Clayton Commander, MD, PhD

Growing up, I was fascinated by science and problem-solving. I interned at a local community hospital in San Francisco during high school and fell in love with clinical care and the magic behind medicine. I decided to pursue a career as a physician to help patients from various backgrounds and give back to my community. During medical school, I was drawn to procedural specialties. During surgery rotation, I observed a repair of an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair performed through the endovascular approach— the most novel approach at that time. I was amazed by the elegance of the transarterial deployment of the AAA stent graft, the patient’s quick recovery, and speedy discharge from the hospital. This experience introduced me to the innovative field of interventional radiology. I then learned more about diagnostic radiology and was fascinated by the field’s central role in patient care and knew I wanted to be a radiologist. I embody a patient-centered care philosophy. While many interventions may work for a variety of patients, each patient is unique, and he/she ought to get the care that is ideal for him/her. I believe that clinical excellence can only be achieved if the patient is the sole focus of our actions.

I chose a career in medicine because it combined my interest in science and a way to positively impact people’s lives. Before entering medical school, I was fortunate to be able to work in an operating room. I became enamored with surgeons and the various things that could be accomplished in the operating room. Once in medical school, I was introduced to interventional radiology, which combined cutting-edge technology and procedural care. I believe that we as physicians owe it to our patients to provide the best treatment as possible based on the available research. We should involve our patients in their care and help them understand what we are doing and why.

As an academic interventional radiologist, I am focused on advancing the field of minimally invasive procedures to provide the latest and most innovative care to patients. With an interest in interventional oncology, pain, and vascular diseases, I have endeavored to help patients of all socioeconomic backgrounds by providing proactive and holistic solutions to complex medical problems. As a Latino fluent in Spanish who was raised in the rural south USA and abroad, I have found it extremely rewarding to provide advanced medical care to the underserved patient populations and am looking forward to expanding that outreach by working with UNC’s team both locally and abroad. If interested, don’t forget to ask me about ongoing clinical trials.