Pediatric surgical oncology

We know that cancer is a scary diagnosis for your child, and here at UF Health Shands Children’s Hospital, our multidisciplinary team aims to provide the best, most compassionate care to your child. Surgery is often necessary during your child’s cancer treatment, and our pediatric surgeons are experts at providing the most up-to-date surgical care.

This includes biopsy and removal of solid tumors like:

• Neuroblastoma
• Wilms tumor
• Rhabdomyosarcoma
• Ovarian masses
• Thyroid masses

Surgery may be needed throughout your child’s cancer treatment. Often, our pediatric surgeons are asked to place an infusaport or long-term central line to aid in chemotherapy delivery or blood draws. Sometimes, we are asked to obtain a biopsy or sample of a mass or lymph node for diagnosis. To achieve this, we work closely with our colleagues in the UF Division of Pediatric Hematology & Oncology to ensure safe and timely surgical care.

If your child has a solid tumor or mass, coming to a place like UF Health Shands Children’s Hospital is important, because we work with a multidisciplinary team of experts to provide the most comprehensive care possible. This means that our pediatric surgeons work closely with our dedicated pediatric radiologists and pediatric pathologist to ensure that your child’s tumor is properly diagnosed and staged according to national criteria. Our pediatric surgeons are members of the Children’s Oncology Group, aiming to provide the most evidence-based surgical care for your child.

For complex tumors, your child will be discussed in our multidisciplinary tumor board, a collaborative effort with pediatric oncology, pediatric surgery, pediatric radiology, pediatric pathology and radiation oncology to ensure that your child has the best, most up-to-date cancer care. Additionally, through local and national partnerships, the Pediatric Solid Tumor Program has been successful in enrolling patients in novel clinical trials. Such participation in clinical research efforts allows us to provide patients and families with access to both expert, leading-edge care, as well as clinical trial options.

Meet Pediatric Surgeon Dr. Robin Petroze

Robin Petroze, MD, MPH, is one of the amazing UF Health pediatric surgeons your child could meet during his or her surgical oncology care. Dr. Petroze focuses on all aspects of pediatric surgery, with a special interest in pediatric oncologic surgery among other areas. You may also meet others within our Division of Pediatric Surgery, including Janice Taylor, MD, MEd, and Shawn Larson, MD, FACS.

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