Associate Professor and Deputy Chair
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Brief Bio:
Current Title: Associate Professor and Deputy Chair, Department of Sarcoma Medical Oncology; The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Education: She received her medical degree from Maulana Azad Medical College in New Delhi, India and has trained at St. John’s Episcopal in New York, Drexel University Hospital and Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, prior to joining MD Anderson Cancer Center.
Dr. Somaiah has 14 years of sarcoma clinical and research experience and an in-depth understanding of the challenges of managing the various subtypes of sarcoma. Her primary research focus has been centered around the subtypes of liposarcoma and GIST and evaluating the role of immunotherapy in sarcomas and is passionate about driving translational research into impactful clinical trials. She has national and international recognition as an expert in these fields.
In addition to her role as Deputy Chair of the Sarcoma Medical Oncology Department, she provides oversight of the Sarcoma Clinical Research Enterprise that has grown under her direction and currently manages over 25 actively accruing cutting-edge sarcoma trials. As the Principal Investigator of multiple investigator-initiated trials, cooperative group, and industry-sponsored clinical trials at MD Anderson Dr. Somaiah has extensive expertize in the design and execution of clinical trials. She also leads the Liposarcoma Working Group focusing on key collaborative translational research projects, both retrospective and prospective, to improve understanding of these rare group of diseases and help support development of novel therapeutic options for patients. Dr. Somaiah has over 100 peer-reviewed publications and has been presented with many honors for her expertise and patient care, including being among the top 1% providers nationally (CG-CAHPS Patient Surveys).
