Category: News

Care for Your Colon by Eating More of These Foods

The CDC indicates us that colon cancer is the third most common cancer that affects both men and women. Sadly, colorectal cancer is also rising among young people.

Now more than ever, it’s important to make sure that you are proactively taking the steps to be sure your colon is healthy early in life!

Continue reading “Care for Your Colon by Eating More of These Foods”

Dr. Stephen M. Rauh Retires

After a remarkable 31 year career, Dr. Rauh has retired from clinical practice and will no longer be seeing patients.

Dr. Rauh joined Dr. Graney and Dr. Dmochowski in 1989 and quickly became a leader in colon and rectal surgery, highly regarded in the region and throughout the country. As managing partner of RCRS for nearly his entire career, he was instrumental in the growth of the practice into what it is today: 8 full-time physicians and 4 advanced practice providers seeing thousands of patients per year across 6 locations.

In 2008 he and Dr. Ognibene performed the first robotic colon resection in upstate New York. Thanks to his expertise and innovative thinking, RCRS is now amongst the leaders in robotic colon and rectal surgery worldwide, having performed several thousand robotic operations to date.

Throughout an extraordinary career of dedication and hard work, Dr. Rauh has been known for providing compassionate care of the highest standard. His patients and staff who have worked with him will miss him dearly. We have fond memories and we wish Dr. Rauh the best in his retirement, which is well deserved! Thank you, Dr Rauh, for all your contributions to RCRS.

Welcome Dr. Aaron Rickles, MD to Rochester Colon & Rectal Surgeons

We are pleased to welcome Dr. Aaron Rickles, MD to the team at Rochester Colon & Rectal Surgeons, P.C. He had completed his fellowship training in colon and rectal surgery at Cleveland Clinic Florida which is the largest training program in the nation. He also held a notable residency in General Surgery at the University of Rochester. Among other honors, Dr. Aaron Rickles, MD will be a great member of our team to provide excellent care for our patients. 

March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month

Early Screening is Essential to the Prevention of Colon and Rectal Cancers. Early screening can also affect the Cure Rate of Colon and Rectal Cancers.

Colorectal cancer is the fourth most commonly occurring cancer in the USA and nearly five percent of Americans will develop colorectal cancer in their lifetime. At any time, over one million Americans are currently living with colorectal cancer. Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States, with over 56,000 people expected to die from this disease each year.

However, it is a preventable and very curable disease if caught early.

Because there are often no symptoms when it is first developing, colorectal cancer can only be caught early through regular screening.

The possibility of curing patients after symptoms develop is only 50%, but if colorectal cancer is found and treated at an early stage before symptoms develop, the opportunity to cure it is 80% or better.

Most colon cancers start as non-cancerous growths called polyps. If these polyps are found early, while they are still non-cancerous, they can be removed and the cancer may be prevented. Major surgery can usually be avoided, as well.

Colorectal surgeons are experts in the surgical and nonsurgical treatment of colon and rectal problems and play an instrumental role in the effective screening, prevention and treatment of colorectal cancer. Studies have shown that patients treated by colorectal surgeons are more likely to survive colorectal cancer because of their advanced training and the large number of colon and rectal disease surgeries they perform.

At RCRS we offer colonoscopies in our convenient outpatient procedure centers, often at lesser cost compared to colonoscopies in the hospital setting. Female and Male providers are available for colorectal cancer screening.

Call us to learn more or to arrange for a pre colonoscopy visit.