About Us - current page
Clinical Faculty - current page
Brad S Fletcher, M.D., Ph.D.
Department: MD-HEMATOLOGY/ONCOLOGY
Email: bsfletch@ufl.edu
Dr. Fletcher is an Associate Professor of Medicine within the Division of Hematology and Oncology. He is a Veterans Administration Advanced Career Development Awardee, American Heart Association Career Development Awardee and Florida Biomedical Research Program NIR Awardee.
Alan B Grosbach, M.D.
VA Faculty
Email: agrosbach@ufl.edu
Dr. Grosbach is an assistant professor of medicine and brings years of experience in treating multiple hematology and oncology conditions to the University of Florida Shands Hospital. He has a strong reputation for treating breast cancer, lung cancer, and colorectal cancer patients as well as various hematologic disorders. Dr. Grosbach's congeniality draws loyal patients to his current practice.
Molly W Mandernach, MD, MPH
Email: mweidner@ufl.edu
Dr. Mandernach is an assistant professor of medicine within the division of hematology and oncology, and serves as a clinician educator with a focus on thrombosis and hemostasis, sickle cell disease, and principally venous thromboembolism and cancer. She is a member of the American Society of Hematology.
Anita Rajasekhar, M.D.
Email: rajasa@medicine.ufl.edu
Dr. Rajasekhar is a clinician and clinical investigator with a focus on benign hematology, specifically thrombosis and hemostasis. She is a member of the American Society of Hematology and the Hemostasis and Thrombosis Research Society.
Marc S Zumberg, M.D.
Email: marc.zumberg@medicine.ufl.edu
Dr. Zumberg is recognized as an outstanding clinician-educator in the Division of Hematology/Oncology and the Department of Medicine. He serves as Section Chief for benign hematology and holds various medical directorships. He is chairman of the Shands Hospital Transfusion Committee. He is noted as a key clinical faculty member in the Internal Medicine residency training program and the Division of Hematology/Oncology Fellowship Program.
Karen Daily, D.O.
Faculty Physician
Email: karen.daily@medicine.ufl.edu
Karen C. Daily, DO, is Associate Director of Medical Oncology Clinic and an associate professor of medicine in the Division of Hematology and Oncology at the University of Florida College of Medicine.
Dr. Daily's undergraduate degree is from The Ohio State University and her medical degree from Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine. She completed a residency at Wyckoff Heights Medical Center in internal medicine and a fellowship at UF in hematology and oncology.
Dr. Daily is a clinically-based investigator and educator with a focus on breast and gynecologic cancers. She is board-certified in internal medicine, medical oncology, and hematology. She is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology and National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project. She is the recipient of multiple Department of Medicine Excellence in Teaching Awards.
Dr. Daily founded the High Risk Program, within UF Health Breast Center, that identifies women at above-average risk of developing breast cancer and offers prevention and early detection strategies. She is also committed to resolving access to care barriers in disadvantaged populations.
Peers, Art of Oncology
Controversies in Adjuvant Chemotherapy
Colorectal Cancer: Diagnosis and Clinical Management
Preventing breast cancer recurrence through a tailored lifestyle intervention: The MyLIFE (My Lifestyle Intervention with Food and Exercise) Trial Rationale and Study Design
Journal of Clinical Trials
Common Variable Immunodeficiency Syndrome in An Adult
Hepatoid Adenocarcinoma of the Colon
BMJ Case Reports
Breast Cancer: Instructional Module
MedEdPORTAL Publications
Discordant Her2 Expression And Response To Neoadjuvant Chemoradiotherapy In Esophagogastric Adenocarcinoma.
Development Of A Breast Cancer Treatment Program In Port-Au-Prince, Haiti: Experiences From The Field.
Women's Health Curriculum for Medical Students
Southern Medical Journal
Gemcitabine-Induced Chronic Systemic Capillary Leak Syndrome.
Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy For Oligoprogression Of Metastatic Disease From Gastrointestinal Cancers: A Novel Approach To Extend Chemotherapy Efficacy.
Oncology Letters
Tumor lysis syndrome following eribulin for metastatic uterine leiomyosarcoma
The Toxicity of Time
Projected Clinical Benefit of Surveillance Imaging for Early Detection and Treatment of Breast Cancer Metastases
The Breast Journal
Tumour lysis syndrome following eribulin for metastatic uterine leiomyosarcoma
Epidemiological, Clinical, and Histopathological Features of Breast Cancer in Haiti.
Coy Heldermon, M.D., Ph.D.
ASO PROF
Email: coy.heldermon@medicine.ufl.edu
Dr. Heldermon is an associate professor of medicine, board certified medical oncologist with expertise in the treatment of breast cancer. He is a member of the American Society of Hematology and the American Society of Clinical Oncology. His research expertise is in the use of gene replacement and stem cell therapies for the treatment of inherited disorders such as lysosomal storage diseases. He also studies the spread of stem cells from maternal or malignant sources using mouse models.
Therapeutic Efficacy of Bone Marrow Transplant, Intracranial Aav-Mediated Gene Therapy, Or Both in the Mouse Model of Mps Iiib
Molecular Therapy
Effects of Minozak And/Or Genistein On the Central Nervous System of Sanfilippo Syndrome Type B Mice
Molecular Genetics and Metabolism
Comparing Ic6 and Thalamic Aav5 Injections On Mps Iiib Model
Disease Correction By Combined Neonatal Intracranial Aav and Systemic Lentiviral Gene Therapy in Sanfilippo Syndrome Type B Mice
Differences in Aav Serotype Dependent Distribution and Tropism Exist Within the Cns of Wild Type and Mutant Mice in the Mpsiiib Mouse Model
Differences in Aav Serotype Dependent Distribution and Tropism Within the Cns of Wild Type and Mutant Mice in the Mps Iiib Mouse Model
Trim29 Suppresses Twist1 and Invasive Breast Cancer Behavior
High Resolution Functional Photoacoustic Tomography of Breast Cancer
Epithelial-To-Mesenchymal Transition Confers Pericyte Properties on Cancer Cells
Disulfide Bond Disrupting Agents Activate the Unfolded Protein Response in Egfr- and Her2-Positive Breast Tumor Cells
Ufh-001 Cells: a Novel Triple Negative, Caix-Positive, Human Breast Cancer Model System
Stephen Staal, M.D.
PRG DIR & CLIN PROF
Email: stephen.staal@medicine.ufl.edu
Dr. Staal's professional career spans more than 35 years and includes conducting basic and applied cancer research, caring for patients, and organizing and administering a clinical cancer program. He has an interest in the molecular mechanisms that define cancer cells and how these can be exploited therapeutically. Clinically his interests are focused on experimental therapeutics, breast cancer, and clinical management to promote research and improve patient care.
The Marriage of Growth Factor Inhibitors and Chemotherapy: Bliss Or Bust?
Carmen J Allegra, M.D.
Email: carmen.allegra@medicine.ufl.edu
Carmen J. Allegra, M.D., is a board certified medical oncologist with expertise in the study and treatment of colorectal cancer. He is the Associate Director for Clinical and Translational Research for the Department of Medicine and University of Florida Shands Cancer Center. He is also co-director of the Foundation Research Program at the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project (NSABP).
Thomas J George, Jr, M.D., F.A.C.P.
Professor – Physician
Email: tgeorge@ufl.edu
Dr. George is a clinical investigator and educator with a focus on gastrointestinal malignancies. As medical director of the GI Oncology Program at the University of Florida, Dr. George oversees the treatment of all patients with GI malignancies. He previously served as chair of the Medical Advisory Board to the State of Florida Department of Health and the Screen for Life Colorectal Cancer Screening Program, which targets historically underserved populations. He also recently completed a 10 year term as the gubernatorial-appointed chair of the Florida Cancer Control and Research Advisory Council, which advises the legislature, Department of Health, and state surgeon general on all cancer related matters and policy. He currently serves as the Associate Director for Clinical Research at the UF Health Cancer Center. Through participation with large oncology clinical trial cooperative groups and the National Cancer Institute, Dr. George is an active clinician and clinical investigator in GI malignancies and early phase clinical trials testing new therapies for patients with advanced cancers. He is a member of the medical honor society Alpha Omega Alpha, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and numerous research groups.
Hiral D Parekh, M.D.
CLIN AST PROF
Email: parekhh@ufl.edu
Hiral Parekh, MD, MPH is an assistant professor within the division of hematology/oncology. Dr. Parekh serves as a clinical investigator with a focus on gastrointestinal cancers. She is an active member of the UF Health Cancer Center's GI Oncology Program and is board certified in Internal Medicine, Medical Oncology and Hematology. She is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. Dr. Parekh is actively involved in the development and conduct of clinical trials aimed to bring new therapies to patients with digestive cancers and rapidly accelerate the use of personalized oncology treatments.
Brian H Ramnaraign, M.D.
Email: ramnaraign85@ufl.edu
Brian Ramnaraign, MD is an assistant professor of medicine in the division of hematology and oncology at the University of Florida College of Medicine.
He attended the University of Toronto for his undergraduate studies where he was awarded an Honors Bachelors of Science degree with a specialization in molecular genetics and microbiology. This was followed by attending St. George's University for his medical training where he was awarded the degree of Doctor of Medicine and graduated cum laude.
He then completed his internal medicine residency at SUNY Downstate in Brooklyn, NY followed by a fellowship in geriatrics at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, PA. He has been at the University of Florida since 2016 where he finished his hematology and oncology fellowship and has continued on as faculty.
His expertise and research interests are in the fields of genitourinary cancers and gastrointestinal cancers. He is interested in the role of targeted therapies and immunotherapies in providing personalized treatments to individuals with advanced cancers.​
Bruce K Stechmiller, M.D.
Email: bruce.stechmiller@medicine.ufl.edu
Bruce K. Stechmiller, MD, is a board certified medical oncologist. He has returned to the College of Medicine at the University of Florida after 30 years of private practice in hematology and medical oncology in Gainesville, Florida, his hometown. He founded Gainesville Hematology-Oncology Associates.
Anna M Murillo
Email: annamelissa.murillo@medicine.ufl.edu
Jonathan A Chatzkel, M.D.
Email: jonathanchatzkel@ufl.edu
Jonathan Chatzkel, MD is an assistant professor of medicine in the division of hematology and oncology at the University of Florida College of Medicine.
Dr. Chatzkel attended the University of Pennsylvania where he graduated magna cum laude, receiving a Bachelors of Arts degree with honors in Economics. He completed his medical degree at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, followed by an internal medicine residency at Washington University in St. Louis, MO and a hematology and oncology fellowship at the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, FL.
Dr. Chatzel's clinical interests include the care of patients with genitourinary cancers, including cancers if the kidney, bladder, prostate, and testis. He believes strongly in delivering individualized care to each of his patients.
Professional affiliations include American Society of Clinical Oncology, or ASCO and American Society of Hematology.
Merry Jennifer Markham, MD, FACP
Interim Chief, Clinical Associate Professor
Email: merry.markham@medicine.ufl.edu
Dr. Markham is the Interim Chief of the Division of Hematology & Oncology and an associate professor in the Department of Medicine. She is a clinical investigator and educator with a focus on gynecologic malignancies. She serves as the Associate Director for Medical Affairs for the UF Health Cancer Center and the Program Leader for the Multidisciplinary Gynecologic Oncology Program at UF Health. She is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), the American Society of Hematology (ASH), the Society of Gynecologic Oncologists (SGO), and the American College of Physicians (ACP), and numerous clinical trial cooperative groups.
Martina C Murphy, M.D.
Email: martina.murphy@medicine.ufl.edu
Dr. Murphy is a clinical investigator and medical educator with a passion for women's health especially within hematology/oncology. She specializes in gynecologic cancer. Her research focuses in the study and reduction of healthcare disparities & inequity as it pertains to patient related outcomes in cancer care as well as workplace and training environments. She serves as the Program Director for the hematology/oncology fellowship program.
Dr. Murphy is board certified in Internal Medicine, Hematology and Oncology and is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the American Society of Hematology (ASH) where she serves on the ASH Committee on Training and as a faculty mentor for the ASH Medical Educators Institute. She provides consultation for patients on the inpatient Heme/Onc services and maintains an active clinical practice at UF Health Shands Hospital.
Dr. Murphy has a strong dedication to medical education and gives multiple educational presentations annually to University of Florida medical students, physician assistant students, Internal Medicine residents, and Hematology/Oncology fellows. In addition to her role as the fellowship Program Director, she serves as the Chair for the UF Heme/Onc Medical Education Committee as well as the Division of Heme/Onc Education Director. She is interested and actively involved at a national level in research in medical education primarily related to novel curriculum development.
Frederic J Kaye, M.D.
Email: fkaye@ufl.edu
Dr. Kaye is a professor of medicine, medical director of the thoracic oncology program and director of the lung cancer center within the division of hematology and oncology. He is a clinical and basic science investigator with a focus on thoracic malignancies. Dr. Kay is an elected member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation, the Alpha Omega Alpha medical honor society, and serves as Associate Editor of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Ke Ning, MD
Email: ke.ning@medicine.ufl.edu
Ke Ning, MD, is a clinical assistant professor of medicine at the University of Florida College of Medicine in the division of hematology and oncology.
Dr. Ning attended medical school at the Ross University School of Medicine before attending University of Florida in Jacksonville to complete both his residency in internal medicine and fellowship in medical oncology. Following his fellowship, he became the director of clinical research and a principle investigator at the Hendrick Cancer Center in Abilene, Texas. He was involved in government and industry clinical trials, collaborating with the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center as a satellite site for enrollment.
Dr. Ning is a board certified in internal medicine and medical oncology. He has been recognized with the American College of Physician's Resident of the Year Award and has specific interests in head and neck, thoracic and cutaneous oncology. He brings compassion and individualized cancer care, and integrates the most up-to-date modalities of therapy to improve patient outcomes and quality of life.
Dennie Jones, Jr, M.D.
CLIN PROF
Email: dvjonesii@ufl.edu
Dr. Jones is a Professor with the Division of Hematology & Oncology at the University of Florida. He is a board certified medical oncologist with expertise in the study and treatment of lung cancer. He completed his undergraduate and medical degrees at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, then completed in residency in Internal Medicine at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, and then his fellowship in Oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson cancer Center, where he remained on the faculty. After two years of research at Genentech, Inc., he returned to academic medicine at the University of Texas Medical Branch, and then joined the faculty of the University of New Mexico as the Director of Thoracic Oncology as well as the Medical Director of the New Mexico Cancer Care Alliance.
Nam H Dang, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor And Deputy Chief, Hem/Onc
Email: nam.dang@medicine.ufl.edu
Dr. Nam H. Dang is a board certified medical oncologist with expertise in the study and treatment of lymphoma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). He is Professor and Deputy Chief of the Division of Hematology & Oncology as well as Director of the University of Florida Health Cancer Center Clinical Trials Office.
James W Lynch, Jr
Email: lynchjw@ufl.edu
Dr. Lynch received his BA from the University of Virginia and MD from Eastern VA Medical School in 1984. After internal medicine training at the University of Florida, he did his training in medical oncology at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda MD. In 1991 he returned to the UFCOM and has served in multiple roles during this tenure including, course director in Oncology (20 years), program director for hematology/oncology (13 years), section chief of hematology/oncology at the VAMC and now serves as the Assistant Dean for Admissions. He is a nationally recognized well published expert in the diagnosis and treatment of lymphomas and has coauthored over 130 papers, book chapters and abstracts. His educational roles include teaching cancer biology, clinical oncology, clinical reasoning and humanism in medicine. He was the first faculty inductee into the Chapman Humanism Society at the UFCOM and serves on its board of directors. He has received multiple teaching awards including clinical teacher of the year 5 times, the Hippocratic award three times, is a member of the College of Medicine Society of Teaching Scholars and in 2006 was honored by the University of Florida as one of 5 Distinguished Teaching Scholars. He was co-founder with his wife of the Christian Study Center at the University of Florida and serves as its board president. He and his wife Laura, have 4 children and 3 grandchildren.
Sarcoma & Melanoma
Cancer – resources
Cancer treatment information
Throat or larynx cancer
Tongue problems
Julia L Close, MD
Designated Institutional Official (DIO)
Email: jclose@ufl.edu
Dr. Close is a Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine. Her primary appointment is as the Associate Dean of Graduate Medical Education and the Designated Institutional Official (DIO) for the University of Florida College of Medicine. She was previously the Program Director for the Hematology/Oncology Fellowship Program. She is a clinician educator, with research interest in curriculum related to general oncology and interactions with patients at the end of life. She is actively nationally in education, serving on the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO)'s Professional Development Committee and the In-Training Exam Writing Committees for both Internal Medicine and Oncology. She was previously Section Chief of Oncology at the Gainesville VAMC, and was the Assistant Chief of the Medical Service from 2015-2018. She previously chaired the VHA Oncology Field Advisory (FAC) Committee, a national committee providing guidance for national VA policy. She is interested in performance improvement in oncology, and has a national role in this through the VA FAC and through her membership on ASCO's Workforce Advisory Group Committee.
Adult soft tissue sarcoma
Ewing sarcoma
Kaposi sarcoma
Brain tumor – primary – adults
Metastatic brain tumor
Lung cancer – non-small cell
Lung cancer – small cell
Lung disease – resources
Malignant mesothelioma
Salivary gland tumors
GI malignancies
metastatic lung cancer
Bone Marrow Transplant/Leukemia/Multiple Myeloma
Jack W Hsu, M.D.
Randy A Brown, M.D.
Christopher R Cogle, M.D.
Nosha Farhadfar, M.D.
John W Hiemenz, M.D.
W. Stratford May, Jr., M.D., Ph.D.
John R Wingard, M.D.