Lighthouse Point resident Stephanie Correa, DVM, Board Certified in Oncology, raised her three children in the community with her husband, Tony, and this year is celebrating the 20th Anniversary of her company, Animal Cancer Care Clinics, a statewide network of eight locations treating dogs and cats fighting cancer.
Armed with her hard-earned board certification in medical oncology, Dr. Stephanie Correa returned to her native South Florida in 2000. In 2001, she joined a multi-specialty veterinary clinic in Cooper City, working as the only oncologist in the tri-county area. Oncology was fairly new at the time. Pet owners, even primary care veterinarians, weren’t fully aware of this burgeoning field of animal medicine. Therefore, the new oncologist took it upon herself to boost awareness by giving lectures, writing articles, and leading training classes.
“I spent a lot of my time teaching about oncology in those early days,” recalled Dr. Correa. “People whose pets had cancer were very unique at the time.”
Working in a multi-specialty environment also showed her the need – and the opportunity – to provide a different treatment approach for this disease.
“It didn’t feel right treating pets with cancer in a setting where these animals with delicate immune systems could be sitting next to a puppy with a fracture or another sick pet,” she explained. “I wanted to be able to offer a better experience for pets and their families.”
At the time, no one else was offering a practice solely dedicated to cancer treatment, so Dr. Correa decided it was her life’s mission to create a better option. At the end of 2003, she began this journey and Animal Cancer Care Clinic (ACCC) was born in January 2004.
Dr. Correa knew a lot about operating her own practice, as the daughter of Dr. Jerry Paul Shank, a beloved primary care veterinarian in Fort Lauderdale for more than 40 years. Dr. Shank was a pioneer also. He was the first veterinarian in Florida to open an in-hospital laboratory in 1979. He passed away in July 2023, leaving a legacy Dr. Correa continues to build.
“As I see patients and clients, I can hear my dad’s voice reminding me to allow my clients time to ‘tell their story first’ before giving my diagnosis or advice,” she recalled. “There’s a need for the veterinarian to understand the deep connection between the person and the animal to be an effective caretaker.”
The first ACCC location was selected to honor a six-month noncompete agreement and involved spacing space with her friend and trusted colleague in Palm Beach County, Dr. Susan Carastro, a veterinary ophthalmologist with offices in Deerfield Beach and West Palm Beach.
“Dr. Carastro was doing what I envisioned doing,” said Dr. Correa. “As a women-owned single specialty practice, she inspired me and is still my mentor today.”
With barely two weeks from leaving her position to setting up her own oncology practice, Dr. Çorrea arrived on day one at her new space, forgetting to get a key and not knowing if patients would show up or not. When she arrived at 8 a.m., patients were lined up at the door waiting for her to examine their pets and continue their cancer treatments. She knew then she had made the right decision.
For the first six months, she worked three days a week out of the office in West Palm Beach. She then hired her first oncology nurse, Sheri Impemba and expanded with office hours in Deerfield Beach.
“Sheri came to work with me as my first employee and two decades later is still with ACCC. She has literally been my right hand for the last two decades,” said. Dr. Correa. “We were ‘crazy people,’ traveling between locations with our mini-server, laptop, ultrasound machine, even chemo drugs, neatly tucked into a wheeled cart I bought at Office Depot.”
She recalls those early panicky feelings as a new entrepreneur maxing out her credit cards, signing leases for equipment worth $25,000 and more, and praying clients would continue to make appointments.
“It was a little bit scary at first,” admitted Dr. Correa, “but I knew in my heart that pet owners needed this service. I remember thinking, ‘if I don’t do this, pets will die.’ I was 100 percent committed and determined to help as many animal cancer patients as I could.”
She also knew it was difficult for people to drive long distances to receive this needed treatment. Therefore, her long-term plans involved multiple locations to provide more convenience and access. Over the next few years, she opened additional locations in Miami and by 2009, a new state-of-the-art facility opened in Fort Lauderdale to offer in-house radiation therapy, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and surgery. At the center of the new facility was a multi-million-dollar radiation treatment facility equipped with a linear accelerator and a fulltime, board-certified radiation oncologist.
“I remember thinking that I had bankrupted my family for the next three generations,” quipped Dr. Correa, who said that the new clinic was constructed in a record six months and more than 200 people showed up for the grand opening celebration. “Just after we opened, I would look at the scheduling board in radiation and see only two patients listed.”
Luckily, appointments soon filled up and today the clinic often sees as many as 15 radiation patients in a day. By 2011, the ACCC team had grown to five oncology specialists. Dr. Evan Sones joined the next year and began the company’s northern and western expansion.
“Clients were sometimes driving two or more hours for treatment, so we saw the need and were committed to filling it,” said Dr. Correa. “Our goal from day one was to steward a journey of hope and to be in service to people and their pets. That’s what continues to drive me every day.”
By 2017, the dream to expand to Orlando was becoming a reality. The team found an opportunity to rent space during the day at an all-night emergency animal hospital. Shortly thereafter, however, the unexpected happened. The owner of the hospital demanded that they leave immediately, giving them only the weekend to vacate.
“We got kicked out with no notice,” she remembered. “Luckily, I knew a local ophthalmologist who offered to let us set up in his practice. My entire team jumped in to help, loading equipment in their cars, and working hard to get us ready to serve our full schedule of patients that Monday.”
By November 2019, a permanent location was identified for ACCC. “There’s been so much help along the way,” stressed Dr. Correa. “You have to be prepared every day for the unexpected and just keep moving.
“As we celebrate our 20th Anniversary, I’m proud to still have so many employees who have been with me 20, 15 and 10 years. Thanks to the dedication of my team and our shared passion for helping animals, we are able to offer our services in eight locations throughout Florida with 12 highly trained cancer specialists committed to providing HOPE, CARE and Optimal OUTCOMES to our Animal Patients.”
