Accepting new patients

John T. Vetto, M.D., FACS, FASA

Accepting new patients

  • Professor of Surgery
  • Professor of Surgery, Division of Surgical Oncology, School of Medicine
  • Professor of Dermatology, School of Medicine

Specialty

  • Cancer

Clinical focus

  • Breast Cancer
  • Melanoma
  • Sarcoma
  • Skin Cancers
  • Surgical Oncology

Locations and contact

I see patients at
Modern building on a clear day with the tram in the background.
Center for Health & Healing, Building 2
503-494-8311
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About me

Dr. Vetto is a soft tissue Surgical Oncologist specializing in melanoma, high risk skin cancer, breast cancer, and sarcomas. He founded the OHSU multidisciplinary breast cancer and clinical melanoma program and is a member of the OHSU multidisciplinary sarcoma team. Dr. Vetto has published extensively on these topics and performed clinical and basic research in cancer areas. He enjoys studying and learning about advances in cancer care so that he can relate that information to colleagues and patients with the ultimate goal of improving outcomes and relieving suffering from cancer.

Outside of work Dr. Vetto enjoys spending time with his wife and two children, travel, visiting with his and his wife's family in Spain and Italy, working out, and watching old movies.

Languages spoken

  • English

Education and training

  • Degrees

    • B.S., 1978, Portland State University
    • M.D., 1982, Oregon Health & Science University

  • Residency

    • General Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 1982-1984
    • General Surgery, UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, 1986-1989

  • Fellowship

    • Surgical Oncology, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, 1984-1986
    • Surgical Oncology, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, 1989-1991

  • Certifications

    • American Board of Surgery, 1991; recertified 2000, 2009

Memberships and associations:

  • Alpha Omega Alpha (Alpha of Oregon)
  • Oregon Medical Association
  • Multnomah County Medical Society
  • Portland Surgical Society
  • Oregon Chapter, American College of Surgeons
  • North Pacific Surgical Association
  • Pacific Coast Surgical Association
  • Fellow, American College of Surgeons
  • American Head and Neck Society
  • Society of Surgical Oncology
  • Association of Academic Surgeons
  • Southwest Oncology Group
  • Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract
  • American Association for Cancer Education
  • American Association for Cancer Research
  • Longmire Surgical Society
  • American Society of Clinical Oncology
  • Western Surgical Association
  • Society for the immunotherapy of Cancer
  • Sarcoma Alliance for Research through Collaboration
  • Fellow, American Surgical Association
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Insurance

Before scheduling an appointment

  1. Check your network. If you have health insurance,  call your company to find out if the OHSU Health location or provider you plan to visit is part of your network.
  2. Ask what you will pay. Your insurance company can tell you what your costs are likely to be.

If you schedule an appointment and your health insurance does not include OHSU Health, you may have to pay more than if you go to a provider in your insurance network. 

Visit our billing and insurance page for more information.

Ratings and reviews

Overall: 4.9 out of 5 (259 Ratings, 82 Reviews)

The patient ratings score is an average of all responses to the question "How likely would you be to recommend this provider to your family and friends (on a scale of 0 to 10)" on our nationally-recognized NRC patient surveys.

  1. I like him a lot!

  2. Dr. Vetto is simply EXCEPTIONAL !It is an honor to have him as our Doctor!This applies to his Resident, to Pam and to everyone on his whole team.

  3. I am always treated well when I have an appt.

  4. Very professional, explained things in a concise & understandable way.

  5. This was a very scary and stressful time for myself and my husband and Dr Vetto and his staff were very comforting and helpful. We are very grateful.

  6. Dr. John Vetto, Nurse Nora, & the entire Surg Onc nursing team goes above & beyond to take such good care of me & dealing with my complex medical history!!!

  7. Have nothing but good to say

  8. Very Nice Dr. Explained thing very well answered all my questions. I like him.

  9. Explanation was very clear, procedure performed as expected

  10. Excellent place to get care

  11. Dr Vetto was very caring and informative. He answered all our questions and helped with planning and resources

  12. Dr Vetto has been with me on my journey for over 4 years. Very encouraging !!

  13. I think he did a good job

  14. Dr. Vetto and his staff are amazing. They are so friendly and easy to work with. Pam is great to work with on any issue and a great liaison between us and the doctor prior to our visit. We think Dr. Vetto is a top notch doctor and surgeon, which is why we continue to travel from Idaho to see him. We wish we had a great facility like OHSU where we live.

  15. Very professional

  16. Friendly, upbeat, reassuring.

  17. He is very personable and thorough in his exam and review of test results

  18. Very nice and clinical

  19. All of my experiences with Dr. Vetto have been excellent. He is an exceptional surgeon and clinician. Dr. Vetto is kind, caring, respectful, proactive, pragmatic, and patient-focused.

  20. I feel I received the best care I could receive anywhere.

  21. Highly impressed with my whole experience.

  22. Caring, thorough and good listener

  23. Pleasant and able to get all nessasary work done in one day

  24. Excellent care and support

  25. Dr. Vetto was knowledgeable and compassionate. It didn't feel dismissive at all.

  26. Satisfied

  27. Clinician took the time to make us feel welcome in an otherwise troubling visit.

  28. Dr. Vetto was very friendly, knowledgeable and attentive .

  29. Dr. John Vetto is my "OG Surgeon" & I'll be forever grateful to him for saving my life!!! His Surg-Onc nursing team is wonderful & ALWAYS takes such great care of me!!!Over the past 3+ years my body has gone thru some pretty scary & complicated scenarios, & because Dr. John Vetto knows how to explain things in his certain way, he always calms me down & tells me straight up how it is without scaring me.Dr. John Vetto is the Chair of the Tumor Board for the neck down of my body & continues to advocate for me & takes the time to follow my medical case.THANK~YOU!!!!

  30. Every one was very friendly, helpful and informative