal cancer patients are managed by a multidisciplinary team of physicians. Our advanced surgical techniques minimize the need for permanent colostomies for patients with rectal cancer and offer nerve preservation. This results in improved quality of life after surgery for those with rectal cancer.
Fox Chase is dedicated to providing multispecialty management of patients with colorectal and breast cancer. I enjoy being part of this team because what we do in surgery benefits our patients for the rest of their lives.
I am an active member of the editorial board of the Journal of Clinical Oncology. At Fox Chase, I also serve as the co-director of the fellowship program, which provides expert training to new surgical oncologists.
Follow on Twitter: @FCCCSurgOnc
Educational Background
- Fellow, Surgical Oncology, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY
- Resident, General Surgery, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- MD, University of Toronto School of Medicine, Ontario, Canada, 1980
- PhD, Chemistry, University of London, England, 1976
Certifications
- American Board of Surgery
- Royal College of Surgeons (Canada)
Memberships
- National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN)
- Hepatobiliary Cancers Panel
- American Association for Cancer Research
- American College of Surgeons
- American Surgical Association
- Association for Academic Surgery
- Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group
- Radiation Therapy Oncology Group
- Society of Surgical Oncology, Executive Council
Honors & Awards
- Philadelphia Magazine Top Doctors, 2009-2017
- America’s Top Doctors® 2017
- Best Doctors in America® 2013, 2014
Deborah Lech
Deborah Lech
I was 51 when I was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2012. My husband, Claus, and I had been married two years as of 2012, and were enjoying our life together with my two daughters and his two daughters and son.
Jeff Lambert
Jeff Lambert
I was 34 years old when I was diagnosed with melanoma. Today I am cancer free and enjoying life with my wife, Kathleen, and our daughter, Zoey.
Lynn Tucker
Lynn Tucker
When something feels wrong, speak up. For Lynn Tucker, that sentiment is more than empowering, it’s life changing.
Five years ago Lynn began to experience stomach pain so severe that at times it left her housebound and unable to move. For years, she went from doctor to doctor, received countless tests, and was repeatedly misdiagnosed.
“I was told I had a hernia, Crohn’s Disease, and several other conditions,” Lynn said. “Finally, I just accepted the pain as something I would have to live with. I didn’t think I would ever feel well.”
Jill Scheetz
Jill Scheetz
At the age of 37, in 2002, Jill Scheetz was just getting back into shape after the birth of her two daughters. She considered herself to be physically active and a healthy eater. "My only vice was a caffeinated iced tea almost every day," shared Jill. Although it doesn't sound terrible, her doctor recommended she stay away from caffeine because she had a benign tumor which was removed from her breast when she was 18. When her left breast began to hurt, Jill made an appointment for a mammogram (it had been five years since her last one).
Kathy Petrozelli
Kathy Petrozelli
When Kathy Petrozelli found out she had breast cancer in 2005, she was shocked even though she screened for it every year since her mother had breast cancer. After genetic testing revealed she was a carrier of a genetic mutation that increased her risk for breast cancer and recurrence, she sought a second opinion at Fox Chase Cancer Center. She first opted for a lumpectomy and then a hysterectomy to rule out her chances for getting ovarian cancer. Later, she underwent a simple bilateral mastectomy, which she, at first, tried to avoid. Kathy's final treatment at Fox Chase was in 2013, and today she is cancer free, though she still follows up regularly with her doctors. "I will never forget what the doctors at Fox Chase did for me and for my family. There is no doubt in my mind that they saved my life," she said. "I was impressed with everyone at Fox Chase. They proved to be some of the most compassionate, caring people I’ve ever met."
Pages
Research Interests
- Gastrointestinal cancers
- Breast cancer
Selected Publications
Nardello SM, Kulkarni N, Aggon A, Boraas M, Sigurdson ER, Bleicher RJ. Invasive Mucinous Carcinoma Arising in Ectopic Axillary Breast Tissue. A Case Report and Review of the Literature, Am J Case Rep 2015: 16:153-159 DOI 10.12659/AJCR.892650
Silverman D, Ruth K, Sigurdson ER, Egleston BL, Goldstein LJ, Wong YN, Boraas M, Bleicher RJ. Skin Involvement and Breast Cancer: Are T4b Lesions of All Sizes Created Equal? J Am Coll Surg. 2014 Apr 20, pil:S1072-515(14)00340-8. doi: 10.1016/j_jamcollsurg.2014.04.003 PMID:25026875
Loveland-Jones CE, Ruth K, Sigurdson ER, Egleston BL, Boraas M, Bleicher RJ. Patterns of nodal staging during breast conservation surgery in the Medicare patient: Will the ACOSOG Z0011 trial change the pattern of care? Breast Cancer Research and Treatment, 2014 Feb;143(3):571-7 PMID:24442687
Thomay AA, Nagorney DM, Cohen SJ, Sigurdson ER, Truty MJ, Burtness B, Hall MJ, Chun YS. Modern Chemotherapy Mitigates Adverse Prognostic Effect of Regional Nodal Metastases in Stage IV Colorectal Cancer. 2014 Jan;18(1):69-74Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery PMID:24002765
Nitkorski J, Willis A, Farma J, Zhu F, Nick D, Sigurdson E, Association of Race and Socioeconomic Status and Outcomes with Patients with Rectal Cancer, Ann Surg Oncol. -2013 Apr;20(4):1142-7, PMID:23334252
Landry JC, Feng Y, Cohen SJ, Staley CA 3rd, Whittington R, Sigurdson ER, Nimeriri, H, Verma U, Prabhu RS, Benson AB. Phase II Study of Preoperative Radiation with Concurrent Capecitabine, Oxaliplatin, and Bevacizumab Followed by Surgery and Postoperative 5-Fluorouracil, Leucovorin, Oxaliplatin (FOLFOX), and Bevacizumab in Patients with Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer; ECOG 3204. Cancer, 2013 Apr 15;119(8):1521-7 PMID:23288663
Bleicher, Richard J, Ruth, Karen J, Sigurdson, Elin R, Beck, J. Robert, Ross, Eric, Wong, Yu-Ning, Patel, Sameer A, Boraas, Marcia, Chang, Eric, Topham, Neal S. Egleston, Brian. Time to Surgery and Breast Cancer Survival in the United States: JAMA Oncology. In pres
Benson III A B, Chakravarthy A Bapsi, Hamilton S, Sigurdson ER; Cancers of the Colon and Rectum; A Multidisciplinary Approach to Diagnosis and Management, Chapter 9: Pages 161-163 (demosMedical 2013)
Sigurdson, Elin; Young Oncologist Essay Awards (Moderator), American Radium Society 95th Annual Meeting, Scottsdale, AZ, April 29, 2013
Bleicher RJ, Sigurdson ER. Breast Cancer. Conclusions. Curr Probl Cancer. 2012 Sep-Oct;36(5):325. doi: 10.1016/j.currproblcancer.2012.06.007. Epub 2012 Aug 9. No abstract available. PMID:22884727
