Baptist Health’s Miami Cancer Institute Brings World-Class Cancer Care to Broward

Many of the innovative cancer-fighting therapies that have placed Baptist Health’s Miami Cancer Institute among Florida’s top cancer programs since its founding just four years ago are now available to cancer patients in Broward County, according to Michael J. Zinner, M.D., the institute’s founding CEO and executive medical director.

Miami Cancer Institute opened on the Baptist Hospital campus in 2017, Dr. Zinner says, and now joins a number of other high-demand service lines to have opened at Baptist Health’s new wellness and medical complex in Plantation over the past four months.

The 112,000-square-foot complex at 1228 South Pine Island Road just north of I-595 brings together a full range of integrated health and wellness services – including cancer care, cardiology, orthopedics, spine care, urgent care, primary care, endocrinology and more – all under one roof.

“As part of Baptist Health, Miami Cancer Institute provides cancer services from the Florida Keys to Palm Beach County,” says Dr. Zinner. “We’re proud to be paving the way for new and better treatments that help more patients conquer and survive cancer.”

Patients in Plantation can expect the same level of advanced, personalized cancer care, innovative clinical research and comprehensive support services that are available in Miami, according to Dr. Zinner. “There is comprehensive diagnostic imaging onsite, and an ambulatory surgery center allowing for overnight stays.” For highly complex surgery, Dr. Zinner says, Plantation patients are provided complimentary round-trip transportation to Baptist Hospital in Miami for their surgery.

Baptist Health’s multi-disciplinary cancer care team in Plantation includes breast medical oncologists, a radiation oncologist and a full-service, state-of-the-art infusion suite, Dr. Zinner says. He adds that consultation hours will soon be offered by surgical and medical oncologists specializing in head and neck, breast, endocrine and gastrointestinal cancers as well as gynecologic, urologic and orthopedic oncology.

One of those specialists is John P. Diaz, M.D., deputy chief of gynecologic oncology at Baptist Health’s Miami Cancer Institute, who provides comprehensive gynecologic cancer care, including robotic and minimally invasive surgery, as well as gynecologic surgery for benign conditions. Dr. Diaz, who also serves as medical director for the ambulatory surgery center at Plantation, says the new facility meets a real need for Broward residents.

“Having Miami Cancer Institute and all of Baptist Health’s centers of excellence here in Plantation certainly enhances the quality of care now available to Broward residents,” Dr. Diaz says. “Now, you can access Miami Cancer Institute’s physicians and life-saving treatments without having to leave Broward.”

Lauren Carcas, M.D. works closely with Dr. Diaz at Miami Cancer Institute in Plantation, where she specializes in the treatment of breast cancer. As a medical oncologist, Dr. Carcas serves as the patient’s primary cancer care physician, diagnosing the disease and treating it using all of the therapies at her disposal, including chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, biological therapy and targeted therapy.

The team of cancer specialists at Baptist Health’s Miami Cancer Institute in Plantation are able to treat virtually any type of cancer, according to Dr. Carcas. “Patients here have access to the latest therapies and the most sophisticated technology available in the region,” she says. “And when you’re in the fight of your life, that can make a real difference in your outcome.”

Dr. Carcas cautions her breast cancer patients to be extra vigilant for the possibility of ovarian cancer. “A family history of breast or colorectal cancer is linked to an increased risk of ovarian cancer,” she says. “The same inherited mutation in certain genes that cause those cancers can also increase the risk of ovarian cancer.” Because screening for ovarian cancer is not effective or easy, Dr. Carcas says knowing the symptoms is crucial to early detection of the disease. And for at-risk patients, she adds, genetic testing is available at Miami Cancer Institute in Plantation.

Learn more about Baptist Health’s wellness and medical facility in Plantation here, and look to Resource for upcoming posts on some of the other specialties and services available at Baptist Health in Plantation.