John M. Kane III

About John M. Kane III

Accolades

• 

  Peritoneal Mesothelioma

• 

  Team Leader

• 

  Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy

• 

  Excellence in Research

Kane first developed the cytoreduction/HIPEC program in 2002 that he has used so successfully for peritoneal mesothelioma cancer, which is caused by exposure to asbestos.

The HIPEC procedure, also is known as hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemoperfusion, is used in combination with surgery with several abdominal malignancies, including colorectal cancer and appendiceal neoplasms.

Kane is the chief of Melanoma/Sarcoma Service at Roswell Park and an associate professor at the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at the University of Buffalo.

He treats soft-tissue sarcomas at all anatomic regions, including intra-abdominal/retroperitoneal, head and neck, truncal and extremities.

Kane leads a multidisciplinary team that has become a cornerstone of individualized treatment at Roswell Park.

A Personalized Approach to Surgery

Kane is well known for his personalized approach to surgical oncology, often lauded by patients for his ability to relate and put them at ease.

“Navigating through a cancer diagnosis and treatment can be very difficult for patients and families,” he said. “They can be faced with tough decisions. It’s something most people are not familiar with. I’ve been there. I’ve seen it firsthand.”

Kane talks to patients about his own family. His father was a lifelong smoker who died from lung cancer.

His mother was exposed to toxic asbestos through her grandfather’s work. She died from mesothelioma 18 months after diagnosis.

“Fortunately, I was there to help them through it,” he said. “I treat my patients like family members. There is no two-tiered system here. Whatever I would do for my family, I would do for my patients.”

Led Immunotherapy Research for Melanoma

Kane has clinical interest in aggressive cutaneous malignancies such as Merkel cell carcinoma. He has performed hundreds of lymph node biopsies. He performs axillary dissections for patients with nodal metastatic disease.

He was the lead investigator in clinical trials at Roswell Park that helped advance the use of immunotherapy drugs that are working today for melanoma.

“We have patients with stage 4 disease that are now being cured,” he said. “Melanoma is a cancer where things have changed dramatically in recent years. Spend a day with us here, and you have access to treatments that aren’t available in the community setting.”

Kane has authored multiple papers on the treatment of soft-tissue sarcomas and spoken at several national meetings within the medical community. One of those talks was at the Tripler Army Medical Center in Honolulu, where he detailed his work with cytoreductive surgery and HIPEC for peritoneal surface malignancies.

He graduated from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He did a residency and fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh. He did another fellowship at Roswell Park before starting his career.