Education: 

B.A., Economics with honors (summa cum laude), University of the South, Sewanee, TN 2004
M.D., Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, 2008
M.P.H., Biostatistics concentration, University of Louisville School of Public Health and Information Sciences, Louisville, KY, 2013

Curriculum Vitae

Current Positions:

Assistant Professor of Surgery, Hiram C. Polk Jr., M.D. Department of Surgery
Leader – Cancer Care and Control Program, Brown Cancer Center

Contact Information: 

University of Louisville Department of Surgery
Division of Surgical Oncology
315 E. Broadway, M-10
Louisville, KY  40202
Phone: 502-629-6950
Fax: 502-629-3030

Email: michael.egger@louisville.edu

Research Description:

My research involves clinical, translational, and healthcare delivery research focused on reducing and eliminating the impact of cancer on the health and well-being of patients, our communities, and the healthcare system.

My clinical research has focused on melanoma, hepatobiliary and pancreatic cancer, and other gastrointestinal cancers.  I have published extensively on the clinical management of cutaneous melanoma and outcomes after hepatobiliary and pancreatic cancer surgery. Some of my research has focused on patient-reported outcomes and quality of life, particularly after melanoma surgery.  We have used risk calculators to help estimate the risk of readmission after major liver surgery or recurrence after melanoma surgery to help guide treatment decisions and reduce readmissions.  Currently, my clinical research is focusing on clinical interventions to improve a patient’s fitness for surgery and developing clinical trials to improve the care of patients with melanoma metastatic to the lymph nodes and gastric cancer with peritoneal metastases.

My translational research has focused on melanoma.  In collaboration with colleagues in the lab, we have identified unique gene signatures in sentinel lymph node tissue that predict recurrence and non-sentinel lymph node metastases.  I have worked with basic scientists to help develop animal models of metastatic pancreas and melanoma cancers to improve our ability to test novel therapeutics in the lab.  My current translational research involves working with collaborators to predict response to immunotherapy.

Healthcare delivery research focuses on delivering safe, effective care in an efficient, resource-conscious manner to improve patient-centered outcomes.  I have studied cost effectiveness of antibiotic use for patients hospitalized with pneumonia and the cost savings associated with enhanced recovery programs after liver surgery. My current research includes improving cancer outcomes in rural Kentucky, studying the impact of Medicaid expansion on cancer outcomes in Kentucky, and the costs associated with treating advanced cancers.  I am also collaborating with epidemiologists to learn more about the increased incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma in Kentucky.

Literature Cited:

Clinical Melanoma Research, Including Clinical Trial Results, Prognostic Models, and Patient-Reported Outcomes

Callender GG, Gershenwald JE, Egger ME, Scoggins CR, Martin RCG II, Schacherer CW, Edwards MJ, Urist MM, Ross MI, Stromberg AJ, McMasters KM.  A novel and accurate computer model of melanoma prognosis for patients staged by sentinel lymph node biopsy: comparison with the American Joint Committee on Cancer model.  Journal of the American College of Surgeons 2012;214(4):608-17.  PMID: 22342785.

Egger ME, Callender GG, McMasters KM, Ross MI, Martin RCG II, Edwards MJ, Urist MM, Noyes RD, Sussman JJ, Reintgen DS, Stromberg AJ, Scoggins CR.  Diversity of stage III melanoma in the era of sentinel lymph node biopsy.  Annals of Surgical Oncology 2013;20(3):956-63.  PMID: 23064795.

Egger ME, Bower MR, Czyszczon IA, Farghaly H, Noyes RD, Reintgen DS, Martin RCG II, Scoggins CR, Stromberg AJ, McMasters KM.  Comparison of sentinel lymph node micrometastatic tumor burden measurements in melanoma.  Journal of the American College of Surgeons 2014;218(4):519-28.  PMID: 24491245.

McMasters KM, Egger ME, Edwards MJ, Ross MI, Reintgen DS, Noyes RD, Martin RC 2^nd, Goydos JS, Beitsch PD, Urist MM, Ariyan S, Sussman JJ, Davidson BS, Gershenwald JE, Hagendoorn LJ, Stromberg AJ, Scoggins CR.  Final results of the Sunbelt Melanoma Trial: a multi-institutional prospective randomized phase III study evaluating the role of adjuvant high-dose interferon alfa-2b and completion lymph node dissection for patients staged by sentinel lymph node biopsy.  Journal of Clinical Oncology 2016;34(10):1079-86.  PMID: 26858331.

Translational Science Research

Huang JS, Egger ME, Grizzle WE, McNally LR.  MicroRNA-100 regulates IGF1-receptor expression in metastatic pancreatic cancer cells.  Biotechnic & Histochemistry 2013;88(7):397-402.  PMID: 23373509.

Egger ME, Huang JS, Yin W, McMasters KM, McNally LR.  Inhibition of autophagy with chloroquine is effective in melanoma.  Journal of Surgical Research 2013;184(1):274-81.  PMID: 23706562.

Egger ME, McNally LR, Nitz J, McMasters KM, Gomez-Gutierrez JG.  Adenovirus-mediated FKHRL1/TM sensitizes melanoma cells to apoptosis induced by temozolomide.  Human Gene Therapy: Clinical Development 2014;25(3):186-95.  PMID: 25238278.

Hao H, Xiao D, Pan J, Qu J, Egger M, Waigel S, Sanders MA, Zacharias W, Rai SN, McMasters KM.  Sentinel lymph node genes to predict prognosis in node-positive melanoma patients.  Annals of Surgical Oncology 2017;24(1):108-16.  PMID: 27663566.

Egger ME, Xiao D, Hao H, Kimbrough CW, Pan J, Rai SN, Cambon AC, Waigel SJ, Zacharias W, McMasters KM.  Unique genes in tumor-positive sentinel lymph nodes associated with nonsentinel lymph node metastases in melanoma.  Annals of Surgical Oncology 2018;25(5):1296-1303.  PMID: 29497912.

Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Cancer Research

Egger ME, Cannon RM, Metzger TL, Nowacki M, Kelly L, Tatum C, Scoggins CR, Callender GG, McMasters KM, Martin RCG II.  The assessment of chemotherapy response in colorectal liver metastases in patients undergoing hepatic resection and the correlation to pathologic residual viable tumor.  Journal of the American College of Surgeons 2013;216(4):845-56.  PMID: 23415549.

Egger ME, Squires MH III, Kooby DA, Maithel SK, Cho CS, Weber SM, Winslow ER, Martin RCG II, McMasters KM, Scoggins CR.  Risk stratification for readmission following major hepatectomy: development of a readmission risk score.  Journal of the American College of Surgeons 2015;220(4):640-8.  PMID: 25667144.

Egger ME, Ohlendorf JM, Scoggins CR, McMasters KM, Martin RC 2^nd.  Assessment of the reporting of quality and outcomes measures in hepatic resections: a call for 90-day reporting in all hepatectomy series.  HPB (Oxford) 2015;17(9):839-45.  PMID: 26228262.

Egger ME, Gottumukkala V, Wilks JJ, Soliz J, Ilmer M, Vauthey JN, Conrad C.  Anesthetic and surgical considerations for laparoscopic liver resections.  Surgery 2017;161(5):1191-1202.  PMID: 27545995.

Denbo JW, Yamashita S, Passot G, Egger M, Chun YS, Kopetz SE, Maru D, Brudvik KW, Wei SH, Conrad C, Vauthey JN, Aloia TA.  RAS mutation is associated with decreased survival in patients undergoing repeat hepatectomy for colorectal liver metastases.  Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery 2017;21(1):68-77.  PMID: 27334313.

Healthcare Delivery Research

Egger ME, Myers JA, Arnold FW, Pass LA, Ramirez JA, Brock GN.  Cost effectiveness of adherence to IDSA/ATS guidelines in elderly patients hospitalized for community-acquired pneumonia.  BMC Medical Informatics & Decision Making 2016;16:34.  PMID: 26976388.

Egger ME, Kimbrough CW, Stromberg AJ, Quillo AR, Martin RCG II, Scoggins CR, McMasters KM.  Melanoma patient-reported quality of life outcomes following sentinel lymph node biopsy, completion lymphadenectomy, and adjuvant interferon: results from the Sunbelt Melanoma Trial.  Annals of Surgical Oncology 2016;23(3):1019-25.  PMID: 26744107.

Bhutiani N, Egger ME, Ajkay N, Scoggins CR, Martin RC 2^nd, McMasters KM.  Multigene signature panels and breast cancer therapy: patterns of use and impact on clinical decision making.  Journal of the American College of Surgeons 2018;226(4):406-12.  PMID: 29366844.

PubMed Information