UH Integrative Oncologist Provides Accessible Care for the Whole Person

UH Clinical Update | October 2024

As an integrative oncologist, Santosh K. Rao, MD, ABOIM, not only sees that cancer patients receive the complementary therapy they need, he also finds ways to make their integrative treatment more likely to be covered by insurance, and affordable.

Santosh K. Rao, MD, ABOIM

He has done this by creating the Integrative Symptom Management Clinic for oncology at UH. It provides such services as acupuncture, Reiki, and physician-directed massage therapy to address fatigue, pain, and neuropathy, which can be common side effects of cancer treatment. 

“We have designed our program to basically try to help as many people as we can – we don’t want it to be only a boutique program for people who can afford to pay out of pocket,” says Dr. Rao, Medical Director of Integrative Oncology for UH Connor Whole Health and Robert and Melissa Shearer Master Clinician in Integrative Oncology. “Cancer often comes with a lot of stress and financial toxicity. Ideally, for us to get insurance coverage for these services we have to show the research and the outcomes on the effects a treatment such as massage can have on symptoms. In the meantime, we’ve found ways to make these treatments as affordable as possible, while using insurance coverage when we can.  We also offer group acupuncture, which makes that more affordable.”

And, he adds, “I’ve also talked to a lot of specialty physicians, inside and outside UH, to help make this happen.” 

Patients are relieved that the price is reasonable: “So few times in our society do you get something that makes you feel better. So it’s been very successful.”

Lifestyle medicine is also a strong component of the care they receive. Patients are provided with individualized guidance on exercise and stress management that follows American Cancer Society guidelines. 

Dr. Rao’s exceptional clinical expertise, his national leadership in the field of integrative oncology and his bedside manner with patients are why he was recently honored with a recent “Cliff Appreciates” award, and a Dinner with the Doc. 

Francoise Adan, MD, UH Chief Whole Health and Well-Being Officer and Christopher M. and Sara H. Connor Chair in Integrative Health, nominated him for the award. “In his relatively short time at UH, Dr. Rao has integrated whole health and integrative medicine at UH Seidman Cancer Center,” she wrote. “He ensures that patients are seen in a timely manner by being reachable after hours. He is a team player who says “Yes!” to whatever needs to be done.  

“Dr. Rao is also a frequent presenter at conferences and symposia and makes regular media appearances to share success stories about the important integrative oncology work taking place at UH.” 

When Dr. Rao studied medicine in the 1990s – he went to college and medical school at the University of Michigan – his interest in science and health was supplemented by his burgeoning interest in meditation, yoga, and Ayurveda, in which he did an independent study.  

“Everything came together and aligned – beyond just healthcare,” he says. “I was interested in integrative medicine, but at the time, it was not a field.” 

He did his internship and residency in internal medicine at the University of California San Diego, follow by a fellowship in integrative medicine at the University of Arizona in Tucson, and a fellowship in hematology and oncology at UH that he completed in 2013. From 2014 to 2022, he was the Medical Director of Integrative Medicine at the MD Anderson Cancer Center, and then he returned to UH for his current position. 

Beyond his credentials, training and expertise, there is another component he finds vital:   

“I think it is being authentic and trying to connect to the person who is coming for help, and then listening, which is especially important - empathic listening and trying to understand what you can do to help and taking the time to connect.  

“Most patients can tell right away if you are listening, and if you are being honest, which is the other thing I focus on. You try to put yourself in the patient’s shoes. It’s a challenging and rewarding field we are in –  you have to be able to multitask, while also being mindful and present with each patient, to be in the moment.” 

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