Division of Gynecologic Oncology

Dr. Sharmila Makhija, MBA, chief and associate professor of the division of gynecologic oncology, a Georgia Cancer Coalition’s Distinguished Cancer Scholar, and holder of the Leach Endowed Chair in obstetrics and gynecology at Emory University in Atlanta, is the new chairman of the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Women’s Health at the University of Louisville School of Medicine.

Dr. Edward Halperin, dean of the UofL School of Medicine, announced today that Makhija’s appointment is effective July 1 and subject to approval by the UofL Board of Trustees.

“My goal was to identify a physician-scholar to lead the development in clinical care, medical education, and research related to providing health care to women, and move the James Graham Brown Cancer Center another step closer to NCI designation,” Halperin said. “We have accomplished this.”
 
“Search committee chairman Dr. Mary Fallat, director of the division of pediatric surgery, and the search committee evaluated an exceptional pool of candidates. We have recruited a national leader.”
 
Makhija received her medical degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, completed her obstetrics and gynecology residency at the University of Louisville Hospital, and a fellowship in gynecologic oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York.

She recently received her executive MBA from Emory’s Goizueta Business School. She has held faculty positions at the University of Pittsburgh, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, as well as Emory University.

Makhija has published and lectured extensively regarding gene therapy for the treatment of cancer and the use of monoclonal antibody therapy for the treatment of ovarian cancer. She is the recipient of NIH funding, including serving as a Women’s Reproductive Health Research Scholar as a junior faculty member. At Emory, Makhija has overseen the implementation of the National Cancer Institute-sponsored Gynecologic Oncology Group cooperative trials as well as investigator-initiated trials.

She has served as a reviewer for the Department of Defense as well as the NIH Clinical Oncology Study Section. Makhija received the Argus Award for Teaching Excellence at the University of Alabama School of Medicine in 2008. She also serves as a media contributor for Fox5 Atlanta, has appeared on CNN and is certified by News Certified Exchange. Makhija has been listed as a “Top Doctor in America” since 2008.

She presently serves on the editorial board for the Journal of Oncology Practice and has served on the editorial boards for the Women’s Oncology Review Journal and the International Journal of Gynecological Cancer. She is a reviewer for journals Gynecologic Oncology, the International Journal of Gynecological Cancer and Clinical Cancer Research.

She is a member of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The Society of Gynecologic Oncology, The American Society of Clinical Oncology and the HIV Prevention Trials Network.

by Melissa Deaver