A directory of the physicians who treat mesothelioma as a practice — not as a once-a-decade curiosity. Organized by specialty, these are thoracic surgeons, medical oncologists, peritoneal surgeons, and radiation oncologists at the United States' most experienced mesothelioma programs.
Mesothelioma is diagnosed in roughly 3,000 Americans each year — so rare that most oncologists may see only a handful of cases across an entire career. At specialized programs, the same physicians see dozens of cases annually. That difference in pattern recognition changes diagnostic accuracy, surgical candidacy, treatment sequencing, and access to the clinical trials that are rewriting prognosis in this disease.
This directory is informational, compiled from publicly available credentials and program listings. Patient acceptance, insurance, and availability vary. A patient advocate can help arrange referrals, second opinions, and travel logistics.
Thoracic surgeons perform the complex procedures — pleurectomy/decortication (P/D) and extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP) — that remain the most aggressive treatment option for eligible pleural mesothelioma patients. Surgical volume correlates directly with outcomes.
Chief of Thoracic Surgery and co-director of the International Mesothelioma Program — one of the world's most experienced and published programs. Leads multimodal surgical research with hundreds of peer-reviewed publications.
Deputy Chief of Thoracic Service and Co-Director of the Mesothelioma Program at MSK. Internationally recognized for pioneering mesothelin-targeted CAR-T cell therapy research in thoracic cancers.
Internationally recognized thoracic surgeon specializing in pleural mesothelioma surgery at MD Anderson. Extensive experience with both pleurectomy/decortication and extrapleural pneumonectomy.
Board-certified thoracic surgical oncologist at MD Anderson. Focus on surgical management of pleural mesothelioma and other thoracic malignancies, with active involvement in clinical trials.
Director of the Mesothelioma Research and Treatment Center at Moffitt Cancer Center. Specializes in minimally invasive and robotic thoracic surgery. Trained under Dr. Sugarbaker at Brigham's International Mesothelioma Program.
Director of the New York Mesothelioma Program at Mount Sinai. Thoracic surgeon focused on multimodal treatment of mesothelioma and advancing immunotherapy integration with surgical management.
UCLA's mesothelioma program director and a leading advocate for lung-sparing pleurectomy/decortication (P/D) over extrapleural pneumonectomy. Long track record of surgical outcomes research.
Director of the Mesothelioma Treatment Center at Baylor College of Medicine. Focus on surgical outcomes in pleural mesothelioma and integrating novel therapies into multimodal treatment plans.
Thoracic surgeon at Kaiser Permanente Oakland, a top-ranked program by U.S. News & World Report. Active voice in mesothelioma immunotherapy integration and patient advocacy.
Medical oncologists lead systemic treatment — chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and enrollment in clinical trials. For most mesothelioma patients, a medical oncologist is the quarterback of the overall treatment plan.
Director of the Multidisciplinary Mesothelioma Program at University of Chicago. Internationally recognized clinical trialist — principal investigator on landmark studies that have reshaped mesothelioma treatment. Over 220 peer-reviewed publications.
Director of MD Anderson's Mesothelioma Program. Leads the frontline immunotherapy and targeted-therapy research portfolio. ASCO Merit Award recipient; widely published in the journal literature.
Co-Director of the Mesothelioma Program at Memorial Sloan Kettering. Thoracic medical oncologist focused on novel immunotherapy combinations, BAP1-driven therapies, and TROP2-directed ADCs for mesothelioma.
Thoracic medical oncologist at MSK specializing in mesothelioma and thymoma. Active in mesothelin-targeted therapies and novel first-line combination trials.
Medical oncologist at Moffitt Cancer Center recognized for leadership in thoracic malignancy drug development, including pleural mesothelioma and lung cancer clinical trials.
Thoracic oncologist at Moffitt Cancer Center using innovative immunotherapy–chemotherapy combinations for pleural mesothelioma and lung cancers.
For peritoneal mesothelioma (the abdominal form, roughly 10–15% of cases), cytoreductive surgery combined with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) has transformed outcomes — with 5-year survival rates of 40–65% in selected patients at the highest-volume centers.
Internationally recognized HIPEC pioneer with one of the busiest programs in the United States. Extensive experience treating peritoneal mesothelioma and other abdominal malignancies. Over 75 peer-reviewed publications.
Surgical oncologist leading MD Anderson's Peritoneal Surface Malignancy program — among the nation's highest-volume HIPEC centers, with 5-year survival rates reportedly above the national average.
Director of the Surgical Oncology Service at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center with decades of experience in CRS/HIPEC for peritoneal surface malignancies including mesothelioma.
Modern radiation techniques — intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and proton beam therapy — have expanded radiation's role in mesothelioma, particularly as adjuvant consolidation after surgery or for symptom control.
Chief Medical Officer of the New York Proton Center. Internationally recognized expert in proton therapy for mesothelioma and thoracic malignancies. Active in thoracic oncology research at MSK.
Leader of Penn Medicine's photodynamic therapy (PDT) program for pleural mesothelioma, one of the few U.S. centers offering this combined surgery-PDT approach. Extensive thoracic radiation research.
Radiation oncologist focused on thoracic malignancies including pleural mesothelioma. Known for combining advanced imaging technologies with immunotherapy protocols.
A patient advocate can help arrange second opinions, referrals, and travel logistics — often at no cost to you.