ALERT CONTENT PLACEHOLDER

About Us

Location

Toronto General Hospital
Norman Urquhart (NU) Building – 10th Floor, in the Thoracic Surgery Clinic


Contact

Clinical Nurse Coordinator
Marco Cheung: 416 340 4800 ext 2871

Medical Director
Dr. Kasia Czarnecka-Kujawa
Telephone: 416 340 4800 ext 4657
Referral Fax: 416 340 4556​

Hours

Monday – Friday
9:00 am – 5:00 pm

Location

Contact

Hours

Location

Contact

Hours

Location

Contact

Hours


Referrals

The RACE fax is checked a few times throughout the day and we process referrals on a daily basis.

If a patient cannot wait to be seen within 3-4 business days, the referring MD should arrange drainage of effusion through the Procedure Clinic at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre or refer the patient to Emergency Department. All malignant effusion referrals are considered urgent referrals.

Please note that only physicians may send a referral. Please fax the referral form to RACE Program or directly to the physician. Please also include:

  • Radiological imaging (CT scan, chest x-ray, MRI, PET scans)
  • Past medical history (of importance Oncological history)
  • Previous clinic notes related to RACE referral
  • Medications
  • Allergies

Our office will call the referring physician with information about the patient's first appointment. The referring physician's office is responsible for providing the patient with the appointment information, including time and location, and important documents, test results and imaging that they must bring.

Please note that clinic appointments may be virtual visits. The clinic team will let you know what type of appointment is appropriate for your care. Learn more about virtual visits at UHN »

What We Do

The Rapid Assessment of Complex Pleural Effusion Program (RACE) is a part of the Division of Thoracic Surgery, managing and addressing the needs of patients with Malignant Pleural Effusions (MPE). MPE is a type of advanced malignancy that can cause an accumulation of fluid in the chest. MPE affects nearly 50% of patients with advanced cancer, most commonly patients with lung, breast, gynecological cancers and lymphoma. The goal of the program is to shift the inpatient management of MPE to an ambulatory setting and, by doing so, increase our patients' quality of life and reduce healthcare costs. The program aims to offer prompt access to clinicians with expertise in MPE assessment and management and long term follow up of patients with MPE in a multidisciplinary team setting.

Tests/Services

  • Thoracentesis
    A thoracentesis is a procedure done to remove the extra fluid in the space between your lungs and chest wall. Some conditions cause more fluid to build up in your pleural space and too much fluid can make it more difficult to breathe. A thoracentesis is done to ease the symptoms related to pleural effusions, and the doctor may send a small sample off to the laboratory for more testing.
  • Tenckhoff Catheter Insertion
    A Tenckhoff Catheter is a soft, see-through rubber tube that remains within the pleural space and can be permanent if necessary. A doctor puts it into your pleural space to drain fluid from around your lung that allows you to drain the re-accumulating fluid as needed from your home environment to ease symptoms caused by the fluid buildup.
  • Tenckhoff Catheter Removal
    The fluid amount in the lung space may reduce significantly and you may no longer require the catheter for drainage. If your catheter is draining minimal amounts (less than 150mL a week) for a period of 3 weeks, chest x-ray done that looks stable, and your symptoms are minimal and/or manageable- then you can come to the clinic for an assessment to see if the catheter can be removed.

How to Prepare

Learn more about what you can expect when you have a clinic appointment.​

Health Information

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Visit our Health Information section to find dedicated resources to help you understand your condition. Find the information you're looking for.

Resources from Our Clinic

Video Resources

Our Team

Meet Our Team

Medical Director: Dr. Kasia Czarnecka-Kujawa

Clinical Nurse Coordinators: Marco Cheung & Rachel Downie

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