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When I was diagnosed with stage I prostate cancer last year, I sought a second opinion at MD Anderson almost immediately. Why? Because my wife, Patty, has been undergoing treatment there for a rare soft tissue sarcoma since 2023. And, the level of care she¡¯s received has been incredible. 

At MD Anderson, I learned that urologic surgeon had successfully performed thousands of the same procedure he was recommending for me. That made the decision to seek treatment there easy. But I¡¯ve also learned some other things about MD Anderson that continue to astonish me. Here are three of them. 

Unparalleled efficiency and expertise

With more than 27,000 employees, MD Anderson truly is a huge organization. Yet, it runs like a well-oiled machine. I was repeatedly amazed when I¡¯d go in for a blood draw one morning, then hear a chime on my phone literally as I was walking down the hall from the lab, indicating the results were already posted in .  

The expertise of MD Anderson¡¯s faculty and staff is also unparalleled. One of the many reasons we chose to go there was that its CT scans revealed so much more than our local providers¡¯ did. The resolution was just so much better. It was like looking at a 4K high-definition TV screen vs. an old tube set with an antenna, where you have to say, ¡°Here, hold the rabbit ears,¡± to improve reception. That also allowed MD Anderson¡¯s radiologists to see things that other places couldn¡¯t. 

Because Patty and I live in Idaho, more than 2,000 miles away, I wanted to see if we could get comparable scans closer to home. I asked the imaging manager at MD Anderson what I should be looking for or asking about to gauge that.  

His answer was that he couldn¡¯t really tell me. It wasn¡¯t because he didn¡¯t want to or was guarding trade secrets or something. It was simply because the answer was constantly changing.  

He explained that MD Anderson¡¯s imaging teams work very closely with its clinicians to give the best possible results based on each patient¡¯s unique situation ¡ª whether that¡¯s by using the latest equipment or employing specialized imaging techniques. And, those two things are always evolving. 

Incredible recovery times

MD Anderson¡¯s expertise is also evident when it comes to recovery times. All of the surgeries my wife underwent near our home in Idaho resulted in long recoveries. She¡¯d spend four or five days in the intensive care unit after each one, followed by another four or five days in a regular hospital room, and a couple more months after that, healing at home. And, these thoracotomies were performed by one of the best thoracic surgeons in the Pacific Northwest! 

But performed Patty¡¯s most recent surgery on a Wednesday in November 2023. She was released from the hospital on Friday ¡ª just two days later. Dr. Walsh said he had to be really creative when it came to making incisions because of all the scar tissue left behind by previous procedures. But for him to get that kind of outcome at all was almost unbelievable. And for Patty to feel comfortable and well enough to leave the hospital that quickly was incredible. 

Exceptional kindness

Another thing that impressed me was how kind the people at MD Anderson are. We¡¯ve interacted with so many employees there over the past few years. Even those not directly involved in our care have a caring and compassionate attitude. 

The nurses are some of the sweetest people you could ever meet. But even random employees will stop whatever they¡¯re doing to offer assistance if they see you looking lost in a hallway or consulting a map on an elevator. It seems like someone is always nearby to ask, ¡°Can I help you?¡± That¡¯s pretty amazing. 

What really floored me was finding out two of the volunteers in the surgical waiting room were actually Dr. Walsh¡¯s wife and daughter. That showed me more clearly than anything else how working at MD Anderson is more than just a job. It¡¯s a family love affair with the hospital and its mission to end cancer. 

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