Daniel G Petereit, MD, FASTRO, a Radiation Oncologist with Regional Health John T. Vucurevich Cancer Care Institute

Get to know Radiation Oncologist Dr. Daniel Petereit, who serves patients in Rapid City, South Dakota.

Dr. Petereit is a board-certified radiation oncologist who manages all types of cancer, but has specialty training in brachytherapy. His primary career objective is to provide state-of-the-art cancer care for patients who live in the Midwestern region of the country, while staying academically active with partners across the country.

Currently, he is serving patients at the Regional Health John T. Vucurevich Cancer Care Institute in Rapid City, South Dakota. Located adjacent to Regional Health Rapid City Hospital, the Cancer Care Institute provides outpatient oncology services, supportive laboratory and imaging services, as well as services for related clinical research trials.

In addition to the doctor’s affiliation with Regional Health Rapid City Hospital, he is the Principal Investigator of the Walking Forward: American Indian Cancer Disparity Program, which has been receiving funding from the National Institute of Health since 2003. The goal of the program is to lower cancer mortality rates for Northern Plains American Indians (AIs) through patient navigation, clinical trial access, and identification of barriers to early detection and successful treatment. Published critical outcomes include establishment of trust within tribal communities, identification of barriers to cancer screenings, creation of research infrastructure, clinical-trial enrollment of 4,500 AIs (the highest in the nation), and higher completion-of-treatment and patient-satisfaction rates for patients undergoing cancer therapies.  

Walking Forward recently completed a smoking cessation project using nicotine replacement, counseling, and text messaging to mitigate the high rates of tobacco use and tobacco-induced cancers with a smoking abstinence rate of 21%.  In March of 2018, Walking Forward initiated a “large scale” lung cancer screening program for those at risk for the entire population of western South Dakota – the Frontier population. The primary metric is to increase the utilization of low dose CTs (LDCT) rates for screen-eligible smokers by targeting both primary care providers and high-risk individuals.  

In September of 2019, a palliative care project was initiated with multiple partners, including Harvard Medical School, South Dakota State University, Great Plains Tribal Chairmen’s Health Board, and the 3 reservations of Western South Dakota, in order to address palliative care needs.  Recent Walking Forward data analysis suggests that AI cancer patients with screen-detectable cancers are now presenting with earlier stages of disease and subsequently higher cure rates.  

Inspired by his father Frank Petereit, MD, a long-time radiologist in Sioux Falls who clamored his way out of a life of poverty, Dr. Petereit earned his medical degree from the University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine and did his residency in radiation oncology at the University of Wisconsin. He did additional training in gynecologic oncology and head and neck cancer at the MD Anderson Cancer Center.

A Fellow of the American Society for Radiation Oncology and a Fellow of the American College of Physicians, he is board-certified in diagnostic radiology by the American Board of Radiology, which is a not for profit physician-led organization that oversees the certification and ongoing professional development of specialists in diagnostic radiology, radiation oncology, and medical physics. 

For his expertise in brachytherapy, cancer disparities, and clinical trials, Dr. Petereit has received national recognition. In addition to having published over 115 articles in peer-reviewed journals and having received 15 million dollars in research funding, he has held several leadership roles with the American Board of Radiology, the American Society for Radiation Oncology, as well as many cancer cooperative groups.

Furthermore, he is the current President of the American Brachytherapy Society, leading a national initiative called 300 in 10, where the goal is to train 30 competent brachytherapists per year over the next 10 years. This initiative was highlighted in the Journal of Nature.  

The mission of the ABS is to benefit patients by providing information directly to the consumer, by promoting the highest possible standards of practice of brachytherapy, as well as to benefit health care professionals by encouraging improved and continuing education for radiation oncologists and other health care professionals involved in the treatment of cancer. 

Radiation oncology is a medical specialty that involves the controlled use of radiation to treat cancer. It is one of the three primary specialties, the other two being surgical and medical oncology, involved in the treatment of cancer. A radiation oncologist is a specialist physician who uses ionizing radiation in the treatment of cancer.

In his personal life, Dr. Petereit is happily married. He and his wife, Jean, have four children. 

Learn More about Dr. Daniel Petereit:
Through his findatopdoc profile, https://www.findatopdoc.com/doctor/1665464-Daniel-Petereit-Radiation-Oncologist or through Regional Health John T. Vucurevich Cancer Care Institute, https://directory.regionalhealth.org/provider/sd/rapid-city/daniel-petereit-md-facp

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