Eric Roeland

Discipline: Physician

Funding awarded to: Moores Cancer Center at UC San Diego Health

A Prospective Study to Correlate Cross-Sectional Computed Tomography Skeletal Muscle Loss with Functional Activity in Metastatic Cancer Patients on Chemotherapy

This project will discover and develop effective solutions to improve the quality of life of patients with cancer. One goal is to build symptom intervention evidence-based clinical practices and promote rigorous scientific validation of novel approaches. Another goal is to determine if cross-sectional CT body composition analysis can serve as a surrogate for functional activity. Objective 1: To determine if percent change in total lumbar muscle CT cross-sectional area at the third lumbar vertebra (L3) on CT correlates with percent change in functional activity on the Six Minute Walk Test at a single time point at 3 months from baseline. Objective 2: To determine if change in L3 cross-sectional muscle area on CT correlates with standard functional, anthropometric, and patient-reported outcomes assessments.

“Each patient’s unique experience is why I love medicine. During my training I began to understand and connect with patients. During my residency, my experience in patient care often was less than this meaningful connection. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to be mentored by Charles von Gunten MD, PhD at San Diego Hospice. I observed what was lacking in “medicine as usual.” He taught me that medicine could be practiced in in a patient-centered, compassionate way with effective approaches to alleviate suffering. I followed his footsteps and have redefined my success as an oncologist by focusing on the alleviation of physical suffering and improving quality of life, rather than focusing solely on survival.”