campus: a to z index | map | directory | calendar

Oncology Division Physicians The oncology experts at Huntsman Cancer Institute are dedicated to providing compassionate and expert care to cancer patients and their families. Neeraj Agarwal, MD Assistant Professor, Oncology Division Neeraj Agarwal, MD, is an assistant professor in the Division of Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, at the University of Utah School of Medicine. He is also an investigator at Huntsman Cancer Institute. As a specialist in adult hematology and oncology, Agarwal cares for patients with all types of cancer and specializes in genitourinary malignancies (cancers of the prostate, kidney, bladder, and testes), and head and neck cancers. Agarwal is a member of several professional societies, including the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American Society of Hematology, and the Southwest Oncology Group. After receiving his MBBS degree from Assam Medical College and MD degree from All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, Agarwal completed a residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in geriatric medicine, both with the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa. Agarwal arrived in Utah in 2004 and then completed a fellowship in hematology/oncology at the University of Utah School of Medicine, where he worked under the mentorship of Josef Prchal, MD. During his medical training and thereafter, Agarwal has received several awards and published numerous papers, book chapters, reviews, and abstracts. Wallace L. Akerley III, MD Senior Director of Clinical Research, Huntsman Cancer Institute Professor, Oncology Division Wallace Akerley, MD, is a professor in the Oncology Division at the University of Utah School of Medicine, and senior director of clinical research and co-director of the Thoracic Cancer Program at Huntsman Cancer Institute. Improvements in cancer treatment evolve from laboratory discoveries, animal studies, and controlled clinical trials. This process is most effective when basic scientists and clinicians work side by side. Huntsman Cancer Institute offers a unique opportunity for basic scientists and clinicians to collaborate in solving problems related to cancer patients. Clinical trials offer promising new treatments to qualifying patients and are a critical step in developing improved cancer treatments. In addition to his leadership responsibilities, Akerley treats patients with many types of cancer, focusing on lung cancer in particular. He participates on the lung cancer committees of two national organizations for cancer treatment: the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) and Southwest Oncology Group (SWOG). Akerley joined the Oncology Division in 2002. Previously, he was director of Medical Oncology and Associate Director of the Boston University Cancer Center. He received his medical degree at Brown University in Rhode Island; completed his residency at the University of Southern California (USC); and served additional fellowships at USC/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Norris Cotton Cancer Center at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. Saundra S. Buys, MD Co-director, Family Cancer Assessment Clinic Medical Director, High Risk Breast Cancer Clinic, Huntsman Cancer Institute Professor, Oncology Division Saundra Buys, MD, is the medical director of Huntsman Cancer Institute’s High Risk Breast Cancer Clinic (HRBCC) and a Professor in the Oncology Division, Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Utah School of Medicine. She has cared for patients with all types of cancer since 1982 and specializes in breast cancer. Buys is the Principal Investigator on two large studies funded by the National Cancer Institute. The first, the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal, Ovarian (PLCO) Screening Trial, is a nationwide study to determine the effectiveness of screening for these types of cancer. The other study, the Breast Cancer Family Registry, based in six international sites including Utah, is studying some of the genetic causes of breast cancer. Buys received her MD from Tufts University in Boston, Massachusetts, and completed an internship and residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Utah School of Medicine. Prior to joining the faculty of the University of Utah in 1984, she completed a clinical fellowship and research fellowship in Hematology and Oncology at the University of Utah School of Medicine. Martha J. Glenn, MD Associate Professor, Clinical, Oncology Division Martha Glenn, MD, is a Medical Oncologist and an Associate Professor, Clinical in the Oncology Division, at the Huntsman Cancer Institute. She treats patients with blood-related cancers such as leukemia and lymphomas. She is also participating in leukemia research and clinical trials for lymphoma at Huntsman Cancer Institute. The clinical trials are testing methods for treating low-grade lymphomas. They are called radio-labeled monoclonal treatment, and they involve tumor-specific radiation therapy. Tumor-specific treatment is more precise than some other forms of radiation therapy because it is applied directly to the cancer. Glenn completed her medical training at Columbia University in New York City and a fellowship in Hematology/Oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, also in New York City. Arthur Hartz, MD, PhD Research Associate, Health Services Research Program Professor, Oncology Division Arthur Hartz, MD, PhD, is the director of the Health Services Research Program at Huntsman Cancer Institute and a professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Utah. He plans to investigate the following questions by analyzing existing medical data: Which existing therapy for a specific cancer is optimum, and how does the optimum therapy depend on characteristics of the cancer, previous treatment, and characteristics of the patient? Do some providers of a specific cancer treatment have better results than others, and if so, why? Under what circumstances are unusually toxic and costly cancer treatments valuable? What barriers in the healthcare system prevent patients from receiving optimal preventive care or treatment? Hartz received his PhD from the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1974. In 1982, he received a medical degree from the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. Hartz has participated on numerous review panels, including most recently the Chronic Fatigue Committee Advisory to the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Assistant Secretary for Health. He has also served as a reviewer for more than a dozen scientific and medical publications, including the Journal of the American Medical Association, Lancet, and Journal of Cancer Research. Kimberly Anne Jones, MD Instructor, Oncology Division Kimberly Jones, MD, is a clinical instructor in the Division of Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Utah School of Medicine. She is board certified in internal medicine, board eligible in hematology and oncology, and is also an investigator at Huntsman Cancer Institute. Her research interests include investigating drug therapies that will be more effective in killing tumor cells and less harmful to normal cells, known as molecular targets. She is also interested in developing clinical trials with a translational focus in creating new ways to diagnose and treat gastrointestinal malignancies, particularly pancreatic cancer and colorectal cancer. Jones received her medical degree from the University of Arizona in Tucson, completed her residency in internal medicine at Cottage Hospital in Santa Barbara, California, and completed a fellowship in hematology/oncology at the University of Utah. She earned the Vice President’s Award for Research from the American Academy of Otolaryngology and received the 2008 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Foundation Merit Award. She has lectured and published on numerous topics related to the lymphatic system and cancers of the colon, rectum, and pancreas. Paul J. Shami, MD Associate Professor, Oncology Division Paul Shami, MD, is associate professor in the Oncology Division, in the Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Utah and a staff physician at the Salt Lake City VA Medical Center, where he was Chief of the Hematology/Oncology Section from 2002 to 2005. He is also an investigator and member of the Experimental Diagnostics and Therapeutics Program at Huntsman Cancer Institute. As a specialist in adult hematology and oncology, Shami's main areas of interest include acute and chronic leukemias, lymphomas, and multiple myeloma. Over the past several years, Shami and investigators at the National Cancer Institute have studied ways to treat acute myeloid leukemia (AML) using nitric oxide-delivering agents with hopes to develop a new class of chemotherapeutic drugs for the treatment of this and other malignant diseases. After receiving his doctorate from the American University of Beirut Faculty of Medicine in Beirut, Lebanon, Shami completed his residency with the Department of Internal Medicine at Duke University Medical Center. He then completed a fellowship with the Division of Hematology/Oncology at Duke University Medical Center and a research fellowship in the laboratory of hematopoietic cell biology at Duke University and the Durham VA Medical Centers under the mentorship of J. Brice Weinberg, MD. Shami serves on numerous panels and committees, including the Acute Myeloid Leukemia panel and Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia panel of the National Cancer Center Network, the Leukemia Committee of the Southwest Oncology Group, and as chairman of the Patient Services Committee for the Utah chapter of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. He has published papers, book chapters, reviews, and abstracts related to his research, and has served as a grant reviewer and panelist for different medical journals. Shami has been with the Oncology Division since 1998. John H.Ward, MD Professor and Chief, Oncology Division John Ward, MD, is Professor of Medicine at the University of Utah School of Medicine and Chief of the Oncology Division in the Department of Internal Medicine. Ward is also an Investigator at Huntsman Cancer Institute. Ward sees patients with a variety of malignant diseases, with an emphasis on breast cancer. He is Principal Investigator for the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project (NSABP) site at Huntsman Cancer Institute and heads participation in breast cancer prevention trials. He is also Principal Investigator for the Southwest Oncology Group (SWOG) site at the University of Utah. These cooperative groups provide access to national clinical trials for a wide variety of malignancies. Ward represents Huntsman Cancer Institute on the breast cancer treatment guidelines panel of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. A graduate of the University of Utah School of Medicine, Ward completed an Internal Medicine residency at Duke University where he received the Haskel Schiff award as the outstanding resident. He completed a fellowship in Hematology/Oncology at the University of Utah School of Medicine and has been on the faculty since 1982. Ward is board certified in Internal Medicine, Medical Oncology, and Hematology. He has received numerous accolades for his teaching excellence, including the 2002 James L. Parkin, MD, award for outstanding clinical teaching at the University of Utah School of Medicine. John R. Weis, MD Clinical Assistant Professor, Oncology Division John Weis, MD, holds an appointment as Visiting Assistant Professor in the Division of Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, at the University of Utah School of Medicine. He also serves as a Staff Oncologist at the George E. Wahlen Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. Weis specializes in the treatment of gastrointestinal cancer. Weis served as research fellow in the lab of George Rodgers, MD, PhD, where he researched coagulation assays, induction/suppression of coagulant properties, tissue culture, and the relationship of atherogenic lipoproteins and thrombosis. He received his medical degree from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, and completed an internship and residency in Internal Medicine, as well as research and clinical fellowships in Hematology/Oncology, at the University of Utah. Prior to joining Huntsman Cancer Institute in 2001, Weis served patients through community practice for fifteen years. Theresa Werner, MD Instructor, Oncology Division Theresa Werner, MD, is an investigator at Huntsman Cancer Institute and an instructor in the Division of Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, at the University of Utah School of Medicine. As a specialist in adult hematology and medical oncology, Werner’s main areas of interest include breast cancer and gynecologic malignancies (cancers of the ovary, uterus, cervix, and vagina). Werner earned her bachelor’s degree from Indiana University in Bloomington, and her medical degree from Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis. She then completed a residency in internal medicine and a chief medical residency at the University of Utah School of Medicine, where she received awards for excellence in teaching and the clinical care of patients. Werner then completed a fellowship in hematology and medical oncology at the University of Utah and Huntsman Cancer Institute. Werner is a member of several professional societies, including the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American Society of Hematology, and the Southwest Oncology Group. She participates in clinical trials and clinical research for patients with breast and gynecologic malignancies, as well as patients at high risk for breast and ovarian cancer. For More Information or to schedule an appointment: Huntsman Cancer Institute 2000 Circle of Hope Salt Lake City, UT 84112 (801) 585-0100 (877) 585-0303
Email This Page