Allina News

[Hospitals and Health Networks, Nov., 2011]  Marcia Carlson, a social worker at the Virginia Piper Cancer Institute, has written a book that gives helpful advice when talking to kids about family members who have cancer.  Read the article.

[Sun Focus, Nov. 23, 2011]  A special tree planting ceremony at Unity Hospital honors a cancer patient who was an inspiration to friends, family and other women she met at a support group through the hospital.  Read the article.

[Sleepy Eye Herald Dispatch, November 23, 2011] New Ulm Medical Center (NUMC) opened the doors to their new Cancer Center recently, allowing patients their first opportunity to begin treatment at the new facility. Besides the updated facility, the new center is also bringing an expanded partnership with the Virginia Piper Cancer Institute. Read more at [...]

[Sun Focus, Nov. 9, 2011]    While your diet can cause illness, it can also be part of an optimal health plan to treat that illness. The fact is that food is medicine. When we look at food as medicine, we can view the Thanksgiving meal as a prescription for good health.  Read the article  by [...]

[WCCO-TV, November 9, 2011] Breast cancer is a devastating diagnosis that comes with a long list of big decisions. Some women often opt for reconstruction surgery. But some blame one popular procedure for making matters even worse. A TRAM Flap procedure is similar to a tummy tuck, transferring tissue from the abdomen to the chest [...]

[WCCO-TV, November 5, 2011] One in every 100,000 breast cancer patients is a man. It’s very rare, but it’s something many men don’t talk about or even ask their doctors about. Bill Riegert is just glad his wife’s persistence made him ask his doctor about it.  Surgeon John O’Leary, MD, of Piper Breast Center at [...]

[Kaiser Health News and the Washington Post, October 10, 2011] Last spring, at a seminar for survivors of head and neck cancer in Minneapolis, Mary Harder looked around the room with some dismay. “There were several people who had exactly the same cancer as me, but their lives were much different because they hadn’t had [...]

[KMSP Fox 9, Oct. 6, 2011] A drug that millions of pregnant women took decades ago to prevent miscarriage and complications has put their daughters at higher risk for breast cancer and other health problems that are showing up now, a new federal study finds. Shari Baldinger, a genetic counselor at Allina’s Virginia Piper Cancer [...]

[KARE, Oct. 5, 2011] A new care coordinator position created at Allina’s Piper Breast Center is offering a consistent advocate for patients facing breast cancer. The care coordinator role was created in April of 2010 in hopes of providing more continuity to patients moving through treatment for breast cancer. KARE11 found out what a difference it [...]

[Anoka County Union Aug. 11, 2011} The Penny George Institute for Health and Healing at Allina’s Unity Hospital campus now offers a holistic approach to health care on an outpatient basis. But you don’t have to be a patient to benefit from its healing services. Services are open to the public. Read the article.

[KARE-TV, July 27, 2011] Minnesota’s colon cancer rates have been decreasing about two percent over the past 10 years, says Tim Sielaff, MD, president of Allina’s Virginia Piper Cancer Institute. However, each year, 2,500 Minnesotans receive the diagnosis, and 750 to 800 people die from it. Recently, Dr. Sielaff talked about colon cancer, screening and treatment on KARE-TV’s [...]

[Minnesota Public Radio, June 29, 2011] Minnesota cancer patients are part of a national study to understand how cancer occurs. Genetic testing will shed light on the role of family history and cancer. Oncologist Thomas Amatruda, MD, of Allina’s Virginia Piper Cancer Institute and Minnesota Oncology, talks about a tissue banking program at Abbott Northwestern Hospital [...]