Contemporary Management of Metastatic Colorectal Cancer

Aslam Ejaz MD, MPH is a surgical oncologist who specializes in the treatment of pancreatic cancer, liver cancer, bile duct cancer and other gastrointestinal cancers. In addition to his clinical work, he is dedicated to teaching the future generation of surgeons and other cancer care providers as an assistant professor in the Division of Surgical Oncology at The Ohio State University. As a member of the Translational Therapeutics Program at the OSUCCC – James, one of his research interests is in the development of clinical trials to help patients receive new therapies that may not be available at other treatment centers. He is also interested in researching how patients do after surgery as well as addressing variations in perioperative surgical care and quality improvement. Dr. Ejaz’s research is dedicated to improving cancer care, and he has published over 100 peer-reviewed papers in high-impact cancer and surgical journals. Dr. Pawlik received his undergraduate degree from Georgetown University and his medical degree from Tufts University School of Medicine. Dr. Pawlik completed surgical training at the University of Michigan Hospital and spent two years at the Massachusetts General Hospital as a surgical oncology research fellow. He then went on for advanced training in surgical oncology at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. Dr. Pawlik’s main clinical interests include alimentary tract surgery, with a special interest in hepatic, pancreatic and biliary diseases. Dr. Pawlik also has an interest in medical ethics and completed a fellowship in medical ethics at the Harvard School of Public Health, as well as a Masters in Theology from Harvard Divinity School in Boston. In addition, Dr. Pawlik was the recipient of a Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) KL2 Research Scholar Award and received a PhD from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Clinical Investigations. Dr. Pawlik also received his Executive MBA Program from The Ohio State University Fisher Business School. Dr. Pawlik took his first faculty appointment at Johns Hopkins in 2005, where he was Professor of Surgery and Oncology, as well as the John L. Cameron Chair of Alimentary Tract Diseases and the Chief of the Division of Surgical Oncology until 2016. Dr. Pawlik currently is the Chair of Surgery at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center where he holds The Urban Meyer III and Shelley Meyer Chair for Cancer Research. Under his leadership, the Department of Surgery has recruited over 75 new faculty members, is ranked #6 for NIH funding, and has a top 10 ranked surgical residency program. Dr. Pawlik also serves as the Treasurer / Secretary of The Ohio State University Practice Plan. Dr. Pawlik has given over 575 invited talks both nationally and internationally in 35 different countries. Dr. Pawlik has published over 1,600 articles and over 100 book chapters, in addition to editing 14 surgical textbooks. His research has been cited over 72,000 times with an H-index of 128 and an iCite weighted RCR of 2717. Dr. Pawlik serves on multiple editorial boards and is Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Deputy Editor of JAMA Surgery, as well as an Associate Editor for Annals of Surgical Oncology. Dr. Pawlik has served on the executive council of several of the premier surgical associations in the United States. Dr. Pawlik is a member of multiple surgical societies including the American Surgical Association, Society of Surgical Oncology, Society of Surgery of the Alimentary Tract, Halsted Society, and Society of Clinical Surgery. Dr. Pawlik is a past-President of the Association for Academic Surgery, past-President of the Americas Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association, as well as current co-President of the Surgical Biology II Club. Dr. Pawlik’s international contributions have been recognized through his honorary memberships in the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, Brazilian Society of Surgical Oncology, Mexican Association for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract, Argentinian Hospital de Clinicas, Portugal Surgical Society, as well as the Society of General Surgeons of Perú and the Peruvian International Hepato-Pancreatobiliary Association. Dr. Pawlik is an Associate Member of the Academy of Master Educators in the ACS. Dr. Pawlik’s research focuses on determinations of factors associated with prognosis and staging of gastrointestinal cancers, as well as the economics of cancer care. He also studies patient/physician communication and patient engagement, as well as social determinants of health related to surgery. Dr. Pawlik has consistently been recognized by Castle Connolly as one of America’s “Top Docs.”

1.Epidemiology and Risk Factors for Metastatic Colorectal Disease 2.Molecular Pathogenesis, Tumor Microenvironment and Future Therapeutic Targets: Colorectal Liver Metastasis 3.Pre-operative Imaging, Response Evaluation, and Surgical Planning – CT, PET, Radiomics, FLR Measurement 4.Use of Molecular Markers and Other Personalized factors in Treatment Decisions (KRAS, sidedness etc.) 5.Role of Neoadjuvant Therapy in Treatment of Patients with Colorectal Liver Metastasis 6.Management of the Disappeared Colorectal Liver Metastasis 7.Approach to Small Liver Remnant – Strategies to Increase Resectability 8.Two-Stage versus ALPPS for Large Intrahepatic Burden of Colorectal Liver Metastasis 9.Synchronous Colorectal Liver Metastasis – Simultaneous vs. Staged Approach 10.Minimally Invasive Approaches to Metastatic Colorectal Cancer 11.Hepatic Resection of Colorectal Liver Metastasis in the Presence of Extrahepatic Disease 12.Locoregional Approaches to Colorectal Liver Metastasis – Ablation 13.Locoregional Approaches to Colorectal Liver Metastasis - Intra-arterial 14.Locoregional Approaches to Colorectal Liver Metastasis - Radiation Options 15.Adjuvant Therapy following Resection of Colorectal Liver Metastasis 16.Long-term Prognosis and Surveillance of Patients with Resected Colorectal Liver Metastasis17.Management of Secondary Recurrence of Intra-hepatic Colorectal Liver Metastasis following Initial Hepatic Resection 18.Immunotherapy and Targeted Therapies for Colorectal Liver Metastasis 19.Colorectal Liver Metastasis: Survivorship