The University Of Texas Md Anderson Cancer Center's Online Review Report Card

They were eager to make an appointment and we made the trip, half way across the country, but then there is no follow up. We were dropped like a hot potato. No response in mychart. Hope others can get better treatment.

MD Anderson Dept. of Neurosurgery has an Neurosurgeon/Researcher who specializes in "nanotechnology/cancer biology named Dr. Yon Son "Betty" Kim.  Dr. Kim uses people to climb the leadership ladder in order to make a name for herself.  She is very nasty to her staff.   When she has no use for you any longer, she will through you out like a piece of garbage.

MD Anderson gave heavy radiation to 26 year old nephew. This caused radiation pneumonitis. He then went to ICU where MD Anderson put him on a ventilator where he was fed from a feeding tube. MD Anderson then began to starve him for 4 days before he died. We begged them to feed him and they mostly ignored our requests. This is the last hospital your family member will check into.

My nephew used the services of MD Anderson, which ultimately killed him. MD Anderson used heavy radiation which caused him radiation pneumonitis. He trusted MD Anderson so much that he went to ICU for treatment and the encouraged him to use a ventilator (horrible mistake). MD Anderson then stopped feeding him.

I agree with another review that MDA is the best and worst rolled into one.  My husband and I was seeking treatment for my son who was eventually diagnosed with an osteoma (which brought on constant pain) but the journey to get there was very long and expensive.  First in making the appointment with Dr. Valerie Lewis, we were given an estimate of 3 times over the quote given by the insurance company for the consult, but we paid it.  I'm always skeptical about unnecessary tests but I'm not a doctor.  But, when blood is drawn, a dr can order whatever test they feel is necessary, each with a price tag, but we paid them.  In any case, we got through the labs.  And, after the first visit, all communications are done via MyChart, including billing which are also mailed.  The doctor ordered a MRI.  When the insurance company paused the process, we ended up having the scans done at an outside imaging facility saving us $3,540.  And while the outside facility provided a report on the MRI, we had to pay for MDA to perform an independent reading and report-okay understood.  In the meantime, we had to wait for the refund for the overcharge for the initial consult.  The MRI provided a diagnosis and that the tumor was benign.  Then there was an order for a biopsy.  I argued that since the MRI provided a diagnosis, could the "lump" just be removed and biopsied afterwards.  No, the biopsy was necessary because the dr wants to make sure it is what it is.  So we do that and pay for a biopsy.  Fortunately, the biopsy confirmed what the diagnosis from the MRI. After the biopsy and thousands paid to MDA between us and the insurance company, the doctor, nurse and PA all went ghost!  Besides the bills from the medical team who participated in the biopsy, no more communications from MDA, no plan of action to remove the tumor albeit benign but painful nonetheless.  After reaching out a couple of times to the team, we were advised that they were going to hand us over to a dr with TX Children's and we should hear from someone soon.  However, WE HEARD FROM NO ONE!  We thank God it wasn't cancer.  But I can't help but to feel as though MDA squeezed as much as they could from us and threw us to the side.  BTW we found medical care elsewhere on our own and my son is now healing up!

No help at all! Terrible experience, between insurance company and hospital. My mother has Glyoblastoma brain cancer, (very aggressive). We talked to everyone to try and get her in the MD Anderson circuit. Since this was an urgent matter and we wanted my mother to get treatment ASAP, we expedited every avenue needed to take to get her admitted. We called multiple times every day. Her insurance is a PPO, which is the best money can buy! (FYI), and still there were clerical errors on MD Andersons part! No contact to tell us any problems arose, so we could tackle them (we did that on our own). No communication to her insurance and no feed back of coverages. We did all this work, and it was a lot, just to be denied time and time again, because of some loophole (payment) or indescrepancy (money) in some way from our insurance paperwork. This was 2 MONTHS AGO!!! They FINALLY CALLED BACK TODAY!! Told us that my mother is approved to come in! Wow! Unbelievable, Instead of treating her and fetting this taken care of, while she was being treated in the and "knowing" that no matter what MD Anderson was getting paid, they would rather have her wait, and possibly die from her lack of treatment. It is unnacceptable practice to put ANY family though this traumatic experience of malicious beauracratic nonsense of red tape and paperwork! SHE IS INSURED! Its bad enough that you have a traumatic experience when a fanily member goes into surgery! Bad enough that you have to fight the insurance companies, and MD Anderson to get on the same page. My wife, "bless her soul", did ALL the work of MD Andersons clerical personnel.  Bad enough that, i had to ask the question, " DOES EVERYONE GO THROUGH THIS PAPERWORK NIGHTMARE, AND LACK OF MD ANDERSONS ACCOUNTABILITY! That is an absolute shame! Worried more about money, than a life.When we finally fave up on MD Anderson, we were directly and immideately entered into another Hospital, without hesitation, and seen the very next day! Why? We were given the "out of network" (and MY MOTHER is "IN" network) excuse by MD Anderson, and not, NOT by her insurance! They just called my wife today, and told us that my mothers paperwork has been finalized and she now can get treatment! I will never send or refer ANYONE to MD Anderson. Terrible nightmare thinking that the Hippocratic Oath that EVERY doctor has to take, takes a back seat to money! And this experience was absolutely  MONEY DRIVEN! Thank God, my mother has been admitted into another hospital, and has been getting chemo and daily radiation treatments! No thanks to MD Anderson, for ANY kind of help, assistance, or communication on what needed to be taken care of next...only apologies over the phone. Just terrible... nobody should have to jump through all those hoops, to get help! NEVER, MD ANDERSON, NEVER!

After waiting 5 weeks for my initial appointment MDA cancelled because of the projected ice, snow and cold weather.  At least the COVID testing center called me before I made the 9 hour commute and they suggested I call to see if my appointment was still on.  I was a little disappointed they cancelled  at first then how things progressed it turned out to be a good decision.  They waited another two weeks before they contacted me to reschedule and the next appointment was in another 4-5 weeks.  During the rescheduling process they seemed unsympathetic and showed no urgency at all.  Maybe it was because I have been diagnosed with a common "prostate cancer" and not something they perceive as more serious?  I don't know but I didn't appreciate getting into the back of the line.  I realize that the weather wasn't in their control but it wasn't in mine either.  Now, I'm back to square one on how I should proceed with my treatment options....

Honestly, my mom has been in serious pain right now, and it has been that way for months. She is battling with Sarcoma and is having a lot of difficulty to walk or even do her physiological needs. The doctor sent her to pain management and she has been with them for a month now but it has not been a relief at all. We keep telling the doctor this is not helping with pain, and he has not been resourceful in any way, he just wants her to stay in pain management even if it does not help. The situation gets worst when my mom is in serious pain and we can't take her to the ER even if she wants to because she is under pain management right now. This is a nightmare.

For the last few years my wife and I were patients of MD Anderson cancer center. All these years we thought about the doctors, staff and the institution, as a whole, with gratitude and respect   The story I am sharing and the low rating are not about MD Anderson, they are just about a single doctor.In March of 2020 my wife started coughing. Our local pulmonologist decided that the cause was pneumonia. However my wife did not respond to prescribed treatments and we tried to move up her standard checkup appointment at MDA by one month to check what was wrong. Unfortunately that was the time when COVID-19 panic reached its peak, and MDA staff advised my wife to wait. By the end of April MDA made necessary adjustments to its procedures and we went for a regular PET Scan and a follow up meeting with her oncologist Dr. George Simon, who was treating her for the last 5 years, after she was first diagnosed with lung cancer, and whom we trusted and respected. By that moment my wife was already very sick and her PET scan showed advanced lung cancer. Dr. Simon ordered her hospitalization, and after a few days in the MDA Hospital she was diagnosed with the form of cancer which was different from her cancer from 5 years ago and a much more aggressive one - Large Cell Lung Carcinoma. Dr. Simon prescribed her a course of chemo and immunotherapy treatments. The treatments turned to be very effective, the results even exceeded Dr. Simon's expectations - the cancer shrunk very significantly even after 2 cycles. (The Visit Notes of June 19 mentioned "excellent response".)  Dr. Simon told us that he was planning 4 more 3-weeks cycles for my wife and then, after 6 cycles in total, to switch to just immunotherapy. My wife had 2 more cycles, but then the unexpected happened - Dr. Simon took a department chair position in a different cancer center and left MDA. Another oncologist Dr. Lauren Byers has been assigned to my wife's case. My story is really about Dr. Byers. So here is what Dr. Byers did:She canceled 2 cycles of chemo planned by Dr. Simon reducing the total number chemo therapy cycles from 6 to 4 and leaving only immunotherapy. She did that even before she saw the most recent PET Scan results. After 6 weeks of just immunotherapy the cancer showed progress again. By that moment FDA just granted accelerated approved to a new chemo drag - ZEPZELCA™ (lurbinectedin). Dr. Byres prescribed it to my wife. Here what Dr. Byers did not do:She never examine my wife or in any way physically touched her. Not sure it was necessary, but that is what doctors usually do.She did not analyze the latest test result before coming to the examination room. She seems to be studying them right when we were in the room and rather briefly. 3 weeks after the first ZEPLICA injection my wife blood tests showed the liver measurement (Alk, ALT, AST) seriously elevated for the first time in her life. Dr. Byers attributed that to the cancer or to Tylenol my wife was taking (my wife never took Tylenol and never mentioned it). What Dr. Byers did not mention is that ZEPLICA may cause liver problems and even liver failure as a side effect.  Neither she nor anybody from her stuff called to check how my wife was doing after ZEPLICA injection although it was a brand new medicine which a few (if any) of Dr. Byers patients had before. On October 8 my wife was given the second ZEPLICA injection. Probably this is what killed her less than 3 weeks later, in spite of "estimate life expectancy greater than one year" recorded in October 8 Visit Notes. After the second ZEPLICA injection my wife was feeling worse and worse (although her breezing ability remained flat). On October 23 she could not get out of the bed and we called an ambulance which brought her to a local Austin Hospital, where she lost conscious on October 25 and passed away on October 27.I informed MD Anderson about my wife passing, but nobody from Dr. Byers team contacted me to learn the details or to simply express condolences. I realize that doctors may make mistakes in their judgment, I do not have many solid facts, and I am not going to file a formal complaint or sue anybody. I also understand that my wife was terminally ill and her days were numbered. However I feel that with more attention from Dr. Byers and more accurately developed course of action my wife could live at least a few more months. That would mean a lot to her and me. As for Dr. Byers she seems to have a strong background in Molecular Biology and Biomedical sciences. Possibly she is a very good researcher. But she seemed to be less interested in treating real patients, at least that was my and my late wife's opinion.

I've been a patient of the myeloma center, stem cell transplant center, rheumatology, cardiopulmonary, and endocrine departments for 3 years. I can't imagine being anywhere else. They are very busy, I'm guessing overworked and underpaid, but I have received excellent care. It can be frustrating trying to communicate with some departments, but it always works out. Since my cancer is not curable, we're in this thing together for the long haul and I'm very glad I made the decision to travel there (12 hrs) for my treatment!