Michael White, PA-C, was in college when his grandfather was diagnosed with bladder cancer. “He didn’t get the help he probably should have and could have received,” he recalls. “Seeing that he died without being treated properly made me want to go into medicine. I wanted to help potentially change that—at least for other people.”
No one is more surprised than White that his passion for patient care took a five-year detour as a cardiothoracic researcher whose work was published in some of the field’s most influential publications—Nature and Circulation among them.
Still, he couldn’t shake the lure of one-on-one patient care. While enrolled in UT Southwestern’s Physician Assistant program, he fell in love with urology. Fourteen years later, he’s grateful that he can actively help men like his grandfather have healthier, happier outcomes.
“I have a real love for men’s health—especially oncological urology,” he says. “Dramatic advances in robotic surgery and other technology have brought big changes in the quality and quantity of life for men diagnosed with bladder, kidney and prostate cancer.”
Of course, technology can’t replace the vital trust between patient and care provider. “I tell every single one of my patients that this is a team effort,” he notes. “I want them to know I’m there for them. I’m committed to investing the necessary time and my best effort in their care.”
White’s patient advocacy isn’t confined to the clinic. “Before Covid, I’d go into churches—especially those in south Dallas to talk with men about prostate cancer, erectile dysfunction and other urology issues. African-American men have higher incidences of prostate cancer. Reaching people is really where my heart is.”
His commitment to community service and patient care have made White a leader among his peers. He has served as national vice president of the Urology Association of Physicians Assistants, and for more than a decade he’s also been Boston Scientific’s men’s health training expert for Advance Practice Providers nationwide.
Now as part of Urology Partners of North Texas, White believes he’s found a truly collaborative practice where his skill and passion for personalized patient care can flourish. “The surgeons and physicians desire to serve the communities around them is what attracted me to UPNT. Not only do they have the desire, they have the facilities and technology to serve their patients in the best possible way without the red tape that plagues a lot of other places.”
White works closely with Dr. Clif Vestal, Dr. Mitch Abrahams and Dr. Andrew Sun at the Arlington and HEB clinics to treat men with urologic cancers, erectile dysfunction and incontinence.
The Texas native is a graduate of University of North Texas. When he’s not caring for patients, White enjoys, working out, hiking, camping and fly fishing with his wife and two children.
