Dr. Onesti is a board certified surgical oncologist who specializes in caring for patients with cancers of the gastrointestinal tract. As medical director of the surgical oncology department at Mercy Health Saint Mary’s, she founded the HIPEC program in 2015. Since then, the team has worked closely with the gynecologic oncology department to provide comprehensive treatment of ovarian and peritoneal cancers as well. Each patient receives support from his or her own personal nurse navigator and is presented to a multi-disciplinary team, including medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, interventional radiologists, gastroenterologists, nutritionists, social workers, research members, and others. Consultations and second opinions are available.

“I chose surgical oncology because I witnessed the difficult journey that many patients encounter. I felt God leading me to focus on these individuals to combine a strong support system with the newest technologies, while keeping the patient at the center of our goals.” – Dr. Onesti

For Muskegon resident Karen Thies, it all started with a “cyst” in her appendix.

During a scheduled appendectomy at Mercy Health in Muskegon, the doctors discovered that her appendix was cancerous and leaking. That’s when Thies was transferred to Mercy Health Lacks Cancer Center in Grand Rapids and first met Surgical Oncologist Jill Onesti, MD.

“Dr. Onesti instilled confidence from the minute I met her,” said Thies. “She is smart as a whip, and she is pretty inside and out and good at what she does. She explained what I needed to have done in a way that I could understand.”

“For patients like Karen, who have low-grade mucinous tumors of the appendix, we now have HIPEC,” said Onesti.

“HIPEC (hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy) is a major procedure that offers good long-term outcomes for patients who have limited options. The procedure involves a big incision that allows us to see everything inside the abdomen and pelvis. We look at every surface and to remove every last piece of tumor.”

Read the more of this Patient’s Story: