Jaime Abesada, MD
Dr. Jaime L. Abesada is a Vascular and Interventional Radiologist specializing in Interventional Oncology for the minimally-invasive, non-surgical treatment of cancer and other conditions. In this spotlight, Dr. Abesada responds to some questions about the field’s challenges and rewards as they relate to patient care.
Q: What inspired you to go into Radiology?
As a med student at the VA hospital, I did a rotation with an interventional and saw how he used imaging to see inside the body and perform so many amazing procedures with only a 1cm incision. I was just blown away. I knew then it was my calling.
Q: What do you find most challenging in this field for you, specifically today?
More and more, referring physicians rely on radiology studies, image-guided procedures, and our interpretations for their patient care and treatment decisions. Radiology overall has seen a significant increase in workload volumes and, as techniques and imaging modalities keep evolving, a progressive complexity in the studies and procedures. So, probably the two main challenges right now are recruitment in the field and the somewhat limited interaction we personally get with our patients.
Q: Are there new technologies you are using now or see on the horizon that you find especially fascinating or exciting?
I've always been awed by the evolution of interventional oncology technology and procedures, and their possible synergistic role with immunotherapy in the future.
Q: What are you hoping to see in the future of the industry as it would relate to a patient benefit?
Hopefully, there will be improved insurance coverage and affordability for patients, particularly in radiology, because the need for imaging in high-quality healthcare nowadays is imperative.
Q: What funny or odd question do you often get from patients?
To this day – and I'm sure I'm not the only radiologists to whom this has happened – many people, after learning I am a doctor, ask in which field. When I say “radiology,” they look bewildered, since they expect the person who performs their study to be the same person who interprets it. The usual reaction is, "I didn't know you had to go to med school to be a radiologist!" If they could see the scars of 14 years of school and the most obvious evidence, student loan debt! Oh, and the diploma and Board certificate, too.
Q: Is there anything else you would like to share about your experience in this field?
The most satisfying part of being a diagnostic and interventional radiologist is the ability to interpret and perform minimally-invasive procedures with the goal of preserving or even improving the patient's quality of life. Back in 2007-2017 at the VA hospital in San Juan, PR, I had multiple patients with unresectable liver cancer who were not transplant candidates. With the support of the GI and oncology departments, I treated them with targeted liver treatments (chemoembolization and microwave ablation). Many just wanted to be home with their families, and didn't want prolonged hospitalizations because they thought they would die in the hospital away from their loved ones. One patient in particular, I recall, was very concerned about this and almost refused treatment. We prayed together in the clinic and he agreed to let us treat him.
Long story short, through approximately three years of treatments and follow up, he never had to be hospitalized and tolerated the treatments very well, and was even able to be involved in his grandson's birth. Though he has since passed on, that always stuck with me.
