Health Matters to Men (and to Those Who Love Them), with Dr. Martin Karpeh

June is Men’s Health Awareness Month, so this month’s episode focuses on the unique health challenges that men face. Men are less likely than women to have regular checkups and have higher rates of chronic conditions. To explore the reasons behind men’s reluctance to seek care—and to offer support—we are pleased to be joined by Dr. Martin Karpeh, director of surgical oncology for Northwell Health Eastern Region and chairman of surgery at Huntington Hospital. Dr. Karpeh discusses why it’s important for men to make their health a priority, offers insights to why they don’t and outlines simple first steps they can take to begin their health journey.

The Takeaway

• We want to hear from you! Please complete our survey: 1199SEIUBenefits.org/member-feedback.
• Drop us a line at our social media channels: Facebook // Instagram // YouTube.
• Listen to The Unspoken Truth: A Dialogue on Prostate Cancer Among Black Men.
• Start your health journey by making an appointment with your primary care physician to know your numbers.
• Get to know your numbers at www.1199SEIUBenefits.org/healthyhearts.
• Due for a screening? Check out www.1199SEIUBenefits.org/get-screened
• Find healthy recipes and meal-prep tips at www.1199SEIUBenefits.org/food-as-medicine.
• Visit the Healthy Living Resource Center for wellness tips, information and resources; www.1199SEIUBenefits.org/healthyliving.
• Get inspired by fellow members through our Members’ Voices series: www.1199SEIUBenefits.org/healthyliving/membervoices.
• Stop by our Benefits Channel to join webinars on building healthy meals, managing stress and more: www.1199SEIUBenefits.org/videos.
• Visit our  YouTube channel to view a wide collection of healthy living videos: www.youtube.com/@1199SEIUBenefitFunds/playlists.
• Sample our wellness classes to exercise body and mind: www.1199SEIUBenefits.org/wellnessevents.

Martin Karpeh, MD, is the director of surgical oncology at the Northwell Health Cancer Institute for Northwell facilities across eastern Long Island. He is based at Huntington Hospital, where he is chair of surgery.

Dr. Karpeh specializes in gastrointestinal tumors, including stomach and esophageal cancer, and cancers of the gastroesophageal junction. In the 1990s, he helped introduce minimally invasive laparoscopic staging techniques that now guide treatment decisions, helping doctors determine whether patients receive chemotherapy before surgery for gastroesophageal junction cancer. He also treats soft tissue sarcomas and skin cancers, including melanoma, squamous cell carcinoma and Merkel cell carcinoma.

Dr. Karpeh received his medical degree from the Pennsylvania State University Medical Colleges. He went on to complete his General Surgical Training at the University of Pennsylvania and later a Surgical Oncology Fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, where he spent more than a decade as an attending. He then spent 20 years leading surgical oncology programs at Stony Brook University Medical Center, Mount Sinai Beth Israel Medical Center and Hackensack Meridian Health.

For decades, Dr. Karpeh has worked in clinical trial development and frequently refers patients to national and international clinical studies. He is involved in translational research at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory to identify treatment targets in stomach and esophageal cancers, and has published more than 100 journal articles on stomach and gastroesophageal junction cancer.

A member of the International Gastric Cancer Association, the Society of Surgical Oncology and the American Surgical Association, Dr. Karpeh is also the former president of the New York Surgical Society, New York Cancer Society and the Society of Black Academic Surgeons. Additionally, he has been named a Castle Connelly Top Doctor and New York Magazine Top Doctor over many years.