Finding Solutions to Complex Problems
As medical director for Inova’s Musculoskeletal Tumor Program, Dr. Wodajo says he enjoys solving the diagnostic challenges that patients often bring with them: “Many times, it’s like piecing together a puzzle, especially for patients who have been seen by many other physicians without an answer. Then, there is the joy of successfully completing a complex surgery and receiving the heartfelt gratitude of a family member. This makes up for the long and sometimes tiring hours.”
Bone and soft tissue (musculoskeletal) tumors are rare. “Our program is one of the very few programs exclusively dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment of musculoskeletal tumors,” he says, “and we are proud to have it within the highly-regarded Inova Health System.”
Dr. Wodajo applauds his team for making sure that patients complete their care with the least amount of anxiety and disruption to their lives. “Our nurse coordinator, Amy Siegel, is always readily available to our patients,” he says, “and our physicians are highly trained, energetic and very dedicated.” Each patient is seen as an individual. “We are proud that we get to know our patients – their needs and their concerns,” he says, “This gives us the opportunity to provide them with the most advanced, best-in-class musculoskeletal tumor care possible.”
Dr. Wodajo is also director of Orthopedic Oncology at Inova Fairfax Hospital for Children; clinical assistant professor, Orthopedics and Pediatrics, Georgetown University; hospital instructor, Orthopedics, Howard University Hospital; and consultant, National Cancer Institute, NIH. The board-certified orthopedic surgeon received his AB in biology, cum laude, from Princeton University. He earned his medical degree, with thesis, from the University of California, San Francisco. He is a writer, teacher and strong advocate for continuing education. He was born in Ethiopia.
View Dr. Wodajo's Curriculum Vitae.
Who We Treat The Inova Fairfax Hospital Musculoskeletal Tumor Center provides treatment for both adults and children with musculoskeletal tumors. This includes benign bone and soft tissue tumors, malignant bone and soft tissue tumors (sarcomas), and complex metastatic bone tumors.
Examples of benign bone diagnoses treated:• giant cell tumor• bone cysts• fibrous dysplasia• enchondromaExamples of soft tissue diagnoses treated:• fibromatosis (desmoid)• pigmented villonodular synovitis (PVNS)• lipoma Examples of malignant bone diagnoses treated (sarcomas):• osteosarcoma• Ewing’s sarcoma• chondrosarcomaExamples of malignant soft tissue diagnoses treated (sarcomas):• malignant fibrous histiocytoma (MFH)• liposarcoma • synovial sarcoma