- With Mayo Clinic medical oncologist
Timothy Moynihan, M.D.
read biographyclose windowBiography of
Timothy Moynihan, M.D.
Timothy Moynihan, M.D.
"As a practicing medical oncologist, I meet with patients and families every day to help manage their course through this disease called cancer. This experience provides unique insight into the needs of cancer patients, their families and loved ones and brings into sharp focus the need for reliable information to be readily available in terms that can be easily understood." — Dr. Timothy Moynihan
Dr. Timothy Moynihan believes that providing consumers accurate, timely information on the broad, complex topic of cancer is the biggest challenge facing medical Web sites. As the guiding force behind our cancer coverage, he makes sure Mayo Clinic meets the test.
Dr. Moynihan, born in Las Vegas, N.M., but raised in Denver, is a consultant in medical oncology at Mayo Clinic and an associate professor at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine. He is board certified in internal medicine, medical oncology, and hospice and palliative care medicine. He did his medical oncology training at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, and then went on to the University of Minnesota and St. Paul Regions Medical Center in St. Paul, Minn., for seven years before moving to Mayo Clinic in 1999. Dr. Moynihan is director of the palliative care program at Mayo Clinic and associate medical director of the Mayo Clinic hospice.
Dr. Moynihan currently serves as the education chair for the Department of Medical Oncology and fellowship program director. Four times he has been selected as Teacher of the Year in medical oncology and elected to the Teacher of the Year Hall of Fame. Past honors include distinguished clinical teacher at the University of Minnesota Medical School, best internist at the Medical College of Wisconsin and recipient of The Upjohn Achievement Award for Excellence in Medicine. He serves on several national committees for the American Society of Clinical Oncology.
"The Internet provides a ready source of information on a wide range of topics of interest to those affected by cancer," Dr. Moynihan says. "The difficulty is trying to decide which sites provide reputable information and which information is relevant to each individual patient. The long history and tradition of excellence associated with Mayo Clinic assures you that information provided will be reliable, up-to-date and comprehensive."
Definition (1)
- Lung nodules: Can they be cancerous?
Treatments and drugs (2)
- Small cell lung cancer: Can brain radiation prevent spread?
- Photodynamic therapy: An effective treatment for lung cancer?
Mayo Clinic Health Manager
Get free personalized health guidance for you and your family.
Get Started
About our e-newsletters
- Free e-newsletters
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- We do not share your e-mail address
Housecall, our weekly general-interest e-newsletter, keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics with timely, reliable, practical information, recipes, blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts and more. Our biweekly topic-specific e-newsletters also include blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts, and other useful information that will help you manage your health.
Housecall Archives
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Question
Small cell lung cancer: Can brain radiation prevent spread?
My husband has small cell lung cancer and his doctors have suggested preventive radiation therapy to his brain. What is the benefit of brain radiation?
Answer
from Timothy Moynihan, M.D.
Preventive brain radiation reduces the risk that cancer will spread to the brain in people with small cell lung cancer. Unfortunately, even in people who have a complete remission of small cell lung cancer, there is a high risk that the cancer will eventually spread to the brain.
Preventive brain radiation can reduce the risk of neurological problems caused by cancer. But people who receive preventive brain radiation don't live substantially longer than people who wait until cancer has spread to the brain before trying brain radiation.
Brain radiation is not without its risks. Long-term side effects may include memory loss, confusion and difficulty concentrating.
Your husband and his cancer doctor (oncologist) must weigh the potential risks and benefits of preventive brain radiation in your husband's specific situation. For some people, radiation is worthwhile to prevent disease from spreading to the brain. Others may want to avoid the side effects of preventive brain radiation and take a wait-and-see approach to the need for such treatment.
Next questionPhotodynamic therapy: An effective treatment for lung cancer?
- Simon GR, et al. Management of small cell lung cancer: ACCP evidence-based clinical practice guidelines (2nd edition). Chest. 2007;132(suppl):324S.
- Castrucci WA, et al. An update on the treatment of CNS metastases in small cell lung cancer. The Cancer Journal. 2008;14:138.
- Moynihan TJ (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. July 8, 2009.
