Harvey Gilbert, M.D.

Caring.com Expert

About

Harvey Gilbert, MD, is a radiation oncologist with more than 35 years of professional experience in the medical field, working with cancer patients stricken with life-changing illnesses. Dr. Gilbert has edited 14 medical textbooks and coauthored 40 papers in the field of oncology. He founded one of the first inpatient hospices in California and started three outpatient cancer centers.

Dr. Gilbert currently serves as an advisor to multiple hospices and in-home care agencies and is the medical director of the Ben Schaffer Cancer Institute in Lodi, California. Dr. Gilbert received his medical degree from the University of Missouri Medical School in 1965. He then moved to the Bay Area, where he interned at Oakland Naval Hospital and was on active duty in the U.S. Navy from 1965 to 1969. Dr. Gilbert completed his residency in the Radiation Oncology department at Mt. Zion Hospital in San Francisco as well as at UCLA Medical Center and Hospital.

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Recently Published on Caring.com

  1. Wednesday March 23, 2011

    1. What quality of life can my husband expect after a multiple myeloma diagnosis?

      Answer - The quality of life in patients with multiple myeloma is quite variable. Age and other related diseases all combine to affect the patient's ability to live a normal life. Patients who are on Revlimid can have blood clots and blood cell suppression as well as effects on the immune system...

  2. Friday October 22, 2010

    1. Should Mom have cancer surgery with her dementia?

      Answer - I would like to address your question about answering the question of whether a patient with dementia should undergo surgery for a suspected recurrent cancerous lymph node in the arm pit. Much of the answer to this, is as you suspected, related to her expected survival from the dementia and the extent of her dementia...

    2. Can chemo cause flat, wart-like bumps on your skin?

      Answer - In response to your question about whether chemotherapy caused warty spots on the forehead, I would like to be a bit non-specific. The dermatologist you saw apparently did not notice anything alarming about these 'warts' and from what you said preferred to treat them as warts. The important thing is what your dermatologist called these...

  3. Friday September 24, 2010

    1. Can the side effects of chemotherapy last for months?

      Answer - I am delighted that your leukemia is under control but unhappy that you have so many uncomfortable symptoms. I know that the drug Fludarabine can cause many side effects during treatment, including some quite serious ones. The more common symptoms are muscle and nerve symptoms, general body discomfort...

  4. Wednesday August 11, 2010

    1. What holistic practices have been proven beneficial to people undergoing chemotherapy?

      Answer - Modern medicine, referred to as scientifically based Contemporary or Modern Medicine, makes up most of what western practitioners use as the basis of 'proven therapy' for most cancers. In addition, ancient cultures have developed many techniques to help improve the quality of life and when added in the...

  5. Saturday August 07, 2010

    1. How can I help my husband gain weight after surgery for colon cancer?

      Answer - LOSING WEIGHT AFTER COLON CANCER SURGERY IS NOT COMMON, AFTER THE FIRST WEEK POST SURGERY. WEIGHT LOSS SEVERAL WEEKS AFTER SURGERY CAN BE DUE TO SURGICAL COMPLICATIONS, MALABSORBTION OF FOODS, LACK OF APPETITE DUE TO PROGRESSIVE CANCER, ETC...

    2. Is hormone replacement therapy a possibility after treatment for breast cancer?

      Answer - HORMONE REPLACEMENT THERAPY AFTER CURATIVE CANCER THERAPY, ESP 5 YEARS SINCE THE TREATMENT, IS A DEFINITE POSSIBILITY, BUT ITS USE MUST BE HIGHLY MONITORED AND USED IN ONLY SELECT SITUATIONS. A FEW ADDITIONAL PIECES OF INFORMAION ARE ALSO HELPFUL, INCLUDING THE ONCO- DX LEVEL, THE FACT OF WHETHER THE...

    3. How soon after a biopsy should another PSA test be taken to check levels?

      Answer - tHE FREQUENCY OF 'checking psa level after biopsy' VARIES FROM CENTER TO CENTER. THE FIRST QUESTION RELATES TO THE INITIAL LEVEL OF PSA, THE PERCENT OF FREE PSA, THE DOUBLING TIME OF PSA AND THE RESULT OF THE INITIAL BIOPSY. IF THE BIOPSY WAS NEGATIVE AND THE RISK FACTORS FOR PROSTATE CANCER IS HIGH, THAN MORE FREQUENT PSA IS INDICATED...

    4. I want to stop chemo for breast cancer. Can I?

      Answer - CAN I STOP TAKING CHEMO FOR BREAST CANCER IS A COMPLEX QUESTION. AS A RADIATION ONCOLOGIST, I AM AWARE OF THE VARYING LEVELS AND DEGREES(STAGES) OF BREAST CANCER. TO ANSWER THE QUESTION, ONE NEEDS TO KNOW THE TYPE 0F CANCER, THE MARKERS THAT ARE IN EACH CANCER CELL, THE EXTENT (STAGE) OF THE CANCER, ETC...

  6. Wednesday May 26, 2010

    1. How long do chemo drugs remain in system after final treatment?

      Answer - How long are chemo drugs in the body after the final treatment varies. Most drugs are present in the body for a few hours to days. The effects of the drugs on the cells of the body can last a long time, but the drugs themselves are around for a much shorter period of time.

    2. Can cancer drugs cause side effects if swallowed in semen?

      Answer - Cancer Chemotherapy may be excreted in very small amounts in the semen. The side effects from ingesting a small amount of semen have not been tested, to my knowledge, but the drug levels should be quite small and not cause problems in the partner...

  7. Friday April 23, 2010

    1. Why does breast cancer often recur at the 10 year mark?

      Answer - The breast cancer recurrence at the 10 year mark is no more critical than any other mark. The one thing to know about breast cancer is that it can occur for many years into the future, far beyond the 10 year mark. But, it is also fair to say that the recurrence rates continue to decrease over time, with...

  8. Tuesday April 20, 2010

    1. Can blood clots caused by breast cancer treatment be dissolved?

      Answer - The use of a female hormone blocking agent, like Tamoxifen, is a breast cancer treatment that has a very small risk of causing blood clotting, especially if used along with chemotherapy. In general, the benefits of its use far outweigh the risks of this rare complication...

  9. Friday April 16, 2010

    1. What can be done about sores on my head from chemotherapy?

      Answer - CHOP chemotherapy is a combination of standard chemo drugs and a targeted drug called Rituxan. The standard drugs do not tend to cause skin reactions, but the Rituxan is more likely to do so. The following are some of the skin effects of this drug are:

  10. Tuesday April 13, 2010

    1. What type of chemo is given for ovarian cancer?

      Answer - Ovarian cancer tends to spread widely within the abdomen. When it attaches to the covering of the bowel, it tends to exude fluid called ascites. That can cause bloating and bowel disfunction. Another issue affecting the bowel might be actual blockage of the bowel contents or inflammation of the bowel causing mucus production...

    2. What are the symptoms and stages of pancreatic cancer?

      Answer - The symptoms and stages of pancreatic cancer are multiple depending on the location of the disease within the pancreas and its extent. Your monther seems to have a locally advanced pancreatic cancer, from what you say, that involves the covering of the bowel or invades the local blood supply of the liver...

    3. What are the different stages of bone cancer?

      Answer - The term bone cancer has several meanings. Thus what is meant by bone cancer stages depends on the type of cancer, as described below. The word bone cancer means a malignant tumor that involves bone, either secondarily (metastasis from another site) or primarily (arising directly from within bone).