Nutrition Zone

Ehud Mendel, MD, MBA, is a neurosurgeon and director of the Spine Oncology Program at Smilow Cancer Hospital’s Disease Center. A renowned leader in spinal surgery procedures, Dr. Mendel removes spinal tumors and has spearheaded research in reconstructive surgery following tumor removal. With areas of specialty including spinal cancer, spine sarcoma, and spinal cord tumors, he has built specific protocols for removal of spinal cord tumors. The entire tumor must be removed, or cancer cells invade other parts of a patient’s body.

Luis Kolb, MD, is a neurosurgeon at Yale Medicine specializing in spine surgery, with a sub-specialty in complex spine deformity, tumors, degenerative spine diseases and complex revision surgery. Many of the patients he sees have previously bounced from doctors to doctor without any significant improvement. “The most rewarding part of my job is seeing these patients, treating them and having their pain finally go away. They’re back at work and returning to their favorite activities,” says Dr. Kolb.

Maxwell Laurans, MD, is a neurosurgeon at Yale Medicine who specializes in spine tumors and degenerative spine conditions. He begins each patient interaction by asking in-depth questions about symptoms, complaints and patient history to figure out the source of the problem. Dr. Laurans believes in taking his time to get to know his patients, who might require several visits.