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A leading authority in minimally invasive breast cancer surgery and cancer prevention, Dr. Sheldon Feldman has been appointed chief of breast surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center and assistant professor of surgery at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

Previously, he served as chief of the comprehensive breast service at Beth Israel Medical Center and professor of clinical surgery at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

Dr. Feldman is helping to pioneer the use of the ductoscope, a tiny endoscope inserted through the patient's nipple used for diagnosis, surveillance and treatment of cancer patients. His research using the device may help lead to a simple test for early diagnosis that could eventually be the equivalent of a Pap smear for breast cancer. Dr. Feldman anticipates that the intraductal approach will ultimately be used to treat early breast cancer as well as ablating the milk ducts to prevent cancer development for high-risk women as an alternative to mastectomy.

A leader in minimally invasive breast cancer surgery, Dr. Feldman was instrumental in developing the transmammary axillary lymph node evaluation (TANE) procedure, which requires only a single incision for lumpectomy and sentinel lymph node biopsy. He is also an expert in oncoplastic skin-sparing and nipple-preserving mastectomy.

His research interests are focused on preventing the disease through a better understanding of environmental toxins linked to breast cancer, including chlorinated pesticides, PCBs and PBDEs, and he is helping to investigate new biopharmaceutical treatments, including green tea extract and vitamin D.

"Dr. Feldman has distinguished himself as a clinician, researcher and educator, and we are grateful to have him lead our team of breast cancer surgeons, and undertake collaborative initiatives focused on preventing and reducing the impact of this deadly disease," says Dr. Craig Smith, interim chair of the Department of Surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center and the Calvin F. Barber Professor of Surgery at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

In his new role, Dr. Feldman will oversee the breast cancer surgery program at the Comprehensive Breast Center of the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia, and work in close collaboration with a multidisciplinary team of radiologists, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, plastic surgeons and other breast cancer support staff.

Dr. Feldman received his M.D. degree from New York University Medical School, and completed a surgical internship and residency training at New York University Bellevue Hospital Medical Center, Bellevue Hospital and Newark Beth Israel Medical Center. In 1979, he was appointed clinical instructor in surgery at New York University Medical Center. In 1982, he was named director of the Noninvasive Vascular Laboratory at the Benedictine Hospital in Kingston, N.Y.; in 1994, he was appointed vice president of medical and dental staff and to medical director of its Fern Feldman Anolick Breast Center. In 1984, he was named clinical associate professor in the Department of Family Medicine at the Westchester Medical Center. In 1994, he joined the New York College of Osteopathic Medicine as adjunct clinical assistant professor of surgery. In 2000, he was appointed chief of the comprehensive breast service at Beth Israel Medical Center. And, in 2001, he was appointed associate professor of clinical surgery at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, where he was appointed to full professor this year.

He has received professional honors, including the Award for Outstanding Service by the American Cancer Society (1998), and has been repeatedly listed in Castle Connolly's "Top Doctors: New York Metro Area" and America's Top Surgeons' "Guide to America's Top Surgeons."

"I look forward to working closely with my colleagues at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia to advance new treatments for breast cancer that improve survival and quality of life while minimizing treatment-related side effects," says Dr. Feldman. "I lost my sister to breast cancer, and I understand its enormous impact this disease has on patients and their loved ones. Along with being focused on the best treatments, a top priority will be to help provide compassionate, patient-centered care, ensuring visits to our Comprehensive Breast Center are private, comfortable and dignified."

Dr. Feldman was born in Brooklyn, and lives in Manhattan with his wife. He has twin sons.

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, based in New York City, is the nation's largest not-for-profit, non-sectarian hospital, with 2,242 beds. The Hospital has nearly 2 million inpatient and outpatient visits in a year, including more than 230,000 visits to its emergency departments — more than any other area hospital. NewYork-Presbyterian provides state-of-the-art inpatient, ambulatory and preventive care in all areas of medicine at five major centers: NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center, Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of NewYork-Presbyterian, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Allen Pavilion and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Westchester Division. One of the largest and most comprehensive health-care institutions in the world, the Hospital is committed to excellence in patient care, research, education and community service. It ranks sixth in U.S.News & World Report's guide to "America's Best Hospitals," ranks first on New York magazine's "Best Hospitals" survey, has the greatest number of physicians listed in New York magazine's "Best Doctors" issue, and is included among Solucient's top 15 major teaching hospitals. The Hospital's mortality rates are among the lowest for heart attack and heart failure in the country, according to a 2007 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) report card. The Hospital has academic affiliations with two of the nation's leading medical colleges: Weill Cornell Medical College and Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

Columbia University Medical Center

Columbia University Medical Center provides international leadership in basic, pre-clinical and clinical research, in medical and health sciences education, and in patient care. The Medical Center trains future leaders and includes the dedicated work of many physicians, scientists, public health professionals, dentists, and nurses at the College of Physicians & Surgeons, the Mailman School of Public Health, the College of Dental Medicine, the School of Nursing, the biomedical departments of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and allied research centers and institutions. Established in 1767, Columbia's College of Physicians and Surgeons was the first institution in the country to grant the M.D. degree and is now among the most selective medical schools in the country. Columbia University Medical Center is home to the largest medical research enterprise in New York City and state and one of the largest in the United States. For more information, please visit www.cumc.columbia.edu.