Finding another oncology leader more focused on his team and collaboration than William Tse, MD, division director of hematology and oncology at Cleveland-based MetroHealth, could prove difficult.
From the way he gives credit to everyone around him, it would be tough to guess he was the man in charge. When recently asked by Becker's what keeps him up at night, Dr. Tse said there is very little — thanks to his co-workers.
"I am very fortunate working with a group of very passionate colleagues, physicians and also my staff, who are a huge resource for me. They keep [my mind] comfortable in the evenings," he said.
Passionate colleagues and leadership are only some of the factors Dr. Tse cited as key to MetroHealth's success in cancer care. Here, he discusses his passion for oncology and advice on how to become leaders in the field.
Question: What drew you to oncology?
Dr. William Tse: I feel oncology is one of the most privileged medical specialties. Not many people will bring their entire family or loved one or multiple generations to see other physicians, but as a medical oncologist, I am privileged to know every aspect of my patients' lives. When people are diagnosed with cancer, they open up everything to you, from religious beliefs to political preferences. I know their grandkids or their grandparents. I know they want to be in good shape in the next couple of months so they can attend their grandkid's graduation ceremony. Being an oncologist is such a privilege to me and very close to my heart. I'm close to retiring and if I had to choose my career again, I'd still choose this, and I think that says it all.
Q: What cancer study, technology or innovation are you most excited about right now?
WT: Immunotherapy, especially cellular immunotherapy, genome gene therapy. There's no other cancer treatment that can be called a triple threat. Why? It's a live drug that we use to educate the CAR-T cells so they acquire the ability to kill cancer. To me, it's the most exciting cancer development in history.
Editor's note: MetroHealth recently completed construction of its vector and cellular good manufacturing practice facility and became the first safety net hospital to offer in-house viral vector and cellular therapies.
Q: What's one thing your hospital/system is doing in cancer care that you're most proud of?
WT: I'm most proud of the legacy we carry on at MetroHealth of more than 187 years of glorious history. MetroHealth takes care of the most vulnerable population in the city, and we are very proud of being that safety net. Most importantly, we bring in the most active, most innovative, most cutting edge cancer treatments and democratize them.
Q: Do you have any advice for other oncology leaders who want to democratize care and bring in new innovations?
WT: Collaborate, be courageous, be a little dumb and have the gut to invest. It takes a lot of investment in time to build new areas, get regulatory paperwork and bring the technology in. Our courage to invest has put us five to eight years ahead of other hospitals as far as technology.