Dr. Kathy Sue Albain, MD

I think she forgot she works for us.. I would never pay to see this doctor again. She is extremely rude, no compassion for her patience whatsoever. I was honestly astonished at how ignorant, cold and combative she was. It left me speechless.. not to mention the couple of times I've seen her she was late and had me waiting well over 2 hours to be seen. Please do yourself a favor and go see a better doctor with better bedside manners.

Very mean spirited person. All the knowledge in the world couldn’t offset the anxiety I felt with her before, during and after my visits. Another review said “too big to fire” which is what I believe. She caused chaos for the whole cancer center, always running an hour to two behind creating huge delays for the chemotherapy area. She also thinks very highly of herself.

Dr Albain knows exactly the plan for each individual. She gets down to business on your first appointment and follows through every time you see her with the utmost knowledge of your needs. If you are diagnosed with breast cancer she is definitely the Doctor you need to see!

I have been a patient of Dr. Albain since 2012, and I like her no-nonsense approach. I don’t need any handholding, and I appreciate her straight forward manner. Moreover, the longer I know her, the warmer she has become. Dr. Albain has an international reputation for the quality of her research too. With her treatment plan, I have been cancer free for over 10 years. I recommend Dr. Albain to any one who has breast cancer concerns. Helen B. Szymanski

My wife and I met with her. Her knowledge is world-class. But read on and be astonished. She is an unbelievably difficult person; and if you think you know what 'difficult' means, read on. The Fellow we met prior to meeting with her was joking (about her reputation), "Even I am afraid of her". Then we met with her. At first everything seemed normal. But then about 3 minutes into the conversation, I happened to look also at her nurse as I asked a question. To that Dr. Albain snapped: "WHY ARE YOU LOOKING AT HER? I AM THE DOCTOR HERE!" She said this in a raised voice as if she were scolding me. I was astonished; I'm like, "You don't even know me, and you speak to my wife and I like this??" What kind of person are you, anyway? I also felt embarrassed for her nurse, who received an insult for being a nurse (!) and had done nothing wrong. (And let's be clear: nurses do most of the doctors' work. I know this having had chemo twice and as a parent of a nurse.) It was what… they would now call 'abusive'. This happened 10 years ago - before the days of online reviews. So it's incredible to me to now read these one-star reviews and to realize that this behavior has been going on for at least a decade. Frankly, one wonders if her reputation makes her 'too big to fire', because with all these one-star reviews, all essentially saying the same thing; no matter how bad other doctors are you won't find those kinds of reviews. Her reputation is about the only explanation after a decade or more of such behavior. So I would summarize it like this: yes, she has great knowledge; and as a 3X breast cancer person (male) I understand the life and death seriousness of getting a great oncologist. Just don't despair: there are many great oncologists in this area, where you don't have to deal with this. Try U of C. I've been to Mayo, who are not looking for business; they referred me after being diagnosed to having my chemo locally (which is how we met Dr. Albain.) Edwards in Naperville has a Mayo-class doctor who worked with Dr. Albain for 20 years and can cite any study when asked; but without the attitude. So you do have other options.

I will forever be grateful for Dr. Albain. My mom was given 6-18 months to live in Arizona. We flew her here to Chicago to see Dr. Albain. Dr. Albain had everything ordered for tests and scans which were done immediately when we arrived at the hospital that day. She had a treatment plan formulated that afternoon. Her bedside manner may not be awesome, but, her brilliance shines through her soul. My mom was diagnosed 7 years ago with Stage 4 lung cancer. She has been cancer FREE for three years. God bless this woman for her contribution to the health care field. By the way, she does actually smile with my mom, and gave my mom a hug!

The best doctor

Gifted doctor and healer, however no compassion or bedside manner. She is rude, combative, and has a habit of trying to intimidate patients. She interrupts patient constantly and does not listen to patient's concerns. She is very abrasive. I have been treated by her for the last 3 years and I am disgusted and fed up with her attitude. I am seriously thinking about seeing a different oncologist. The only thing holding me back is that she is an excellent doctor, if u can put up with her rudeness and arrogance.

Horrible bedside manor.difficult to deal with

My husband was given 3-6 months with stage 2 non small cell adenocarcanoma lung cancer back in 1998 at the age of 38.. We researched many doctors before any treatment or surgery. Dr Albain was notably one of the best. She was for chemo strategy to keep it at bay for 6 years. But her bedside manner was HORRIBLE! No compassion, snapped at me and my husband, her nurse complained how torrmenting it was to work for her. She messed up my husbands mind so bad, it made it even worse for me to keep him positive. There is a fine line from becoming too emotionally involved with patients,but wow she really removes her compassion or understanding of the fear of cancer. If you don't want a caring doctor and one that only is focused on research then she's the doctor for you. My husband entered hospice and he never heard from her again, passing 6 years after diagnosis. She added his satistic to her research notebook and moved onto the next patient she could torment.