Marcovalerio Melis, MD

Marcovalerio Melis, MD, FACS, is a surgical oncologist with more than 12 years of experience in the treatment of abdominal cancers, including those in the esophagus, stomach, liver, pancreas, colon and rectum. He joined Northwell Health in 2020 and currently serves as the chief of surgical oncology at Phelps Hospital. Dr. Melis provides highly specialized care, including hyperthermic intraoperative chemotherapy (HIPEC)-an advanced treatment option in which a concentrated dose of chemotherapy is administered during surgery. In fact, he was the first to perform a HIPEC procedure at NYU Langone Health (then New York University Hospital), and helped develop the HIPEC program for Northwell Health. As part of a multidisciplinary team, he works alongside medical oncologists, radiation oncologists and imaging technicians to provide a holistic treatment plan unique to every patient. Dr. Melis completed his residency at the University of Chicago and his fellowship at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida. He has published more than 100 articles in medical journals and research publications and continues to contribute to the advancement of surgical oncology to this day; currently, he's involved in research on the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in clinical practice and how AI can enhance pancreatic cancer treatment.In the past, Dr. Melis served in leadership positions at various medical societies and committees, including the Veterans Integrated Service Networks, the Association for Academic Surgery and the American College of Surgeons. Now, he passes on his knowledge to the surgeons of tomorrow as a professor at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell. Dr. Melis always wanted to be a doctor, but he found that he was drawn to the hands-on approach of surgery while in medical school. As for oncology, it was the reward of saving lives that drew him in. "Helping patients fight cancer is very rewarding," he says. "It's a challenging time for them, and seeing their gratitude gets me through the day."