Levine Cancer Institute adds nationally known doctors

Levine Cancer Institute, created in 2010 by Carolinas HealthCare System, has announced the hiring of six cancer specialists to play key roles in expanding research and treatment offerings to cancer patients across the Southeast.

They are:

Dr. Edward S. Kim from the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Comprehensive Cancer Center. He is a national leader in molecular prognostication for lung cancer and specializes in thoracic oncology and head and neck cancers. He will start July 2 and serve as chair of the Department of Solid Tumor Oncology. He received his medical degree from Northwestern University and completed residency at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, and medical oncology fellowship at M.D. Anderson.

Dr. Edward A. Copelan from the Cleveland Clinic’s Taussig Cancer Institute. He will begin work in September and serve as chair of the Department of Hematologic Oncology and Blood Disorders. His clinical specialties include bone marrow transplantation, leukemia, multiple myeloma and myelodysplastic syndromes. He received his medical degree from Tufts University in Boston and completed residency at Ohio State University Hospital in Columbus, fellowships in hematology and oncology at Ohio State University Hospitals and bone marrow transplantation at the University of California-Los Angeles.

Dr. Belinda Avalos from Ohio State University Hospital’s James Comprehensive Cancer Center. She will begin in September and serve as vice chair of the Department of Hematologic Oncology. She specializes in hematology and bone marrow transplantation and will lead the institute’s efforts to develop collaborative research initiatives and to understand the stem cell biology of blood disorders. She received her medical degree from Ohio State University and completed residency at Ohio State University Hospital, a hematology fellowship at the University of Washington in Seattle, and a hematology-oncology fellowship at Ohio State University Hospital and the University of California-Los Angeles.

James Symanowski, formerly director of the Biostatistics Core and of the Clinical Trials Office at the Nevada Cancer Institute. He will begin in September as chair of the Department of Biostatistics. He has spent his career in laboratory, translational clinical, and population sciences areas of cancer research and consults internationally in the field. He received his bachelor’s degree in mathematics from The College of William and Mary, and both his master’s and doctorate degrees in statistics from Iowa State University.

Ram Ganapathi and Marukh Ganapathi, both from the Cleveland Clinic’s Taussig Cancer Center. They will join the institute’s pharmacology lab team in July, helping to increase understanding of the science of oncology drug interactions and effectiveness. Ram Ganapathi got a doctorate at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences and served fellowships at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and University of Miami Hospitals and Clinics. Mahrukh Ganapathi got a doctorate at the University of Miami and served a fellowship at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland.

Institute president Dr. Derek Raghavan, who came to Carolinas HealthCare from the Cleveland Clinic, said: “We are building a world-class team of clinicians and researchers...and look forward to collaborating with them to benefit our teams and our research efforts, and ultimately, the care of our patients.”