Close Up Radio Spotlights Urologic Oncologist Dr. Michael Whalen

Washington, DC – Dr. Michael Whalen is a Urologic Oncologist dedicated to the treatment of genitourinary malignancies. Dr. Whalen treats everything from bladder, kidney and prostate cancer to adrenal, testicular and ureteral cancer. He has integrated the growing arsenal of genomic predictive tools and biomarkers into his clinical practice to bring the cutting edge of Precision and Personalized medicine to his patients.

“Despite all of our knowledge, it seems we still have a lot to learn about cancer,” says Dr. Whalen. “I'm a surgical oncologist, I use surgery to treat cancer, but no two tumors are exactly the same, so the path is not always straight forward.”

Dr. Whalen is renowned for his expertise in the surgical management of high-risk genitourinary cancer patients and in the use of robotic-assisted surgery with the DaVinci robotic platform.

“Robotic surgery allows certain advantages while harnessing the power of minimally invasive surgery. There's better cosmetic outcome, less pain, faster recovery, usually less blood loss. It allows us to do more precise surgery,” says Dr. Whalen.

Alongside his practice, Dr. Whalen serves as Assistant Professor of Urology and Urologic Oncology at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. He is also the Director of the Genitourinary Oncology Multi-Disciplinary Clinic at the GW Cancer Center and serves as GW Site Director for the National Cancer Institute Urologic Oncology Fellowship Program, which is dedicated to training future generations of Urological cancer surgeons.

“I'm a big believer in knowledge is power,” says Dr. Whalen. “There's a lot of fear associated with this kind of diagnosis and fear breeds anxiety and uncertainty. I believe I can provide reassurance that I'm going to work very hard to make them better.”