The 20 Best Rhabdomyosarcoma Doctors in Maryland, US

Dr. Meyer will serve as the lead medical oncologist for adult sarcoma patients, and will focus on building the Adult Sarcoma and Connective Tissue Oncology Program. In collaboration with pediatric oncologist David Loeb, M.D., Ph.D., and orthopaedic surgeon Kristy Weber, M.D., Meyer will bring novel therapies to the clinic for sarcoma patients. Meyer received his bachelors and masters degrees in cell and molecular biology from Stanford University. From there, he joined the Medical Scientist Training Program at Baylor College of Medicine and earned his medical degree followed by a doctorate in immunology. Meyer completed his residency at the University of Maryland and served as chief resident in medicine from 2004-2005. Afterward, he joined our fellowship program in medical oncology and has been working in the laboratory of Jonathan Powell, M.D., Ph.D., on projects relating to the characterization of molecular regulatory pathways involved in T-cell activation and energy. As a third-year fellow, Meyer served as the chief fellow for our Training Programs in Hematology and Medical Oncology and he received a Young Investigator Award from the American Society of Clinical Oncology in 2010. Dr. Meyer is rated as an Elite provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. His top areas of expertise are Adult Soft Tissue Sarcoma, Rhabdomyosarcoma, Fibrosarcoma, Osteosarcoma, and Salpingo-Oophorectomy.

Javed Khan is a Hematologist and an Oncologist in Bethesda, Maryland. Dr. Khan is rated as an Elite provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. His top areas of expertise are Rhabdomyosarcoma, Adult Soft Tissue Sarcoma, Neuroblastoma, Embryonal Tumor with Multilayered Rosettes, and Angioplasty.

Christine Heske is a Hematologist and an Oncologist in Bethesda, Maryland. Dr. Heske is rated as an Elite provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. Her top areas of expertise are Rhabdomyosarcoma, Ewing Sarcoma, Adult Soft Tissue Sarcoma, Osteosarcoma, and Tissue Biopsy.

Adam Levin, MD, joined the Johns Hopkins Department of Orthopaedic Surgery as an assistant professor in orthopaedic oncology. Dr. Levin comes to Johns Hopkins after working as an orthopaedic oncologist at the North Shore/LIJ Health System in New York. He completed his residency in orthopaedic surgery at Long Island Jewish Medical Center, and a fellowship in orthopaedic oncology at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Dr. Levin offers care and consultations for adults and children with bone and soft tissue tumors of the pelvis and extremities. He has extensive experience in performing limb-sparing and complex extremity reconstruction surgeries. Dr. Levin has a special interest in surgical palliation and biologic reconstruction. Dr. Levin is a member of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the Musculoskeletal Tumor Society. Dr. Levin is rated as a Distinguished provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. His top areas of expertise are Adult Soft Tissue Sarcoma, Osteosarcoma, Ollier Disease, Hip Replacement, and Osteotomy.

Dr. Stefan Loy Zimmerman is a Professor in the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in the Departments of Radiology and Medicine (Cardiology). He specializes in cardiothoracic imaging and is the Division Director of Diagnostic Imaging and Director of Cardiac Imaging. He is the program director for the Cardiothoracic Imaging Fellowship in Radiology. Dr. Zimmerman earned his medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. He completed both a radiology residency and a cardiovascular imaging fellowship at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. His research focuses on the use of CT and MR imaging in the diagnosis and management of cardiovascular diseases. He has particular interest in the use of cardiac imaging for management of arrhythmias, diagnosis and prognosis of arrhythmogenic right and left ventricular cardiomyopathy, and pulmonary hypertension. Dr. Zimmerman is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. His top areas of expertise are Paroxysmal Supraventricular Tachycardia (PSVT), Rhabdoid Tumor Predisposition Syndrome, Synovial Sarcoma, Cardiac Ablation, and Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR).

Dr. Christine Pratilas is a pediatric medical oncologist at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center and Associate Professor of Oncology, Pediatrics & Cellular and Molecular Medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. She joined the Hopkins pediatric sarcoma team in 2014. Dr. Pratilas received her undergraduate degree in Biology from Drew University in New Jersey and her medical degree from UMDNJ - Robert Wood Johnson Medical School (now Rutgers University), where she also completed her internship and residency from 1999 to 2002. From 2002 to 2005 she was a fellow in hematology and oncology in the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) Department of Pediatrics, and in the Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology at New York Weill Cornell Medical Center. She was a postdoctoral research fellow in Dr. Neal Rosen’s Molecular Oncogenesis Laboratory at MSKCC. From 2006 to 2014 she was attending in Pediatric Oncology at MSKCC, specializing in developmental therapeutics & sarcoma. She has been the director of the pediatric sarcoma program at Hopkins since 2018. Dr. Pratilas focuses her research on cancer-associated pathways and signal transduction, which involves figuring out how a cell’s internal molecular pathways work, and how those pathways can be molecularly controlled. This knowledge is the basis for developing promising new molecularly targeted cancer therapies, which is the focus of Dr. Pratilas’s research. Among her important scientific contributions is advancing our understanding of how certain proteins that can be mutated in cancer, known as RAF kinases (specifically BRAF), affect a cancer cell’s behavior. The research in Dr. Pratilas' laboratory is focused on RAS signal transduction pathways, concentrating on pediatric sarcomas such as rhabdomyosarcoma and malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors, in order to develop novel therapeutics for children with these tumors. Dr. Pratilas is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. Her top areas of expertise are Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumor, Neurofibromatosis Type 1 (NF1), Neurofibromatosis, Adult Soft Tissue Sarcoma, and Osteotomy.

Brock Lindsey, M.D., is an orthopaedic surgeon specializing in orthopaedic oncology. He treats children and adults with all types of bone and soft tissue sarcomas. Dr. Lindsey has expertise in nanoparticle delivery of immunotherapy, immunodiagnostics as a novel treatment for osteosarcoma, as well as complex reconstruction after amputation, including osseointegration. Dr. Lindsey earned his medical degree from the University of Cincinnati. He then completed an orthopaedic surgery residency at West Virginia University’s (WVU) J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital, becoming the department’s first to complete a research fellowship during residency. Dr. Lindsey also pursued a fellowship in musculoskeletal oncology at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) and UPMC Children’s Hospital before returning to WVU Medicine as an attending physician. During his 12 years at WVU Medicine, Dr. Lindsey created programs in musculoskeletal oncology and adult reconstruction as well as a multidisciplinary amputation clinic. He also led a musculoskeletal research laboratory into the national rankings for federal funding for orthopaedic surgery departments. His research focuses on improving treatment strategies for metastatic osteosarcoma and exploring human/machine interfaces for amputees. His work has been published in local, national and international basic science and clinical research journals. Dr. Lindsey has experience mentoring and training students at all levels from undergraduate and graduate students to postdoctoral positions. He won Press Ganey’s “Top Provider” award every year between 2013 and 2018. He also founded ICaPath, a biotech startup derived from his laboratory research that is currently working toward a first in-human clinical trial. Videos Brock Lindsey, M.D.Orthopaedic Oncologist OsseointegrationQ&A with Dr. Brock Lindsey. Dr. Lindsey is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. His top areas of expertise are Bone Tumor, Adult Soft Tissue Sarcoma, Osteosarcoma, Leg or Foot Amputation, and Hip Replacement.

Dr. Odeniyide is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Pediatric Oncology. Her research focuses on RAS-directed therapies for pediatric rhabdomyosarcoma and her clinical expertise is in the treatment of pediatric solid tumors. Dr. Odeniyide received her undergraduate degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and earned her MD from Indiana University School of Medicine. She did her general pediatric residency at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and completed her pediatric hematology/oncology fellowship at Johns Hopkins/ NIH Pediatric Oncology Branch Pediatric Hematology/Oncology joint fellowship training program in 2017. She completed her Ph.D. in cellular and molecular medicine at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in 2022. Dr. Odeniyide aims to develop and implement novel molecularly targeted therapeutics to treat pediatric cancers with genetic alterations. Her research is focused on the application of small molecule therapeutics for tumors with RAS mutations, a common mutation in cancer for which few effective targeted therapies exist. Her goal is that her research will bring more effective therapeutic options for pediatric sarcoma patients. Dr. Odeniyide is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. Her top areas of expertise are Rhabdomyosarcoma, Adult Soft Tissue Sarcoma, and Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP).

As instructor of oncology and pediatrics, Llosa’s research focus is the immunotherapy of sarcomas. My research focuses on understanding how the immune system interacts with cancer cells from sarcoma tumors. Sarcoma is a type of cancer that can occur in various locations in the body. Sarcoma is the general term for a broad group of cancers that includes tumors that form in the bones and in the soft (also called connective) tissues. Sarcomas affect people of all ages and some, such as Rhabdomyosarcoma, Neuroblastoma, Ewings sarcoma and Osteosarcoma, are more common in children and young adults. Treatments for sarcoma vary depending on tumor type, location and other factors. I concentrate in the immunotherapy of sarcomas. Immunotherapy (also called biologic therapy or biotherapy) is a type of cancer treatment designed to boost the body's natural defenses to fight the cancer. It uses materials either made by the body or in a laboratory to improve, target, or restore immune system function. Immunotherapy works by stopping or slowing the growth of cancer cells, stopping cancer from spreading to other parts of the body, or helping the immune system increase its effectiveness at eliminating cancer cells. There are several types of immunotherapy, including monoclonal antibodies, non-specific immunotherapies, and cancer vaccines. My specific area of interest is the use of drugs that target immune system checkpoints. The immune system has checkpoints to keep itself from attacking other normal cells in the body. Cancer cells sometimes take advantage of these checkpoints to avoid being attacked by the immune system. CTLA-4 and PD-1/PD-L1 are checkpoint molecules found on immune system cells (T cells) that can be blocked with drugs leading to a general raise in the immune system of the patients which helps it attack cancer cells. These types of drugs are currently being given to patients with melanoma (skin cancer), lung cancer and kidney cancer with great success and they have been found to shrink advanced tumors in many people. The best part of the treatment is that many of these tumor responses have been long-lasting so far, and the side effects are generally less serious than when using chemotherapy. Larger clinical trials are now studying both drugs, both alone and/or in combination with other treatments. My task is and will continue to be using the same type of approach for attacking sarcomas and hopefully obtained the very promising results and long lasting responses observed with the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors in other types of cancer. Dr. Llosa is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. His top areas of expertise are Adult Soft Tissue Sarcoma, Osteosarcoma, Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumor, Rhabdomyosarcoma, and Bone Marrow Transplant.

Dr. Laura M. Fayad serves as the Chief of Musculoskeletal Imaging. She is a Professor in the Johns Hopkins University Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Department of Oncology, and Department of Orthopaedic Surgery. Dr. Fayad is also the Director of the Translational Research Program in the Department of Radiology. Dr. Fayad earned a Bachelor of Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a Master of Science at Stanford University, and M.D. C.M. degrees at the McGill University Faculty of Medicine. She completed residency training at Columbia University and MRI Fellowship at Thomas Jefferson University. She specializes in diagnostic and interventional musculoskeletal radiology. In addition to routine sports medicine and spine applications, Dr. Fayad protocols and interprets specialized examinations in the areas of peripheral nerve imaging, tumor imaging, and rheumatology. Her primary area of research focuses on novel imaging techniques for musculoskeletal tumors, with her work including well over 100 publications that have been cited more than 1,500 times. Dr. Fayad is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. Her top areas of expertise are Schwannomatosis, Neurofibromatosis, Liposarcoma, and Neurofibromatosis Type 2 (NF2).

John Shern is a Hematologist and an Oncologist in Baltimore, Maryland. Dr. Shern is rated as a Distinguished provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. His top areas of expertise are Rhabdomyosarcoma, Adult Soft Tissue Sarcoma, Ewing Sarcoma, and Osteosarcoma.

Katherine Thornton is an Oncologist in Baltimore, Maryland. Dr. Thornton is rated as a Distinguished provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. Her top areas of expertise are Adult Soft Tissue Sarcoma, Angiosarcoma, Synovial Sarcoma, and Bone Tumor.

Paul Meltzer is a Hematologist and an Oncologist in Bethesda, Maryland. Dr. Meltzer is rated as a Distinguished provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. His top areas of expertise are Osteosarcoma, Adult Soft Tissue Sarcoma, Ewing Sarcoma, Rhabdomyosarcoma, and Pancreaticoduodenectomy.

Fabian Johnston is a Surgical Oncologist in Baltimore, Maryland. Dr. Johnston is rated as a Distinguished provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. His top areas of expertise are Adult Soft Tissue Sarcoma, Stomach Cancer, Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor, Splenectomy, and Pancreatectomy.

Dr. Cohen is Director of Pediatric Neuro-Oncology and Clinical Director of the Division of Pediatric Oncology at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins. He received his undergraduate degree at Brown University and earned his MD at the Upstate Medical University, in Syracuse, NY. He did his general Pediatric Residency and Chief Residency at the University of Colorado and completed his Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Fellowship at Johns Hopkins. He has served on the faculty since 1994. His research centers on clinical trials of novel therapeutics for children with brain tumors. Dr. Cohen is co-chair of the High-Grade Glioma committee for the Children's Oncology Group and in that capacity has a particular research interest in the development of therapeutics for the treatment of infiltrating gliomas. He serves on the scientific advisory board for a number of organizations including St. Baldricks and the Childhood Brain Tumor Foundation. He is on the editorial board for PDQ with responsibility for authorship of the pediatric CNS brain tumor summaries. The Pediatric Neuro-Oncology program conducts a broad range of research centered primarily around the development and testing of novel therapeutics for children with brain tumors. The multidisciplinary nature of this work translates into continual collaboration with specialists in pediatric neurosurgery, radiation oncology, neuropathology, neuroradiology, neurology, neuro-ophthalmology, neuropsychology, and other related disciplines. Dr. Cohen is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. His top areas of expertise are Glioma, Medulloblastoma, Brain Stem Cancer, Embryonal Tumor with Multilayered Rosettes, and Bone Marrow Aspiration.

Albert Aboulafia is an Orthopedics provider in Baltimore, Maryland. Dr. Aboulafia is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. His top areas of expertise are Bone Tumor, Myxoid Liposarcoma, Fibrosarcoma, Rhabdomyosarcoma Embryonal, and Hip Replacement.

Sahaja Acharya is the Director of Pediatric Radiation Oncology within the Department of Radiation Oncology and Molecular Radiation Sciences. She specializes in pediatric brain tumors, pediatric sarcomas, and adult sarcomas. She is also the Associate Director for the Radiation Oncology Residency Program. She leads the Pediatric Radiation Oncology program at the Johns Hopkins Hospital and treats patients at both Johns Hopkins Hospital and Sibley Memorial Hospital. She has extensive expertise in proton therapy, SBRT, pediatric malignancies, and adult sarcoma. She is the Principal Investigator on external grants from ASCO Conquer Cancer, the Department of Defense, and the Carson Leslie Foundation. She is also the Principal Investigator of phase II pediatric brain tumor clinical trials. She has been invited to participate in multiple national and international guideline committees and regularly lectures on pediatric malignancies and proton therapy. Dr. Acharya received her Bachelor's in Chemistry and Political Science from Stanford University and her medical degree from Saint Louis University. She completed radiation oncology residency at Washington University in St. Louis. Dr. Acharya is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. Her top areas of expertise are Brain Tumor, Glioma, Gliomatosis Cerebri, and Posterior Fossa Tumor.

William Burns, M.D., is an assistant professor of surgery at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and a surgeon within the Division of Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary & Gastrointestinal Surgical Oncology at The Johns Hopkins Hospital. Prior to joining the faculty at Johns Hopkins, Dr. Burns served as an assistant professor of surgery at the University of Michigan, as well as an attending physician at the University of Michigan Health Systems and the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System. Dr. Burns received his medical degree from Yale University School of Medicine and was awarded a research training fellowship by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. He completed an internship and residency in general surgery at The Johns Hopkins Hospital followed by clinical fellowship training in complex general surgical oncology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Additionally, he completed postgraduate research fellowships in the field of cancer immunotherapy and tumor immunology at the National Cancer Institute and the MD Anderson Cancer Center. Dr. Burns specializes in treating patients with tumors of the pancreas and gastrointestinal tract, sarcoma and melanoma. He is trained in traditional and minimally invasive surgical techniques. Furthermore, he works closely with colleagues in medical and radiation oncology to provide comprehensive cancer care. His research focuses on immune cell-tumor cell interactions to improve outcomes in patients with pancreatic cancer, cancer immunotherapy for solid tumors, the role of lymph node surgery in the treatment of cancer, and human biospecimen analysis to guide therapy in patients with cancer. He is a member of several professional societies, including the American College of Surgeons, Society of Surgical Oncology, Association of Academic Surgery, and Society of Immunotherapy for Cancer. Dr. Burns is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. His top areas of expertise are Neuroendocrine Tumor, Familial Pancreatic Cancer, Familial Colorectal Cancer, Small Bowel Resection, and Pancreatectomy.

Dr. Satomi Kawamoto is an Associate Professor in the Johns Hopkins Medicine Department of Radiology and Radiological Science. She specializes in computed tomography (CT), ultrasound, and image-guided biopsy. Dr. Kawamoto received her M.D. from Gunma University in Gunma, Japan, and subsequently completed two residencies, one in internal medicine at St. Luke’s International Hospital in Tokyo, and a second in diagnostic radiology at Johns Hopkins. She received a postdoctoral fellowship in cross-sectional imaging at Johns Hopkins, and then joined the Johns Hopkins faculty. Dr. Kawamoto’s research focuses on body CT and biopsy, particularly imaging of the genitourinary and gastrointestinal systems. Dr. Kawamoto is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. Her top areas of expertise are Neuroendocrine Tumor, Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer, Cavernous Lymphangioma, Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Surgery, and Pancreaticoduodenectomy.

Dr. Linda Chi Hang Chu is an Associate Professor in the Johns Hopkins Medicine Department of Radiology and Radiological Science. Her clinical expertise includes body CT, MRI and US. Her research interests include abdominal imaging, cancer imaging, radiomics, and artificial intelligence. Dr. Chu graduated from the University of Toronto in 2003 and was awarded the Governor General's Silver Medal, the highest academic achievement from the undergraduate program. She earned her medical degree as a member of AOA and phi beta kappa from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD in 2007. She completed her Diagnostic Radiology residency and body MRI fellowship at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Dr. Chu joined the Johns Hopkins faculty in 2013. Dr. Chu is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma. Her top areas of expertise are Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma, ALK-Positive Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer, Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer, Pancreaticoduodenectomy, and Gallbladder Removal.