The Breast Cancer Center at Tampa General Hospital's Cancer Institute is made up of a multidisciplinary team of board-certified breast surgeons, medical oncologists, and radiation oncologists in the Tampa Bay area as well as the Palm Beaches. Get to know our team of world-renowned experts dedicated to world-class and patient-centered cancer care.
Breast Surgeons
| Meet Our Team in the Tampa Bay Area | ||
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Angela Keleher, MD, FACS Dr. Angela J. Keleher is a breast surgical oncologist and the Director of Breast Surgery at Tampa General Hospital. Additionally, Dr. Keleher is an Assistant Professor of Surgery at the University of South Florida. Before joining TGH, Dr. Keleher served as the Director of Breast Surgery and Breast Fellowship Program Director at Allegheny Health Network in Pittsburgh, leading a team of fellowship-trained breast and general surgeons. Earlier in her career, Dr. Keleher worked in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., as the Director of Breast Surgery and Director of the Dyson Breast Center. There, she led the growth of the center to a leading comprehensive breast center, providing patients with advanced diagnostic and therapeutic options, from biopsy and surgery to clinical trials.Dr. Keleher has earned several awards throughout her career, including being named a “Top Doc of the Hudson Valley,” a “Top Doc of Pittsburgh” and receiving the Golden Apple Teaching Award given by medical students. She has professional memberships with the American College of Surgeons, the American Society of Breast Surgeons, and the Society of Surgical Oncology. |
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Abigail S. Beard, MD Dr. Abigail Beard is on the medical staff at Tampa General Hospital and an assistant professor of breast surgery at the University of South Florida School of Medicine. Her areas of interest include benign and malignant disorders of the breast, high risk breast cancer screening, and breast conservation and oncoplastic surgery, about which Dr. Beard has given several presentations and published studies. She is the vice chair of the Committee on Cancer and has served on the Radiation Oncology Chair Search Committee, both at Tampa General Hospital. Dr. Beard’s awards and honors include clerkships in pediatrics, family medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, and psychiatry, and letters of commendation in surgery, internal medicine, and neurology. She was also named to the National Society of Collegiate Scholars and the Golden Key Honor Society in the National Scholastic Honor Society. |
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Christian Cruz Pico, MD Dr. Christian X. Cruz Pico is a general surgeon specialized in breast cancer surgery and surgery for benign (noncancerous) breast conditions at Tampa General Hospital (TGH). Dr. Cruz is pleased to provide expert breast surgical care that is personalized, and patient centered. Before joining TGH, Dr. Cruz served as a general surgeon at several hospitals in communities outside Atlanta, Georgia, where he performed general surgery procedures, surgical endoscopy and minimally invasive procedures to treat diverse medical conditions, including cancer. His most recent academic post was as a Clinical Assistant Professor of Surgery at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta, Georgia. Dr. Cruz pursued an advanced academic career as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Surgical Oncology at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, where he focused his research in breast cancer models and personalized cancer therapies. He continued his academic path as a Surgical Oncology Fellow at the Allegheny Health Network Cancer Institute in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to later focus his training on Breast Surgical Oncology at Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. |
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Tracie Patel, PA-C Tracie Patel is a certified physician assistant (PA-C) who specializes in breast surgery and prides herself on delivering world-class, compassionate care. She cares for benign breast disease and patients who have an increased risk for development of breast cancer due to family history, previous atypical biopsies, or genetics. She is happy to help patients better understand their breast imaging and to provide insight into ways to help prevent development of breast cancer. She has been working as a Physician Assistant in surgery for 20 years at Tampa General Hospital. She was also the chair of the TGH Advanced Practice Council from 2015 to 2017. Tracie earned her Master of Physician Assistant Studies at the University of Florida College of Medicine in Gainesville. Prior to that, she received her Master of Arts in Anthropology from Brigham Young University. She has also received several awards including Physician Assistant of the Year, Provider of Month and was selected as a Cancer Committee APP member in 2021. She is certified by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA). |
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Marlee White, PA-C Marlee White is a certified physician assistant (PA-C) who specializes in breast surgery. She has special clinical interests in breast cancer, cancer survivors, breast diseases, and women at high risk for breast cancer with or without genetic mutations. She is highly experienced in an operating room setting and has served as a first assistant to surgeons for numerous years. Marlee has assisted in several medical procedures that include lumpectomies, mastectomies, sentinel node biopsies, axillary node dissections, and the removal of axillary accessory tissue. She can also perform in-office procedures such as punch biopsies. She has a passion for educating patients and families about health and illness prevention, diagnoses, risks and benefits, post-operative care, and treatment plan instructions. Before joining Tampa General, Marlee served as a surgical physician assistant in the Surgical Services Department at Florida Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. She initially began her medical career as a breast surgery physician assistant in the Division of Breast Surgery with Allegheny Health Network in Pittsburgh, Pa. Marlee earned her Master of Physician Assistant Studies from Gannon University in Erie, Pa., where she also received her Bachelor of Health Science and graduated with honors. She is certified by the National Commission on Certifications of Physician Assistants (NCCPA). |
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| Meet Our Team in the Palm Beaches | ||
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Jason M. Hechtman, MD Dr. Jason Hechtman is on the medical staff at Tampa General Hospital and is an assistant professor of breast surgery at USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. He specializes in the treatment of breast cancer and breast diseases, blending cutting edge treatment options with advanced surgical interventions to ensure patients not only receive the best medical care possible, but also feel beautiful and confident. With more than 16 years of experience, Dr. Hechtman is an expert in breast ultrasound, ultrasound-guided breast biopsy and localization procedures, breast brachytherapy catheter placement and treatment, breast oncoplastic interventions, hidden scar breast surgical interventions and other minimally invasive breast interventions that maximize aesthetic outcomes. |
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Medical Oncologists
| Meet Our Team in the Tampa Bay Area | ||
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Jamie E. McKenzie, MD |
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Victoria Rizk, MD Dr. Victoria Rizk is a board-certified medical oncologist who specializes in the care and treatment of patients with breast cancer. Prior to joining Tampa General, Dr. Rizk worked as a medical oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, where she provided comprehensive care, support and education for patients with breast cancer. Additionally, she was as an instructor in medicine at Weill Medical College of Cornell University, where she taught and mentored medical students. Aspiring to become an oncologist from a young age, Dr. Rizk graduated from an accelerated, six-year B.A./M.D. program at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine. She then completed Internal Medicine Residency at the University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine and Hematology/Oncology Fellowship at the University of South Florida/Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa. |
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Catherine Cartwright, PA-C |
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| Meet Our Team in the Palm Beaches | ||
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Kelly Foster, MD Kelly Foster, MD, is a former medical oncologist at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago, where she provided quality care to patients with all types of cancer. Dr. Foster completed her internal medicine residency and her medical oncology and palliative medicine fellowship training all at Northwestern University. She received her undergraduate degree at UCLA and completed medical school at Loyola University Chicago. |
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Talya Schwarzberg, MD Talya Schwarzberg, MD, is a former clinical instructor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and staff physician at Massachusetts General Hospital’s department of medical oncology. She received her medical oncology and hematology training at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and her internal medicine training at Brigham & Women’s Hospital, both in Boston. |
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Radiation Oncologists
| Meet Our Team in the Tampa Bay Area | ||
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Richard Tuli, MD Richard Tuli, MD, PhD, is the director of radiation oncology at Tampa General Hospital as well as a professor and chair of radiation oncology at USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. Prior to joining TGH, he served as associate attending and director of developmental therapeutics at the NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, and associate professor and clinical director of radiation oncology at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. As a leader in advancing the field of radiation oncology, Dr. Tuli focuses on providing a comprehensive, multi-disciplinary and personalized experience for patients through a combination of cutting-edge technology, novel treatments and developing a connection between the patient and provider. |
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Brian T. Collins, MD Dr. Brian T. Collins is a board-certified radiation oncologist with significant clinical experience in treating breast and lung cancers. Regarded as a world-renowned expert in CyberKnife® radiotherapy technology, Dr. Collins specializes in cutting-edge radiation oncology techniques and tools. Prior to joining Tampa General, Dr. Collins served as the medical director of the Department of Radiation Medicine and clinical director of the Proton Therapy Center at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C. He has a particular interest in treating central nervous system (CNS) tumors and previously led the Department of Radiation Medicine’s CNS program for more than 20 years. He also was an associate professor at Georgetown University School of Medicine. |
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