LOS 2022-2024 Board of Directors

President

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Nakhle Saba, MD
Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine
Tulane University School of Medicine

Nakhle Saba, MD, earned his Doctor of Medicine degree from the Lebanese University in Beirut, from which he graduated in 2005. He completed his residency in the Department of Internal Medicine at East Tennessee State University in Johnson City, Tennessee, and Tulane University in New Orleans. In 2008, he started a research track training in hematology and medical oncology at Tulane University, where he closely worked with Laura Levy, PhD, on targeting the kinase PKCβ in b-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia and diffuse large b-cell lymphoma.

Dr. Saba joined the lab of Adrian Wiestner, MD, PhD, in January 2012 at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health (NIH). His research at the NIH was focused on tumor biology and developing new therapeutic approaches for chronic lymphocytic leukemia and mantle cell lymphoma.

Dr. Saba joined the Tulane faculty in August 2014 as an assistant professor of medicine, where he began a translational program in B-cell malignancies. His research focuses on B-cell malignancies, in particular on CLL and MCL biology, and identifying novel therapeutic targets for these diseases. He treats patients with various hematological malignancies, focusing on lymphoma and B-cell leukemia, as well as performing stem cell transplants.

Treasurer

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Pedro Barata, MD, MSc
Assistant Professor, Deming Department of Medicine,
Division of Hematology/Oncology, Genitourinary Cancers
Tulane University
New Orleans, LA

Dr. Pedro Barata earned his medical degree from the New University of Lisbon in 2009 and completed his medical oncology training in 2016. Subsequently, he was invited to join the genitourinary group at Taussig Cancer Center, where he worked as a clinical fellow in genitourinary malignancies. Dr. Barata then moved to Tulane University to continue his clinical and research work in the GU field. Dr Barata successfully expanded the genitourinary program offered at Tulane Cancer Center and he currently leads the kidney and bladder cancer program at Tulane University with a focus on clinical trials.

Dr. Barata has authored or co-authored more than 60 research publications in high-quality journals, such as Cancer, Annals of Oncology, and CA: Cancer journal Clinicians, with more than 700 scientific citations. He has presented multiple abstracts at important national and international meetings and has won multiple prestigious awards, including the Scholar-in-Training Award, AACR-NCI-EORTC Triple Meeting (2017) and the Annual Accelerating Anticancer Agent Development and Validation (AAADV) Program Scholarship (2018). He serves as a reviewer for prestigious peer-reviewed journals, such as JAMA Oncology, ASCO and Journal Global Oncology.

Secretary

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Daniel H. Johnson, MD
Medical Oncologist
Ochsner Clinic Foundation

Daniel Johnson, MD, is a medical oncologist that specializes in treating patients with melanoma with specific research interests in strategies to overcome immunotherapy resistance and prevent immunotherapy related toxicities. He has multiple peer-reviewed articles and presentations at national meetings pertaining to the management and underlying mechanisms of immune toxicity. Dr. Johnson is a clinical investigator focusing on designing and implementing clinical trials intended to optimize the safety and efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors.

Immediate Past President

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Ashish Udhrain, MD, FACP
Medical Oncologist
Thibodaux Regional Medical Center

Members-at-Large

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Chancellor Donald, MD
Assistant Professor, Clinical Medicine
Tulane University School of Medicine

Chancellor Donald, MD, is the chief medical officer of the Taking Aim at Cancer in Louisiana initiative. He currently holds the position of assistant professor of clinical medicine at Tulane University. His academic focus is advocacy and health disparities regarding patients with hematologic disorders and malignancy. He previously cared for patients in a community practice at Lourdes Oncology Associates in Lafayette, Louisiana.

Originally from Gretna, Florida, Dr. Donald attended Florida A&M University for undergraduate studies and graduated magna cum laude. He then attended the University of Miami School of Medicine for his medical degree. He completed his internship, residency, and fellowship at Tulane University.

In 2010, he joined Louisiana Oncology Associates, PMC, and became president of the practice in 2014. Dr. Donald would subsequently serve as a lead in crafting a professional services agreement with Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center, where he served as medical director of the oncology service line, a member of the Medical Executive Committee, and a trustee on the Board of Directors. As medical director, he developed an annual lung cancer screening program using low-dose CT scans for 40 patients yearly at no cost to the patient. In 2013, he was given the Spirit of Hope Award by the American Cancer Society.

Dr. Donald has extended himself beyond his practice to advocate for patients and the appropriate delivery of care. Since 2012 he has served as the hematology representative for Louisiana for the Medicare Carrier Advisory Committee (CAC). He functioned as co-chair of the 2017 and 2018 annual CAC meeting in Washington, D.C. Additionally, he served as a designee to the Program Committee for the 2017 American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting.

He is board certified in internal medicine, hematology, and medical oncology. Most recently, he was appointed to the American Board of Internal Medicine Hematology Examination Committee.

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Lauren Juneja, MD
Medical Oncologist
Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center

Lauren Juneja, MD, received a Bachelor of Science from The Ohio State University and a Master of Science in Cell and Molecular Biology from Tulane University. She received a Doctor of Medicine from Louisiana State University School of Medicine in Shreveport, La. where she also completed her combined Hematology/Oncology Fellowship. She is triple board certified in hematology, medical oncology and internal medicine by the American Board of Internal Medicine. She is a member of Baton Rouge Oncology Group, Louisiana Oncology Society, American Society of Clinical Oncology and American Society of Hematology.

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Sanjay Juneja, MD
Hematologist/Oncologist
Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center
Salup-Adam
Adam Salup, MBA
Assistant Vice President, Cancer Services
Ochsner Health
Smith-Evan
Evan S. Smith, MD
Gynecologic Oncologist
Woman's Hospital

Appointed Fellows

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Caitlin Lopes, MD
Hematology/Oncology Fellow
Ochsner Medical Center

1801 Research Boulevard Suite 400
Rockville, MD 20850
Tel: 301.984.9496 | Fax: 301.770.1949
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