PENSACOLA, FL -- Three physicians at Sacred Heart Hospital are now credentialed by M. D. Anderson Physicians Network®, a subsidiary of The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, considered the nation's top cancer treatment center.

The newly credentialed physicians are: Gerald Lowrey, radiation oncologist who practices at Sacred Heart's Cancer Center, and Dr. James L. Nielsen and Dr. William F. Bailey, Jr., both thoracic surgeons with Cardiothoracic Surgical Associates who practice at Sacred Heart.

Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola formed an affiliation with M. D. Anderson Physicians Network® in 2006 to further enhance the level of cancer care available to patients in Northwest Florida and Baldwin County, Ala.

Physicians who earn M. D. Anderson Physicians Network's credentials undergo a rigorous review to ensure that they provide quality diagnostic and treatment services consistent with M. D. Anderson's state-of-the-art guidelines for treating cancer.   The lengthy credentialing process includes an assessment of their office practices and a medical records review, in order to ensure compliance with the program.

Patients of credentialed physicians receive care in accordance with M. D. Anderson's multidisciplinary approach to cancer care, in which physicians from various specialties, including oncologists, radiation oncologists and cancer surgeons, join together to plan the patient's cancer treatment. Physicians Network also provides Sacred Heart Hospital with ongoing rigorous review of its standards and practices to ensure it meets M. D. Anderson Physicians Network high standards of care.

For more information, please visit www.sacred-heart.org or call 1-877-904-HOPE.
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