Robert G. Uzzo, MD, FACS
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Clinical Locations
Primary Location
Huntingdon Pike
8 Huntingdon Pike
Rockledge, PA
Secondary Location
Fox Chase Cancer Center
333 Cottman Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19111
Chair, Surgical Oncology
G. Willing "Wing" Pepper Chair in Cancer Research
Senior Vice-President, Physician Services
President, FCCC Medical Group, Inc.
Professor of Surgery, Temple University Health System
Specialties
Treatment Focus
- Robotic and laparoscopic urologic oncology
- Organ preservation (kidney, bladder, testicular and adrenal)
- Non-surgical management of low risk urinary tumors
- Complex urological reconstruction
Research Program
Key Awards
- Philadelphia Magazine Top Doctors, 2002-2016
- America’s Top Doctors® 2016
- Best Doctors in America® 2013, 2014
Treatment Philosophy
I believe in treating patients as I would my own family. I strive to communicate effectively with patients and family members at all levels. Through extensive discussions with my patients, I develop treatment plans that are both effective and acknowledge that quality of life issues are exceptionally important. I emphasize individually tailored treatments to help patients achieve success and limit treatment-related side effects which can affect quality of life.
I am sensitive to the particular issues regarding surgical treatment of genitourinary cancer, especially the physical and emotional effects on patients and their family. By fostering a doctor-patient relationship based on mutual respect and open dialogue, I encourage patients to become empowered managers of their care.
As a fellowship-trained laparoscopic and robotic urologic oncologist, I am specially trained in nerve-sparing, organ sparing and organ reconstructive surgical techniques for men and women. These strategies are essential for preserving normal functions. For instance, I perform kidney sparing surgery whenever possible to avoid future risks of dialysis. For prostate or testicular surgery, nerve preservation is essential; and when bladder removal is necessary, reconstruction of a new (neobladder) is my preferred approach.
Professionally, I have published more than 300 journal papers in urologic oncology and have lectured extensively regionally, nationally and internationally on the topics of kidney, prostate, bladder, and testicular cancer. I am the principle investigator or co-investigator on multiple national and regional clinical trials in urologic oncology. Because of my research and extensive membership in professional organizations, I am among the first to know what is new in urologic cancer treatment. Philadelphia magazine has chosen me for its "Top Doctors" list every year since 2002.
Social Media
Follow on Twitter: @FCUroOnc
Chair, Department of Surgical Oncology
Nationally known as a leader in the field of urologic oncology, Dr. Uzzo has made important clinical, scientific and educational contributions to the Department of Surgery.
A fellow of the American College of Surgeons, Uzzo has consistently ranked among Castle Connolly’s and Philadelphia magazine's "Top Docs" in urology. He is a national principal investigator for a clinical trial by the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group to evaluate new, targeted therapies for kidney cancers and immunotherapy. He is the author of more than 350 chapters, articles, books and abstracts on urologic tumors and has presented hundreds of regional, national and international lectures.
In addition to his extensive clinical practice, he oversees research laboratory initiatives studying molecular mechanisms of genitourinary cancers. In 2003, he was promoted from Associate Professor to Professor with tenure in Fox Chase's division of medical science.
Before he joined the Fox Chase staff in 2000, Uzzo had been a fellow and clinical staff member of the urology department at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation since 1997. He was an American Foundation for Urologic Diseases scholar there until 1999 and held an additional fellowship in renal transplantation and renovascular surgery at the Cleveland Clinic from 1999 to 2000.
Uzzo earned his bachelor's degree summa cum laude in biology and anthropology at Union College in Schenectady, NY, where he was the valedictorian and a New York State finalist for the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship. He then received his MD in 1991 at Cornell University Medical College in New York City. As a senior medical student at Cornell in 1990, he studied pediatric kidney problems at Guy's Hospital in London, England, and went on to spend two months in Russia studying at the Urologic Institute of Moscow. He was also a primary care physician for the National Public Health Service at Kayenta Navajo Indian Reservation in Arizona.
Uzzo completed his internship and residency in surgery at the New York Hospital - Cornell University Medical Center. He continued his residency in urology there and at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center from 1993 to 1997, serving as chief resident in New York Hospital's department of urology.
Educational Background
- Fellow, Urologic Oncology, Cleveland Clinic Foundation
- Fellow, Renal Transplantation and Renovascular Surgery, Cleveland Clinic Foundation
- Chief Resident, Urology, New York Hospital-Cornell University Medical Center, New York, NY
- Senior Resident, Urology, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY
- MD, Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, 1991
- BS/BA, Union College, Schenectady, NY, 1989, Valedictorian
Certifications
- Diplomat, American Board of Urology
Memberships
- The American Urological Association
- Member, American Association of Genitourinary Surgeons, AAGUS
- Society of Urologic Oncology, Board of Directors
- Society of Urologic Oncology, Clinical Trials Consortium, President
- Society of Urologic Oncology, Clinical Trials Consortium, Renal Program Chairman
- Board of Directors, SUO Clinical Trials Consortia, member-at-large
- Fox Chase Cancer Center Society of Scholars
- Kidney Cancer Association Medical Advisory Board
- Fellow American College of Surgeons (F.A.C.S.)
- Society of Urologic Oncology
- Pennsylvania Medical Society
- Philadelphia County Medical Society
- The MidAtlantic Section of the American Urological Association
- Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group
- Radiation Therapy Oncology Group
- American College of Surgeons Oncology Group - Vice Chairman, GU Organ Committee 2002-2006
- American Society of Transplant Surgeons
- Urologic Society of Transplant and Vascular Surgeons
- Society for Basic Urologic Research
- American Association for Cancer Research
Honors & Awards
- Philadelphia Magazine Top Doctors, 2002-2016
- America’s Top Doctors® 2016
- Best Doctors in America® 2013, 2014
- AUA Residents National Committee Teaching Award
- Consumer’s Research Council of America –America’s Top Physicians
John Roley
John Roley
In the fall of 2007, John Roley went to his local emergency room complaining of severe stomach pain. He figured the pain was caused by a stomach virus. The doctors performed several tests, including a CAT Scan, which showed something suspicious on both kidneys.
Denise Coldwater
Denise Coldwater
In 1999, at the age of 45, Denise Coldwater of Enid, Oklahoma, was diagnosed with kidney cancer. At the time, her only choice was a total nephrectomy (removal of the kidney). After treatment, Denise resumed her life raising three sons and teaching school. At home, she and her husband, Mike, ran a cattle ranch. Hoping her cancer journey was in her rear view mirror, Denise was shocked in 2014 to learn she had cancer again - this time in her remaining kidney.
Mike Phillips
Mike Phillips
The doctors at his local hospital detected five lesions on Mike's kidney, but were not certain whether they were cysts or tumors. Mike was informed that he would need to have his kidney removed and would likely need hemodialysis. "My doctor said, 'Dr. Uzzo is to renal surgery as Michael Jordan is to basketball.' That was enough for me!"
Joe Riehs
Joe Riehs
Working high above the Delaware River for the Port Authority is where Joe Riehs spends much of his time. He is a maintenance technician on the Betsy Ross Bridge, connecting Pennsylvania and New Jersey. It was on that bridge that Joe received the call from his doctor with the news. There was an 85% chance that the tumor found on Joe's kidney was cancerous.
Elycia Lerman
Elycia Lerman
The first surgeon Elycia Lerman met with after her diagnosis of stage 4 renal cancer told her that surgery was impossible. “It was November 2008 and he basically said my cancer was a death sentence,” recalled the Lambertville resident, who was 48 at the time. Elycia had originally seen her general practitioner because of debilitating back pain and sciatica. After eight months of physical therapy, an MRI finally revealed that the cause of her pain. One tumor was pressing on her sacrum and another tumor (10 cm) was sitting on her left kidney.
Pages
Research Program
Research Interests
- Clinical and translational questions involving renal cell carcinoma including decision making models in the management of renal cancers and processes/quality of care in urologic malignancies
- Analyses of outcomes involving excision, ablation, and active surveillance for localized kidney cancer and techniques/outcomes of surgery in locally advanced and metastatic RCC
- Actively develop and accrue to multiple industry sponsored national and international urological oncology trials as well as IITs
- Translational interests include biomarker development in kidney cancer and the role of zinc dyshomeostasis in prostate cancer
Selected Publications
Campbell S.C., Novick A.C., Belldegrun A., Blute M.L., Chow G.K., Derweesh I.H., Faraday M.M., Kaouk J.H., Leveillee R.J., Matin S.F., Russo P., Uzzo R.G., Guideline for Management of the Clinical T1 Renal Mass, 2009, Journal of Urology, 182, 4 SUPPL., 1271, 1279 PubMed
Uzzo R.G., Novick A.C., Nephron sparing surgery for renal tumors: Indications, techniques and outcomes, 2001, Journal of Urology, 166, 1, 6, 18 PubMed
Kutikov A, Uzzo RG. The RENAL Nephrometry Score: A comprehensive standardized system for quantitating renal tumor size, location and depth. J Urol, 182(3):844-53, 2009. (cited 401 times) PubMed
Chawla S.N., Crispen P.L., Hanlon A.L., Greenberg R.E., Chen D.Y.T., Uzzo R.G., The natural history of observed enhancing renal masses: Meta-analysis and review of the world literature, 2006, Journal of Urology, 175, 2, 425, 431 PubMed
Kunkle D.A., Egleston B.L., Uzzo R.G., Excise, Ablate or Observe: The Small Renal Mass Dilemma-A Meta-Analysis and Review, 2008, Journal of Urology, 179, 4, 1227, 1234 PubMed
Kunkle D.A., Uzzo R.G., Cryoablation or radiofrequency ablation of the small renal mass: A meta-analysis, 2008, Cancer, 113, 10, 2671, 2680 PubMed
Uzzo R.G., Wei J.T., Waldbaum R.S., Perlmutter A.P., Byrne J.C., Vaughan Jr. D., The influence of prostate size on cancer detection, 1995, Urology, 46, 6, 831, 836 PubMed
Pollack A., Hanlon A.L., Horwitz E.M., Feigenberg S.J., Konski A.A., Movsas B., Greenberg R.E., Uzzo R.G., Ma C.-M.C., McNeeley S.W., Buyyounouski M.K., Price Jr. R.A., Dosimetry and preliminary acute toxicity in the first 100 men treated for prostate cancer on a randomized hypofractionation dose escalation trial, 2006, International Journal of Radiation Oncology Biology Physics, 64, 2, 518, 526 PubMed
Qiao J., Uzzo R., Obara-Ishihara T., Degenstein L., Fuchs E., Herzlinger D., FGF-7 modulates ureteric bud growth and nephron number in the developing kidney, 1999, Development, 126, 3, 547, 554
Lane B.R., Russo P., Uzzo R.G., Hernandez A.V., Boorjian S.A., Thompson R.H., Fergany A.F., Love T.E., Campbell S.C., Comparison of cold and warm ischemia during partial nephrectomy in 660 solitary kidneys reveals predominant role of nonmodifiable factors in determining ultimate renal function, 2011, Journal of Urology, 185, 2, 421, 427 PubMed
Mann S.J., Pickering T.G., Sos T.A., Uzzo R.G., Sarkar S., Friend K., Rackson M.E., Laragh J.H., Captopril renography in the diagnosis of renal artery stenosis: accuracy and limitations, 1991, The American Journal of Medicine, 90, 1, 30, 40 PubMed
Dulaimi E., Uzzo R.G., Greenberg R.E., Al-Saleem T., Cairns P., Detection of Bladder Cancer in Urine by a Tumor Suppressor Gene Hypermethylation Panel, 2004, Clinical Cancer Research, 10, 6, 1887, 1893 PubMed
Kunkle D.A., Crispen P.L., Chen D.Y.T., Greenberg R.E., Uzzo R.G., Enhancing Renal Masses With Zero Net Growth During Active Surveillance, 2007, Journal of Urology, 177, 3, 849, 854 PubMed
Touijer K., Jacqmin D., Kavoussi L.R., Montorsi F., Patard J.J., Rogers C.G., Russo P., Uzzo R.G., Van Poppel H., The Expanding Role of Partial Nephrectomy: A Critical Analysis of Indications, Results, and Complications, 2010, European Urology, 57, 2, 214, 222 PubMed
