Leadership

Board of Directors

The Physicians Network Board of Directors is composed of nine faculty members representative of the clinical divisions at MD Anderson. Each Director is appointed by the President of MD Anderson and serves a three year term. A Director may serve successive terms.

MD Anderson Physicians Network® Board of Directors:

• William A. Murphy Jr., M.D., Board Chairman
  Professor, Diagnostic Radiology
• Eduardo Bruera, M.D.
  Chair and Professor, Palliative Care Medicine
• Cathy Eng, M.D.
  Professor, GI Medical Oncology
• Charles F. Levenback, M.D.
  Professor, Gynecologic Oncology & Reproductive Medicine
• Funda Meric-Bernstam, M.D.   
  Chair and Professor, Investigational Cancer Therapeutics
• Reza Mehran, M.D.
  Professor, Thoracic & Cardiovascular Surgery
• Lavinia P. Middleton, M.D.
  Professor, Pathology
• Bruce Minsky, M.D.
  Professor, Radiation Oncology
• David Tweardy, M.D.
  Division Head and Professor, Internal Medicine

The responsibilities of the Board of Directors include:

• Establish Physicians Network mission and vision statements and review them periodically to insure they fit well with the direction of the corporation
• Approve the strategic plan, which outlines strategies to grow the business of the organization, including the necessary resources
• Determine and approve the products and services to be offered that are consistent with the mission and vision
• Approve the annual operating budget and ensuring effective management of resources
• Build and maintain a strong public image by promoting the mission, vision and programs of the organization
• Recruit, train and evaluate board members and maintain a Board composition that is balanced and appropriate
• Ensure that the Physicians Network maintains ethical and legal practices to ensure accountability

Executive Leadership

Frederick C. Ames, M.D.
Clinical Professor
Medical Director

Ames is Clinical Professor in the Department of Surgery. He previously was the Robert F. Fly Professor and Deputy Chairman of the Department of General Surgical Oncology retiring from full time service in 2007 after 30 years service. For the past 20 years his practice has been focused on breast disease and he previously served as Head of the Breast Surgical Section. He has authored or co-authored over 200 journal articles and book chapters, the majority of which focus on breast disease. He continues to serve as Clinical Professor on the Breast Surgical Service actively treating patients.

Richard J. Babaian, M.D.
Professor Emeritus
Chief Medical Officer

Babaian is Professor and Senior Medical Director. Prior to serving in this role, Babaian was Professor of Surgery in the Department of Urology, Director of the Prostate Detection Clinic and the Blanche Bender Professor in Cancer Research at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

Upon completion of his degree in medicine from Georgetown University, Babaian completed his internship at the University of Wisconsin and his residency at the University of Wisconsin and the University of North Carolina. Additionally, Babaian completed a three-year fellowship in Urologic Oncology.

Babaian practiced urologic oncology exclusively for over 20 years and has authored or co-authored more than 200 scientific publications the majority of which focus on prostate cancer and currently serves as a committee member on the NCCN Prostate Cancer Panel. He has a wide range of experience in the early detection, diagnosis, staging and management of prostate cancer and is experienced in the technique of cryosurgery and has utilized this modality in the treatment of prostate cancer both as primary therapy and as salvage following radiation therapy. His research interest focuses on prostate tumor markers and prediction models.

Miloslav Beran, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor
Medical Director

Beran graduated from Karolinska Institute Medical School in Stockholm, Sweden with both M.D. and Ph.D. degrees. He completed his internship and residency training at Karolinska Hospital in Stockholm and MD Anderson Cancer Center fellowship program in Developmental Therapeutics from 1978-1980. After a short time as Assistant Professor of Medicine in charge of bone marrow transplantation for the Department of Hematology, Karolinska Hospital, Beran joined the staff of MD Anderson Cancer Center as Associate Professor and subsequently Professor of Medicine in the Department of Hematology/Leukemia, where he actively pursued both laboratory and clinical research until his retirement in 2008. Throughout his entire career, his commitments included preclinical laboratory research focused on the significance of leukemia biology for patient outcome, mechanisms of resistance to antileukemic agents and testing of new antileukemic drugs.

Beran combined these endeavors with direct patient care, development of new treatment strategies for treatment of leukemias and myelodysplastic syndromes and design and coordination of clinical trials. He published and lectured extensively and for his work received national and international recognition.
He continues collaboration with the staff of the Leukemia department.

Nicholas Papadopoulos, M.D.
Professor
Medical Director

Papadopoulos retired as professor of medicine from the department of Melanoma Medical Oncology in 2014. He was specially challenged in taking care of patients with CNS disease and particularly those with leptomeningeal disease.  A significant part of his 37 years practice at MD Anderson Cancer Center was also involved in the care of patients with the diagnosis of sarcoma. Papadopoulos has seen the evolution of systemic treatment from one chemotherapeutic agent to multiple drugs in combination with immunotherapy, and more recently the development of targeted therapy and immune check point agents a long lasting expectation.

Papadopoulos is an advocate of the multidisciplinary approach in treating oncological patients where questions are addressed prior to initiating treatment. He has participated in multiple institutional committees through which many initiatives were examined. His experience in clinical oncology and functional organization is a tool in his current role in quality improvement process and concordance studies.

Miguel Rodriguez-Bigas, M.D.
Special Assistant

Rodriguez-Bigas graduated from the University of Puerto Rico Medical School in 1982. Following a General Surgery Residency at the University Medical Center and the University of Puerto Rico affiliated hospitals, he went to Roswell Park Cancer Institute where he finished a Surgical Oncology Fellowship (1987-88, 1989-90) and a Head and Neck Oncologic Surgery Fellowship (1988-89). Rodriguez-Bigas spent 11 years in the staff at Roswell Park Cancer Institute's Department of Surgical Oncology in the Colorectal Division prior to coming to the Department of Surgical Oncology at MD Anderson Cancer Center in 2001.

Rodriguez-Bigas has published over 150 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. Most recently he co-edited a book titled Hereditary Colorectal Cancer. He has served on the Editorial Boards of the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Diseases of the Colon & Rectum, and Annals of Surgical Oncology. Currently he is on the Editorial Board of Familial Cancer, and he is a member of the National Cancer Institute Physicians Desk Query (PDQ) Cancer Genetics Editorial Board. In addition, he has been an invited speaker in both national and international symposia dealing with colorectal cancer and inherited colorectal cancer. He is also a member of the American Cancer Society Colorectal Cancer Advisory Committee and was a member of the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer from 2000-2010 serving as chairperson of the Education Committee from 2006-2009.

Throughout his career, Rodriguez-Bigas has developed a special interest in the Hereditary Colorectal Cancer Syndromes. In 1996, he was the Chairperson of a National Cancer Institute Workshop titled "The Intersection of Pathology and Genetics in the Hereditary Nonpolyposis Colorectal Cancer Syndrome." It was in this workshop where the Bethesda Guidelines for testing colorectal tumors for microsatellite instability were developed. This workshop served as the basis for a second workshop in 1997 where the specific molecular markers and guidelines for defining microsatellite instability were formulated. In 2003, a third workshop was reconvened to re-evaluate the original Bethesda Guidelines as well as to examine whether any changes to the previous recommendations on clinical guidelines, molecular markers, and definitions were warranted. These criteria are widely used worldwide. Rodriguez-Bigas is currently past co-chair of the International Society for Gastrointestinal Hereditary Tumors (InSiGHT).

Peter Dempsey, M.D., F.A.C.R
Medical Director

Before joining MD Anderson Physicians Network®, Dempsey served as Professor, Diagnostic Radiology, Division of Diagnostic Imaging at MD Anderson Cancer Center.  He also served as Section Head of Breast Imaging within the Breast Cancer Center.  Prior to coming to MD Anderson, Dempsey was at the University of Alabama Medical Center where he was Chief of Outpatient Radiology and Section Chief of Breast Imaging. Dempsey has published 70 peer reviewed journal articles and 5 book chapters.

Michael W. Brown, M.H.A.
President and Chief Executive Officer

Michael W. Brown, MHA, was named the President and CEO of MD Anderson Services Corporation and MD Anderson Physicians Network in April, 2017.  MD Anderson Services Corporation facilitates business development relationships on behalf of the institution.  It helps manage MD Anderson Cancer Network by providing legal, financial and consulting services to support our business development activities.  MD Anderson Physician’s Network is home to the certified member program, which is our network’s best practices and quality improvement offering.

Michael is an experienced health care executive who has held progressive leadership roles at MD Anderson. Most recently, he was the associate vice president for Business Development. In this role, he has worked to build relationships and programs both domestically and internationally for the past two years. He led development activities for our partnerships with MD Anderson at Cooper, Baptist MD Anderson, Scripps MD Anderson and UT Health Northeast MD Anderson. He served as the vice president for business and network development at University of Chicago Medicine. He holds a Master of Health Administration from Tulane University and a Bachelor of Arts from Oakland University in Rochester, MI.

Deborah Kuban, M.D., F.A.C.R., F.A.S.T.R.O
Special Assistant

Kuban is Professor of Radiation Oncology, Genitourinary Section Chief, Medical Director of the Multidisciplinary Prostate Cancer Clinic, and Director of Radiation Oncology Global Development at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. A graduate of the Medical College of Georgia, Kuban completed an internship in Surgery and a residency in Radiation Oncology at the Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, Virginia.

Kuban’s research interests include radiation for prostate cancer, quality of life after treatment, novel agents combined with radiation and the multidisciplinary approach. Kuban has authored over 300 articles, editorials, and abstracts, as well as several book chapters. She serves on the editorial boards of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology Biology Physics and Brachytherapy and is a reviewer for a variety of journals, including Cancer, Urology, and the Journal of Clinical Oncology. She is a member of the Prostate Cancer Task Force of the NCI and a fellow of the American College of Radiology and the American Society of Radiation Oncology.

Peter McLaughlin, M.D.
Professor Emeritus
Medical Director

Prior to joining the MD Anderson Physicians Network® in 2010, McLaughlin had been Professor of Medicine in the Department of Lymphoma and Myeloma at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. McLaughlin received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University College, and his M.D. from Tufts University School of Medicine.

McLaughlin's research focus was on the integration of new therapies, particularly biological therapies, for the management of patients with indolent lymphoma. He has authored and co-authored over 200 journal articles and book chapters. He was the lead investigator of the multicenter pivotal trial of rituximab that led to its approval by the FDA in 1997. His collaborative activities ranged from inter-departmental projects at MDACC to international ones such as the development of the Follicular Lymphoma International Prognostic Index (FLIPI).

In addition to his patient care and clinical research roles, McLaughlin also participated in departmental and institutional initiatives related to medical records (including MD Anderson's transition to an electronic medical record), database development and maintenance, and quality improvement.

Richard Theriault, D.O.
Professor
Medical Director

Theriault retired as Professor of Medicine, Department of Breast Medical Oncology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX.  In addition he had a joint appointment as Professor, Section for Integrated Ethics in Cancer Care and Clinical Ethics Service, Department of Critical Care Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX.

Theriault received his medical degree from Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine in Kirksville, Missouri. His postgraduate training included a Rotating Internship and Residency in Internal Medicine at Normandy Osteopathic Hospital in St. Louis. He completed a Residency in Internal Medicine at Oklahoma Osteopathic Hospital in Tulsa and Fellowship in Medical Oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Theriault is board-certified in Internal Medicine and Medical Oncology. He received his Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Houston. He was a Visiting Scholar for Clinical Ethics at Georgetown University.

Theriault has authored or co-authored over 202 original articles in peer-reviewed journals including the New England Journal of Medicine, Journal of Clinical Oncology, Annals of Internal Medicine, and Cancer. He has 56 invited articles and 50 book chapters.  He has served as a reviewer for journals such as the Journal of the American Medical Association and British Journal of Cancer. Theriault served as Chairman of the Institutional Review Board-2 at MD Anderson Cancer Center for more than ten years. He has served as a panel member for the Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research program and as a scientific reviewer for the NCI/National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. He was an original member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Breast Cancer Guideline panel and Chaired the 2013 panel. He has served as the principle investigator for the NCCN Breast Cancer Outcomes Database and served on the Disease Site Executive Committee. His research interests include breast cancer and bone health, breast cancer during pregnancy and quality health outcomes.

He currently serves as a mentor to the Medical Oncology Fellows at MD Anderson Cancer Center and is a member of the teaching faculty in the Department of Breast Medical Oncology. His international experience includes serving as Executive Director/Mentor/Faculty Member for the Japan TeamOncology Program and the Japanese Medical Education Program at MD Anderson Cancer Center.

He currently serves as Medical Director for MD Anderson Physicians Network® .

William J. Simeone Jr., M.H.A.
Vice President, Clinical Operations and Chief Quality Officer

Simeone has over 25 years experience as a healthcare leader at MD Anderson and has led Operations for MD Anderson Physicians Network® since 2004.

In his role as Associate Vice President, he has responsibility for all MD Anderson Physicians Network® clinical operations, which include account management, case management, credentialing, information systems, member services, provider relations, program development and quality improvement. Management oversight of these functions includes all processes related to support the Certified Members and Employer Agreements.

Melanie Wong
Vice President, Business Development and Chief Strategy Officer

Program executive of the MD Anderson Cancer Network™ national affiliation strategy. Working with teams of world-renowned faculty, and clinical quality and operations experts, the goal is to create mission fulfilling affiliations with hospitals and physicians groups across the country. Wong leads creation and development of new services and products to sustain growth and enhance program value. Success is achieved through open and informative development of professional relationships, advancing operations capabilities, and recognizing unique clinical and business needs of each affiliate and market. Areas of focus include; strategic planning and implementation, business development, clinical operations, program development, marketing and communications, and market analytics.

Prior to joining Physicians Network, Wong held leadership positions in top tier health care organizations including, MD Anderson Cancer Center, University of Texas Health Science Center, City of Hope National Medical Center and Baylor College of Medicine. In these roles, she led strategic initiatives that included; sustainable growth models; operations and financial turnaround initiatives; physician recruitment, retention and compensation; mergers and acquisitions; and operations excellence. Prior to joining Physicians Network, Wong was Senior Vice President and Managing Director of the national office of FKP Architects with focus on health care systems space and performance improvement consulting.