Craig R. Spencer, MD provides care in all aspects of adult and pediatric urology, including urologic oncology, male and female voiding dysfunction, and stone disease. He performs open, laparoscopic, endoscopic, and robotic surgery, and is experienced in the minimally invasive Rezum™ treatment for BPH.
Dr. Spencer continues to serve as a commander in the Naval Reserves.
Education
Medical School
Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences
Dr Spencer performed surgery on me yesterday, March 11th at St Luke’s Hospital in Meridian. He made a very frightening experience extremely comfortable and relaxing. He was wonderful to my wife and I, keeping her informed at every stage of the procedure. My pain is gone and I even got to eat two dishes of ice cream ?? EVERYONE involved was very friendly and professional. I am so grateful. Thanks to all of you!
MAR 12, 2026
I was referred to Dr Spenser from my GP doctor here in Boise as part of St Luke’s group to adddress very high creatinine levels (kidney’s in destress) and enlarged prostate. He ordered an ultrasound which showed that my bladder had 1.9L of urine in them backing up to the kidneys also a large kidney stone. Dr Spenser quickly scheduled the surgical removal of said stone also instructed me to begin self-catherizing (first few were very painful and very bloody). For the surgery I found his skills very good, the following consultation afterwards not so much as myself and my lady both found his manner to be extremely “matter of fact” adamently and repeated stating that I need to have TURP surgery right away and that my kidneys are permanently damaged thus will never come back to 100%. At no point did he candidly offer any other solutions or options for my enlarged prostate... his “bedside manner” leaves much to be desired. As soon as we returned home we both began googling “Alternatives to TURP” surgery was pointed in the direction of Dr Austen Slade, expert in HoLEP surgery here in Boise, upon meeting him shortly thereafter it was clear this was a FAR better choice both in curing my issue as well as how he communicated. Holep versus TURP, there seems to be only positives going for Holep so that was an easy choice for me. Spenser may be an expert in TURP but I would have at least hoped he would mention there are other solutions but I guess “when all you have is a hammer everything looks like a nail”. 2nd issue - upon leaving Dr Spenser’s office the first time after seeing my bladder was over-filled I was promptly given a “care package” (which included several catheters and some other minor things), his front desk lady also handed me a flyer for 1-800-medical told me to order my supplies from them.... as it turns out 1-800-medical has a lovely mark-up of >700% over other online vendors selling the exact same items from the same mfg... I saved hundreds of dollars ordering them from a very reputable supplier. I do not know what the relationship is between 1-800 and Spenser’s office but this did not sit well with me. I believe that a doctor should always look out for the best interests of the patient NOT look to exploit them financially. At the very least they should have a duty to research whom they are sending patients to. The end result was yesterday at 9:30am I had Holep by Dr Slade, as soon as I came to from the anethesia I was able to pee like I haven’t been able to in decades.... zero pain or discomfort. So glad I spent the time looing for other options in both procedure as well as doctors. Though I’m glad Dr Spenser was able to remedy my high creatinine levels and felt his surgery on my bladder stone was very competently performed however he is not someone whom I’d recommend as I found his advice, lack of options mentioned, and the manner in which is was delivered to be less than not to mention questionable business practice in referring extremely over-priced medical suppliers... that certainly made me question his ethics. Update - spoke w/ “Patient relations”, a very nice young lady who took my concerns to the board... end result got a PC concilatory letter stating that everything was done to their liking no actions would be taken. St Luke’s showing that profits are far more improtant than propepr customer care. I did not expect anything to be done and nothing was... be VERY careful putting absolute trust into doctors or hospitals they are “fpr profit” businesses. You need to do your own homework OR become victim to whatever they decide best suits their needs not yours.
AUG 19, 2025
Even though there are ”“poor”″ marks - those are probably misleading. The doctor was very good in that he entered the room, quickly and easily performed the procedure, and then left. Really no discussion from him regarding my situation, but I believe that was and is left up to the PA who helped me initially with my UTI issues - and SHE was excellent. The Dr did recommend cream that I should use. NOTE: I was very pleased with how quickly - quietly - and easily this procedure went. I.e. - not time to really be embarrassed. Just get it done - thank you
JUL 14, 2025
Dr Spencer is a true professional: friendly, optimistic, efficient, punctual & thorough.
JUL 8, 2025
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Thanks to all of you!","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":5}},{"@type":"Review","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Anonymous"},"datePublished":"2025-08-19T14:54:44","reviewBody":"I was referred to Dr Spenser from my GP doctor here in Boise as part of St Luke’s group to adddress very high creatinine levels (kidney’s in destress) and enlarged prostate. He ordered an ultrasound which showed that my bladder had 1.9L of urine in them backing up to the kidneys also a large kidney stone. Dr Spenser quickly scheduled the surgical removal of said stone also instructed me to begin self-catherizing (first few were very painful and very bloody). For the surgery I found his skills very good, the following consultation afterwards not so much as myself and my lady both found his manner to be extremely “matter of fact” adamently and repeated stating that I need to have TURP surgery right away and that my kidneys are permanently damaged thus will never come back to 100%. At no point did he candidly offer any other solutions or options for my enlarged prostate... his “bedside manner” leaves much to be desired. As soon as we returned home we both began googling “Alternatives to TURP” surgery was pointed in the direction of Dr Austen Slade, expert in HoLEP surgery here in Boise, upon meeting him shortly thereafter it was clear this was a FAR better choice both in curing my issue as well as how he communicated. Holep versus TURP, there seems to be only positives going for Holep so that was an easy choice for me. Spenser may be an expert in TURP but I would have at least hoped he would mention there are other solutions but I guess “when all you have is a hammer everything looks like a nail”. 2nd issue - upon leaving Dr Spenser’s office the first time after seeing my bladder was over-filled I was promptly given a “care package” (which included several catheters and some other minor things), his front desk lady also handed me a flyer for 1-800-medical told me to order my supplies from them.... as it turns out 1-800-medical has a lovely mark-up of >700% over other online vendors selling the exact same items from the same mfg... I saved hundreds of dollars ordering them from a very reputable supplier. I do not know what the relationship is between 1-800 and Spenser’s office but this did not sit well with me. I believe that a doctor should always look out for the best interests of the patient NOT look to exploit them financially. At the very least they should have a duty to research whom they are sending patients to. The end result was yesterday at 9:30am I had Holep by Dr Slade, as soon as I came to from the anethesia I was able to pee like I haven’t been able to in decades.... zero pain or discomfort. So glad I spent the time looing for other options in both procedure as well as doctors. Though I’m glad Dr Spenser was able to remedy my high creatinine levels and felt his surgery on my bladder stone was very competently performed however he is not someone whom I’d recommend as I found his advice, lack of options mentioned, and the manner in which is was delivered to be less than not to mention questionable business practice in referring extremely over-priced medical suppliers... that certainly made me question his ethics. Update - spoke w/ “Patient relations”, a very nice young lady who took my concerns to the board... end result got a PC concilatory letter stating that everything was done to their liking no actions would be taken. St Luke’s showing that profits are far more improtant than propepr customer care. I did not expect anything to be done and nothing was... be VERY careful putting absolute trust into doctors or hospitals they are “fpr profit” businesses. You need to do your own homework OR become victim to whatever they decide best suits their needs not yours.","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":3}},{"@type":"Review","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Anonymous"},"datePublished":"2025-07-14T00:00:00","reviewBody":"Even though there are ”“poor”″ marks - those are probably misleading. The doctor was very good in that he entered the room, quickly and easily performed the procedure, and then left. Really no discussion from him regarding my situation, but I believe that was and is left up to the PA who helped me initially with my UTI issues - and SHE was excellent. The Dr did recommend cream that I should use. NOTE: I was very pleased with how quickly - quietly - and easily this procedure went. I.e. - not time to really be embarrassed. Just get it done - thank you","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":3}},{"@type":"Review","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Anonymous"},"datePublished":"2025-07-08T00:00:00","reviewBody":"Dr Spencer is a true professional: friendly, optimistic, efficient, punctual & thorough.","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":5}},{"@type":"Review","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Anonymous"},"datePublished":"2025-06-21T00:00:00","reviewBody":"The doctor seemed to know everything about my entire current health as well as history. He made a point of talking down to me instead of to me. He is not a doctor that I currently trust.","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":1.17}},{"@type":"Review","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Anonymous"},"datePublished":"2025-06-12T00:00:00","reviewBody":"Would recommend!","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":5}},{"@type":"Review","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Anonymous"},"datePublished":"2025-06-11T00:00:00","reviewBody":"Dr Spencer was rushed in our appointment, he started me on a new medication without much explanation for why or any of the side effects which were fairly substantial but were unexpected. I didn’t feel that he took much time to understand some of my complications with blood thinners and how that related to biopsy concerns","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":2.5}},{"@type":"Review","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Anonymous"},"datePublished":"2025-06-07T00:00:00","reviewBody":"Dr Spencer is knowledgeable, caring and so easy to talk to! He’s GREAT!","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":5}},{"@type":"Review","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Anonymous"},"datePublished":"2025-05-24T00:00:00","reviewBody":"Dr. Spencer is a great Doctor!","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":5}},{"@type":"Review","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Anonymous"},"datePublished":"2025-05-22T00:00:00","reviewBody":"I would definitely recommend them excellent quality of care.","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":5}},{"@type":"Review","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Anonymous"},"datePublished":"2025-05-13T00:00:00","reviewBody":"Good experience","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":5}},{"@type":"Review","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Anonymous"},"datePublished":"2025-05-05T00:00:00","reviewBody":"He makes zero eye contact. Once I was prepped for the procedure I laid on the table exposed with my feet in stirrups for at least 15 minutes. No call bell or anything. It wasn’t pleasant or safe.","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":3.33}}]}
