Looking for recommendations in Bay Area, CA

When you inquire into any of these, you might want to ask about their style. If you go to UCSF, you may find you have been swept into a runaway assembly line (like that crazy scene in Charlie Chaplin's movie, “Modern Times" where he finds himself helplessly carried along in a series of cogwheels.) They may be excellent doctors but questions are not answered, arrogance is thick, requests for photos are refused. I had to search outside websites to get an Idea of what reconstruction would look like. I eventually switched to an outside surgeon/plastic surgeon team where I was treated as a whole person.

I haven't been to UCSF for cancer care but had my baby there and loved it. However, I get that it is totally different for what we are going thru. I have heard good things about Mills Peninsula too.

You are probably ok with not being at a teaching hospital unless your case gets complicated, in which case I would personally run to UCSF.

R

UCSF is considered to be a very good place with excellent surgeons and they have the usual hype about “patient centered” medicine. However, when it comes right down to it, you will discover that you, as the patient, have very little say in what happens to you. If you have questions you will essentially be told, “We know what we’re doing.” (implication being that the patient needn’t even try to understand anything because we are just too pitifully stupid and heaven forbid we would like to be able to choose between options because they have it all figured out and aren’t about to slow down the assembly line by explaining anything.) Some people may be OK with this, others not so much. I hope you are getting some second opinions so you can see the difference in style that is out there just in case that might make a difference to you. Best wishes to you.

Agree with the above re unusual cases being best treated at UCSF or Stanford.

I opted for the more private practice style of California Pacific Medical Center in SF, which is now part of Sutter Health.

My breast/plastic surgeon is Dr. Anne Peled, who trained at UCSF and is excellent. My MO is Dr. Stephanie Jeske, whom I also like very much, along with her entire staff. I spend a lot of time at Dr Jeske's office and having private treatment rooms and caring nurses makes a real difference for me.