Born and raised in Byron, MI, breast surgeon Ashley Richardson, DO, FACOS, is back home practicing medicine and raising two children with her husband in the community that brings her so much passion.
“It always was my dream to live and work in the place I’m proud to call my home,” states Dr. Richardson.
After graduation from Byron High School, Dr. Richardson completed her undergraduate degree in human biology at Michigan State University, where she continued her education and obtained her medical degree. She wanted to return home, so she applied for the General Surgery Residency Program at Ascension Genesys. Following her residency, she completed a breast surgical oncology fellowship at McLaren/Karmanos Cancer Institute in Flint, and proudly announced she was the first graduate of the program.
When presented with “such a tremendous opportunity” to join comprehensive breast care surgeons Eric Brown, MD, FACS and Linsey Gold, DO, FACOS, FACS, she happily accepted. “They have been such great mentors and partners – they have an amazing reputation among their colleagues and patients,” she says. “Joining their practice allowed me to stay in this community and serve people who live here.”
Dr. Richardson’s work is “exclusively breast,” she notes. She treats patients with benign breast disease, helps high-risk patients manage their condition, and she specializes in axillary node dissection, sentinel node biopsy, lumpectomy/breast conservation, mastectomies, oncoplastic surgery and simultaneous reconstruction with plastic surgery. Dr. Richardson spends the majority of her time seeing patients in her Flint office and performing surgeries at the Genesee County hospitals.
“When treating my patients, I see the whole person,” Dr. Richardson says when talking about her philosophy of care. “For example, I may care for a 37-year-old wife and mother of two kids who works at a small business in downtown Flint, or treat an 82-year-old widow who has mobility issues and worries about transportation to and from her appointments. Through our visits, I’ve met many of her family members and gotten to know them, too.”
In July, Dr. Richardson was the catcher at a Pink Night breast cancer fundraiser at Comerica Park, when Karmanos and McLaren Health Care partnered with the Tigers for First Pitch Friday. Her patient, Tina Craciun of Grand Blanc was the pitcher.
Dr. Richardson says some of her patients express their fears about what is going to happen to them. “I walk them through the entire cancer process, step by step, answer all of their questions and the questions their family members have, and spend as much time with them as they need to feel a little less anxious and much more confident,” she shares. “Just as each patient has her own personal story, so does the cancer she is living with. I fit the treatment to each individual patient. Cancer is a social and emotional disease and we need to treat all aspects of it, far beyond the physical illness,” she believes.
When she is not in her office or the operating room, Dr. Richardson is home with her husband of nine years, Scott, a Flint native and a teacher in Mount Morris Consolidated Schools. “I love being a surgeon, mom and wife, and being able to do it all in my hometown community!” she enthuses.
Dr. Richardson is accepting patients.
To schedule an appointment, call 833.949.1108. The Flint office is located at 3500 Calkins Rd., Suite B. She also will see patients at Karmanos Cancer Institute at McLaren in Clarkston.
Dr. Richardson, along with her colleagues, Dr. Brown and Dr. Gold, co-host “The Breast of Everything,” a podcast offering breast health information, support and encouragement.
Photos courtesy of McLaren Karmanos Cancer Institute
