BiliaryTractCancer near Live Oak, TX

Care Philosophy: Dr. Santillan is a board certified general surgeon with a specialty in surgical oncology. He is fully devoted to the oncology and endocrine surgical fields.

Biography: Dr. Scott Ulmer is board certified in both hematology and medical oncology. He has been the chief medical resident with the University of Utah hospitals and clinics where he conducted research on the epidermal growth factor receptor, an active area of anticancer drug development. Dr. Ulmer joined the START Center for Cancer Care in 2003. His interests include teaching, clinical research, raising his three children, and cycling.

Biography: Dr. Ronald L. Drengler is a board-certified medical oncologist practicing with the START Center. He completed medical school in 1988, graduating with honors from the School of Medicine of the National University of Paraguay. He completed his internship at Michael Reese Hospital in Chicago, and his internal medicine residency at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. In 1996, he completed his fellowship in medical oncology. He has participated in multiple clinical trials through Southwest Oncology Group, the Minnie Pearl/Sarah Cannon Cancer Network, and pharmaceutical-sponsored studies. He has been named a Texas Super Doctor by Texas Monthly magazine for several years. He has also been named one of San Antonio's Top Doctors in San Antonio Scene each year since the award was established in 2005. He is fluent in Spanish.

Biography: Dr. Niraj Hiro Pahlajani is delighted to be seeing patients at the START center for oncology. He completed a residency in radiation oncology at Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He is board certified by the American Board of Radiology and a member of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO). He is experienced in treating cancers in all parts of the body and is experienced in using CyberKnife, Gamma Knife, and Varian techniques for radiosurgery. He has previously served in roles including Director of Quality and Director of Radiosurgery and Stereotactic Ablative Body Radiation. He is a Clinical Assistant Professor at Texas A&M Medical School. He has lived in Texas since 2015. Dr. Pahlajani enjoys keeping up with the latest advancements in oncology and he regularly attends national meetings.

Biography: Dr. Kyriakos P. Papadopoulos is the Co-Director of Clinical Research at START in San Antonio. He is board-certified in Internal Medicine, Medical Oncology & Hematology. His clinical interests include drug development and malignancies of the upper gastrointestinal-tract and lungs.Dr. Papadopoulos completed his MBBCh and MSc (Med) at the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, and his specialty training in Internal Medicine at Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town, South Africa. He followed this with a fellowship in Medical Oncology and Hematology at the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University, NY.Prior to his arrival in San Antonio, Dr. Papadopoulos was the Florence Irving Assistant Professor of Medicine at the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University, where he was co-director of the GI and Lung Tumor Clinic. He received a Career Development Award from the National Institute of Health, as well as immunotherapy research funding from the Cancer Research Institute.Dr. Papadopoulos was appointed Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. He was also senior clinical investigator at the Cancer Therapy & Research Center's (CTRC) Institute for Drug Development, San Antonio, TX and a member of the CTRC's Medical Executive Committee.He is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American Society of Hematology, the American Association for Cancer Research, Southwest Oncology Group, and a Fellow of the College of Physicians of South Africa.Dr. Papadopoulos serves as a reviewer for a number of oncology journals and has authored numerous peer reviewed articles, chapters and abstracts at international meetings.