It's so interesting and it's so satisfying. Sometimes it's difficult.
I am Regina Rosenthal. I am a Huntsman Cancer Institute breast surgeon.
What brought you to the University of Utah?
Well, my husband is a Utah native and I've lived here now for probably 25 years or more. So this is home. I came to Huntsman almost five years now.
What is the best part of working at Huntsman Cancer Institute?
I love working here. I love the patients. I love my colleagues. It’s very different practicing here because it really is collaborative. I can make my own assessment of, for example, a mammogram or an ultrasound or an MRI scan. But then I can walk 30 feet down the hall and talk with not just any radiologist, but a specific breast imager. We all are in the same room once a week having a multidisciplinary breast cancer conference. Sometimes we'll decide, How do we all think this cancer should be treated? I might think I have a very good plan and maybe a colleague comes up with an idea I just hadn't thought of.
What have you learned from your patients?
I've learned to listen, and when I think I'm doing a good job, I listen more. We like to talk the individual person - find out what's important to them. What's important to one person with exactly the same stage of cancer may be very different than what's important to another person.
What’s something your colleagues might not know about you?
I was on stage at the Metropolitan Opera House as a child. I did not star in a singing role but I was on stage. In fact, when I was a child I was certain I was going to be both a doctor and a dancer.
When did you know you wanted to be a surgeon?
I had no idea surgery was going to be something I loved. During medical school we all rotate through various specialties. You could save someone's life by doing some intervention in the moment and I was hooked.
What would you say to aspiring medical professionals?
Even though it's hard to do, just do it. Then you have to learn how to navigate all that, and still maintain your humor and your respect for patients and your colleagues.
The critical research happening every day at Huntsman Cancer Institute is supported by the National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute, including cancer center support grant P30 CA042014, as well as Huntsman Cancer Foundation.