The team approach has significantly improved the management of malignant mesothelioma cancer.
Hibbeln joined the Loyola University Health System in November 2015 and soon became part of the new mesothelioma specialty center started by Dr. Wickii Vigneswaran, director of thoracic surgery.
“Like anything else, the more you do it, the better you get,” Hibbeln said. “And with a rare, uncommon cancer like this, bringing all the cases together to a tumor board is going to make everything more efficient.”
The board, which includes surgeons, medical oncologists, radiologists, pulmonologists and all the support staff, meets every two weeks to discuss the treatment of individual patients with mesothelioma.
Hibbeln is a professor in the department of radiology at the Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine.
He worked previously for 15 years at nearby Rush University Medical Center, where he served as associate vice chair of the department of diagnostic radiology, co-director of MRI imaging, and head of the radiology information system.
At Loyola, he also is the medical director of the CT and 3-D Laboratory.
Hibbeln is the past president of the Illinois Radiology Society and a fellow of the America College of Radiology.
He works closely with Vigneswaran and other surgeons at Loyola, staying atop the rapidly evolving field of radiology.
“We can help guide surgery for people who truly need it, while avoiding surgery for people who don’t’ need it, or wouldn’t be helped by it,” he said.
Hibbeln received his degree from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. He did his residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in nuclear medicine form the University of Michigan.
He completed his residency in diagnostic radiology from Wayne State University.
