Wash. U professor travels to treat cancer patients here

By LONNIE THIELE ~ Staff Writer

Over 1,000 cancer patients in Poplar Bluff and the surrounding area haven't had to travel to St. Louis or Memphis for the latest cancer treatments or to participate in the most recent trials in cancer research.

Since 1991 Shabbir H. Safdar, MD, nationally known Washington University Medical Center professor of Hematology and Oncology, has been treating patients in Poplar Bluff.

Currently Safdar is seeing 30 or more patients Tuesdays at his Kneibert Clinic office. Safdar flies down to Poplar Bluff from St. Louis at 9 a.m. and generally flies back after 7 p.m. after seeing patients. His partners Dr. Raymond Smith and Dr. Muhammed Ali alternate coming to Kneibert Clinic on Thursdays.

Two weekends out of the month, Safdar travels throughout the United States and the world lecturing on the latest in cancer treatments. He was in Phoenix the weekend of Sept. 1 and lectures annually in the Middle East, Pakistan and Spain.

Safdar will address the Quad County Medical Society, made up of physicians from Wayne, Carter, Butler and Ripley counties, on Monday, Sept. 19, at Grecian Steakhouse where he will discuss "The Molecular Basis of Cancer Treatments: a New Dimension."

"Cancer is a scary word. It scares the heck out of people," Safdar said recently at his Kneibert Clinic office. "They want the latest treatments and the most experienced physician to treat them. Therefore by nature, they want to go to a university or a big medical center where they know people are more knowledgeable about the latest development and expertise in treatments.

"What we do is bring that expertise down here.

"We put patients on research studies here. The latest treatments are available. We only take them to a medical center in St. Louis if services aren't available here. Otherwise they are treated here."

Safdar said he started coming to Poplar Bluff after he was approached by local physicians after giving a lecture here in 1991. "They told me older patients and patients who didn't have transportation weren't getting the kind of care they should have," Safdar said.

"I love that man. I'm very proud I got him," said Bill W. West, 71, of Kennett, who has been seeing Safdar for a year for cancer treatment. "Three years ago they thought I was going to die. He's not only a good doctor, but a wonderful friend. I insist on getting to come here on his day, if I can."

H.C. McClintock of Van Buren said he used to go to Springfield for cancer treatment but now sees Safdar.

"A friend of my daughter had the fast growing kind of breast cancer and at one time it looked like she was going to die. He's got her now in remission. He seems to know how to do it," McClintock said.

"He sent me to a hospital in St. Louis for some checks. I'd say he's the best I've seen in the field."

Safdar said cancer treatment has undergone remarkable advances in recent years.

"New drugs are available now that are quite effective in controlling cancer," he said. "Cancer cells have a unique mechanism for growth. Researchers have found what the substance is that allows this growth to occur and have created antibodies against these growth factors.

"We now have monoclonal antibodies that have just been available in the last year or so. Herceptin is an antibody against growth factors for breast cancer," Safdar said. "Iressa is an antibody used for lung, colon and possibly breast cancer."

"They may become important in preventing the reoccurrence of the disease. They won't allow cells to grow."

Safdar said the antibodies are administered through chemotherapy.

He said there were also antibodies against leukemia and lymphoma cancer cells. "There are antibodies that attach to the antigens on leukemia and lymphoma cells, attach as toxins to the antigens and destroys cells, sparing normal cells from toxicity."

The oncology physicians are assisted at Kneibert Clinic by Sharon Douglas, R.N. chemo nurse coordinator and Pam Emke, family nurse practitioner.

"Dr. Safdar sees the patients and lots of times writes orders and Pam and I give the chemo during the week. We send very few patients off. We can do almost all of it down here," Douglas said.

"At Kneibert Clinic we strive to meet patient needs and hope to exceed their expectations in health care," said Dr. Kirby Turner, Kneibert Clinic chairman. "We feel this is excellent service that we can have a Barnes Hospital outreach right here in Poplar Bluff.

"Dr. Safdar has had a large following of patients for several years. With the merging of the hospitals he was looking for rental space. He wanted to continue caring for his patients. We wanted to make space available to him. These patients have a primary cancer doctor here. If they need a hospital, we hospitalize them here and Dr. Safdar can consult them. This keeps a lot of people from having to go out of town.

"We have a lot of patients who need this service."

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This article was originally published in the Daily American Republic, Poplar Bluff, Missouri, and is reproduced here with permission.

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