Surgeons in the Johns Hopkins Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary (HPB) Surgery Program specialize in diagnosing and treating advanced pancreatic cancer and determining if tumors can be resected.

“If a patient comes in as unresectable, we have a group of surgeons, medical and radiation oncologists, radiologists, pathologists and genetic counselors to evaluate [the case] from different angles,” says surgical oncologist Jin He, Director of the HPB Surgery Program and the Paul K. Neumann Professor in Pancreatic Surgery.

At one of the highest-volume robotic pancreas surgery centers in the country, surgeons use the latest technology to treat advanced cases. The group has performed over 300 robotic pancreas surgeries in the last five years.

Johns Hopkins also offers robotic total pancreatectomy with islet autotransplantation for patients with chronic and hereditary pancreatitis. 

The HPB surgery team works in tandem with Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center physicians in the Pancreatic Cancer Multidisciplinary Clinic, which offers comprehensive examinations and imaging, as well as evaluation by experts from across disciplines.

Being a high-volume center with a robust research program gives patients access to investigative clinical trials not offered elsewhere.

“We have a number of new types of vaccines that target a patient’s tumors, and we combine those with some of the immunotherapy agents that we believe can supercharge the vaccines,” says medical oncologist Elizabeth Jaffee, deputy director of the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center. “This is something that we’re uniquely able to offer.”  

To support Jin He’s research, visit bit.ly/surgerygift.