Together Against Melanoma: Georgetown University Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center

Dr. Ajebo is a board-certified dermatologist in the MedStar Health Department of Dermatology and an Assistance Professor at Georgetown University School of Medicine. She obtained her medical degree at the Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, where she also compelted her internship and dermatology residency.  Her clinical interest includes pigmented lesions, melanoma, and non-melanoma skin cancers. She is a member of American Academy of Dermatology. 

Dr. Atkins began his career at Tufts before moving to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and being appointed Professor at Harvard Medical School where he served as Deputy Chief of the Division of Hematology/Oncology and leader of the Biologic Therapy and Cutaneous Oncology Programs, Co-PI of the Harvard Skin Cancer SPORE, founding leader of the DF/HCC Kidney Cancer Program and Director of the DF/HCC Kidney Cancer SPORE.  In 2012, he moved to Georgetown where he is Deputy Director of the Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center in Washington, DC and William Scholl Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Oncology at Georgetown University Medical Center. He leads the Lombardi Immunotherapy/Heme Working Group and Chairs the IIT Steering Committee. His current research focuses on immunotherapy for melanoma and RCC and biomarkers for response and toxicity. He has published over 500 articles (H-Index 134) and 5 books and has lectured extensively on these topics.  He is past president of SITC, and past member of the NIH Recombinant DNA Advisory Council and the ASCO Nominating Committee. Currently he co-Chairs the Melanoma Research Foundation Scientific Advisory Council and Chairs the Melanoma Research Alliance Clinical Advisory Board. He is a 2021 recipient of the OncLive Giant in Cancer Care Award for Melanoma and in 2022 received the Lifetime Achievement Award for Immunotherapy from SITC. He was recently inducted into SITC’s 2023 Class of Fellows of the Academy of Immuno-Oncology (FAIO) and in 2024 became a Fellow of ASCO (FASCO).

Min Deng, MD is an Associate Professor in the Department of Dermatology at MedStar Washington Hospital Center/Georgetown University Hospital. She serves as Director of Mohs Micrographic Surgery and Residency Program Director. Dr. Deng’s clinical interests include cutaneous oncology, Mohs micrographic surgery, surgical training, and graduate medical education. She is an active fellow of the American College of Mohs Surgery and member of the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery, Association of Professors of Dermatology, and American Academy of Dermatology.

Leonard has have been an oncology social worker at the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center for the last 18 years.  He is certified in oncology social work and in palliative care social work. His passion is helping patients and those close to them navigate the difficult challenges and decisions that face them during all phases of their cancer treatment.

Kellie Gardner, CRNP, is an nurse practitioner specializing in medical oncology at MedStar Georgetown
University Hospital. Kellie received her undergraduate degree in nursing from
Lynchburg College. She went onto receive a master of science degree from
Georgetown University. Kellie is an oncology-certified nurse. 

Geoffrey T. Gibney, MD, is a co-leader of the Melanoma Disease Group at the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center and MedStar Cancer Network, and a member of the Developmental Therapeutics (Phase I) program. He is well known for treating patients with advanced non-melanoma skin cancers (basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and merkel cell carcinoma), renal cell carcinoma and other rare skin cancers. Dr. Gibney is board certified in both internal medicine and medical oncology. He was previously a faculty member in the Department of Cutaneous Oncology at the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa.

Dr. Gibney is recognized for his advanced melanoma research. He is currently involved in several clinical trials focused on developing novel immunotherapy and targeted therapy strategies. Past clinical research has included the study of anti-PD-1 therapy to prevent recurrences of resected melanoma, combination immunotherapies (such as ipilimumab plus the novel IDO1 inhibitor, epacadostat) to enhance the clinical benefit in advanced melanoma patients and combination BRAF targeted therapy to overcome drug resistance.

His current goal is to develop biomarker-driven approaches for personalized therapeutic strategies in patients with advanced malignancies.

Dr. Giurintano is a fellowship-trained head and neck oncologic and microvascular reconstructive surgeon. He is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital. His practice focuses on treatment of malignant and benign diseases affecting the head and neck as well as complex reconstruction of head and neck defects using microvascular surgical techniques. He is part of the cutaneous malignancy team at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital.

Dr. Suthee Rapisuwon is a leading medical oncologist specializing in melanoma, with a particular focus on uveal melanoma. Dr. Rapisuwon is leading an investigator initiated clinical trial, the HCRN-MEL17-309 study, a Phase II multi-center trial investigating the combination of nivolumab and ipilimumab in patients with high-risk uveal melanoma. This research aims to enhance therapeutic strategies and improve patient outcomes for this aggressive form of eye cancer. Dr. Rapisuwon has recently presented significant findings at the 2024 ASCO Annual Meeting, contributing to the advancement of melanoma treatment and patient care.

Marcelo Sleiman Jr is a Program Manager in Cancer Prevention and Control at Georgetown Lombardi. He joined Dr. Tercyak in 2022 after graduating from the University of Virginia with a degree in Biostatistics. Mr. Sleiman has a particular interest in behavioral and preventive medicine, including the primary prevention of skin cancer. He manages multiple projects focusing on themes of youth and family cancer control, high-risk populations, and the study of health outcomes among marginalized and underserved communities. Mr. Sleiman intends to apply to medical school, enjoys exercising in his leisure time, and celebrates his Brazilian heritage through cooking.

Dr. Tercyak is a tenured Professor in the Departments of Oncology and Pediatrics at the Georgetown University School of Medicine. At Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Dr. Tercyak serves as Co-Leader of the NCI-designated Cancer Prevention and Control research program. He is a member of the Fisher Center for Hereditary Cancer and Clinical Genomics Research, a Senior Scholar at the Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development and is on the faculty of the Department of Psychology. His research focuses on developmental and biobehavioral aspects of cancer risk, communication, and intervention, including public health genomics, tobacco control, and skin cancer prevention. He is the Principal Investigator of a new 5-year grant from the National Cancer Institute: it is a cluster-randomized trial of sun safety prevention for young children and their families living in rural and underserved communities.