A Salina doctor who has dedicated her life to fighting cancer has been honored. Radiation oncologist Dr. Claudia Perez-Tamayo, who leads the Radiation Oncology Department at Tammy Walker Cancer Center in Salina, has earned a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Wichita Business Journal. She was honored for for her long-standing commitment to treating oncology patients in Kansas.
According to the Central Care Cancer Center, Dr. Perez-Tamayo was named a 2018 “Health Care Hero” by the Wichita Business Journal. She is one of only two recipients this year to win the award in the Lifetime Achievement category.
According to criteria provided by Wichita Business Journal, the Lifetime Achievement category “honors a specific individual for his or her lifetime contributions to the improvement and advancement of health care.”
Dr. Perez-Tamayo came to Salina nearly 30 years ago to practice and helped to establish Salina’s cancer center as one of the first facilities in the nation to offer Intensity Modulated Radiation Treatment (IMRT), a highly sophisticated and precise radiation treatment. She came to Salina from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor where she participated in leading research on radiation oncology’s effect on various forms of cancer.
Today, Dr. Perez-Tamayo treats patients at Tammy Walker Cancer Center, as well as at Central Care Cancer Center clinics across Kansas.
During nearly three decades in the Salina community, Dr. Perez-Tamayo has been actively involved and has served on committees associated with among others:
- Salina Regional Health Center
- Saline County Medical Society
- Salina Area Chamber of Commerce
- Sacred Heart Cathedral – Salina,
- Catholic Charities of Salina
Dr. Perez-Tamayo is board certified by the American Board of Radiology and the American Board of Internal Medicine sub-specialty of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. She has expertise in both brain and body stereotactic procedures, as well as brachytherapy, both low dose rate and high dose rate.
She was awarded prestigious fellowships to both the American College of Radiology and the American College of Radiation Oncology for her contributions and service through education, research and service activities in the practice of radiation oncology. Her academic appointments include the University of Michigan and the University of Kansas Medical Center.
