Robert C. Ashton Jr., M.D.
- Contact Address
- John Theurer Cancer Center (Hackensack University Medical Center)
30 Prospect Avenue
Hackensack, NJ - Contact Phone
- (201) 336-8829
- Professional Affiliations
- John Theurer Cancer Center (Hackensack University Medical Center)
Position held: Chief
Program: Thoracic Surgery - John Theurer Cancer Center (Hackensack University Medical Center)
Position held: Co-Chief
Program: Division of Thoracic Oncology
- John Theurer Cancer Center (Hackensack University Medical Center)
- Expertise
- Thoracic Surgery
- Thoracic Oncology
- Lung Cancer
- Cancers of the mediastinum, esophagus, and thymus
- Education
- Medical College of Pennsylvania,
- Residencies
- Chief Resident, Allegheny General Hospital, Allegheny University of the Health Sciences, Pittsburgh, General Surgery,
- Fellowships
- Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center, Cardiovascular Research and Thoracic Surgery,
- Appointments
- Clinical Associate Professor of Surgery UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School,
- Board Certification
- Surgery
- Thoracic Surgery
- Website
- Biography/CV (will open new window)
- Biography
Thoracic surgeon Robert C. Ashton, Jr., M.D., pioneered robotic-assisted thoracic surgical procedures using the daVinci™ Surgical System and wrote the first papers about it while he was an assistant professor of thoracic surgery at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and director of minimally invasive and robotic thoracic surgery and director of the Department of Surgery at St. Luke's Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York City in the early 2000s. At Hackensack University Medical Center since 2005, Dr. Ashton utilizes these robotic techniques and video-assisted thoracic surgery to diagnose, treat, and stage patients with lung and esophageal cancers and other diseases of the chest.
Dr. Ashton collaborates closely with Harry D. Harpers, M.D., co-chief of the Division of Thoracic Oncology, and other members of the thoracic oncology team to provide multidisciplinary approaches to thoracic cancers that combine surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy in innovative ways in order to improve patient outcomes. All patients with thoracic cancers are presented weekly at the Thoracic Oncology Tumor Board, where cases are discussed and treatments are planned. Dr. Ashton's clinical research has been published in numerous medical journals and books and has been presented at many national and international conferences. He has appeared on "The Today Show," NBC's and CBS' "Nightly News," Fox News Channels and MSNBC to discuss issues relating to lung cancer and thoracic surgery.
Dr. Ashton is vice chairman of the American College of Chest Physicians' Interventional Chest/Diagnostic Procedures NetWorks Steering Committee. He is also a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and the American College of Chest Physicians. He is a member of the Medical Advisory Board of Trauma Pod Development.
