Surgery

NewYork-Presbyterian Westchester

Colorectal Surgery

Formerly Lawrence Hospital

Experienced Colorectal Surgeons Performing the Latest Procedures 

NewYork-Presbyterian Westchester is home to Westchester County's premier colorectal surgeons. They are renowned in their field for their advanced training and extensive experience and lecture about surgical advances to their colleagues. For you, the patient, this means you can receive personalized treatment based on the latest medical research, tailored to your needs and available closer to your home. Your team focuses on all of you — body, mind and spirit — with the goal of curing your disease or helping you live a better quality of life.

Our Approach

Our surgeons include experts from Columbia University Medical Center’s division of colorectal surgery. They are highly experienced in the treatment of colorectal cancer, inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis), colorectal polyps, anal fistulas and fissures, and other diseases of the colon and rectum. They are joined by surgical nurses and nurse practitioners, pathologists, radiologists, and others who customize a plan of care specific to your disease — one that takes your needs and preferences into account. 

Meet our colorectal surgeons: 

Beatrice Dionigi, MD 
Headshot of Dr. DionigiDr. Dionigi is a double board-certified colon and rectal surgeon. She has expertise in the care of people with benign and malignant colorectal diseases, including colon and rectal cancers, polyposis syndromes, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), diverticulitis, and anorectal disorders. She specializes in re-operative colorectal surgery as well as in the use of robotics. 

Dr. Dionigi obtained her medical degree with highest honors from the University of Pavia, Italy. After a surgical internship at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, she completed her general surgery residency at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School in Boston. During this time, she also did a two-year translational research fellowship related to mesenchymal stem cells at Boston Children’s Hospital. She then completed a colon and rectal surgery fellowship through the Salvati Fellowship Program at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Jersey, followed by two years of advanced training in complex re-operative colorectal surgery at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation in Ohio. Dr. Dionigi then joined the Division of Colorectal Surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center as Attending Surgeon and Assistant Professor of Surgery. Since her arrival, she created the first-of-its-kind Women in Surgery Association (WINGS) at Columbia, with the goal of promoting women in leadership. She became Associate Program Director of the General Surgery Residency Program and has started a collaborative translational project on Early Onset Colon and Rectal Cancer within the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center. 

In June 2023, her dedication to the education of surgery residents was recognized with the Teacher Award. She is the author of several publications, has received national and international awards for her research, and has been an invited speaker at meetings across the country and around the world. 

David M. Schwartzberg, MD 
Headshot of Dr. SchwartzbergDr. Schwartzberg is a double board-certified colorectal surgeon who specializes in the full range of colorectal diseases, with a focus on robotic surgery for colorectal cancer and diverticulitis. He also performs complex and re-operative surgery for Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, including J-pouch surgery. After his surgery residency at NYU Langone Health, he completed a colorectal fellowship at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, followed by an additional fellowship in the surgical treatment of complex inflammatory disease at NYU's Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center. He has given numerous lectures nationally and published dozens of articles and book chapters on surgery, and is also involved with multiple academic surgical societies.

Minimally Invasive Colorectal Surgery

Our colorectal surgeons take a minimally invasive approach to each operation whenever appropriate. They are highly experienced in the use of robotic surgery, using advanced tools to operate through smaller incisions with exceptional precision. The result: less pain after surgery, smaller scars, and a quicker recovery than conventional open abdominal surgery. 

Our surgeons try to avoid the need for an ostomy bag (a bag worn outside the abdomen to collect waste) whenever possible. Should you need a more extensive or complex operation or if you have multiple health problems, we can perform your surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center.

Helping You Recover

It may take a few days after your surgery for your bowel habits to resume. Our goal is to shorten your hospital stay and get you home so you can return to the activities you enjoy. Your team helps you recover by:

  • Giving you dietary advice to restore your bowel activity
  • Helping you get out of bed and moving again
  • Avoiding narcotic painkillers (which can be constipating) whenever possible 

If after your colorectal surgery you need a permanent colostomy or ileostomy, our ostomy nurses have the compassion and experience to support you as you adapt to life with an ostomy.

Contact Us

Colorectal Surgery in Westchester County