MUSC Hollings Cancer Center - North Charleston

Dr. Taylor Orellana is a gynecologic oncologist at Hollings Cancer Center. She grew up in Greer, South Carolina and attended Clemson University for her undergraduate studies in Health Science. She attended medical school at the Medical University of South Carolina. She then went on to complete her OB/GYN residency and Gynecologic Oncology fellowship at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital in Pittsburgh, PA. Dr. Orellana provides comprehensive care for gynecologic pre-cancers, cancers, and complex benign conditions, including open surgery, minimally invasive surgery, and chemotherapy. Dr. Orellana's research interests include management of endometrial cancer, tumor molecular classification, and cost-effectiveness studies.

After completing fellowship training, Dr. Oleksandra Lupak was offered the opportunity to join the faculty of the Department of Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). As a faculty member at MUSC, her goal is to be actively engage with the residents, fellows, and medical students' education as well as actively participate in oncology research and patients' care. She is very enthusiastic about being able to teach and practice clinical medicine in a way that meaningfully contributes to the educational mission of the University. During her training at the Henry Ford Hospital, she participated in multiple clinical research and QI projects. Dr. Lupak delivered multiple lectures to the trainees including grand rounds and she is committed to further develop her professional skills at MUSC. Dr. Lupak's ultimate purpose as a clinician and educator has been to develop as intimate and useful understanding as she might of the nature of medical education, so that she may continuously and meaningfully contribute to the improvement of this fundamentally important professional process. Where possible, Dr. Lupak looks for opportunities to extend her educational activities into an interdisciplinary realm beyond both her own department. Her teaching emphasis therefore is more upon the methods of clinical problem solving and the way in which we pursue solutions, than upon the specific nature of a defined set of problems.

Dr. Mariam Alexander is a physician in the Hematology/Oncology division. Her clinical and research interests are in solid tumor biology, with a special focus on lung cancer and targeted therapies. Her mission is to improve access to state of the art, personalized care for cancer patients and support them through their challenging diagnoses.She earned her Ph.D. in molecular biology and genetics at the University of Toronto, Canada. Her training in hematology and oncology was done at the Montefiore Medical Center in NYC. Prior to that, she did her medical training at Saba University School of Medicine and completed her internal medicine residency at SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, NY.

Dr. Paul O'Brien is a medical oncologist with special interests in cancers of the head and neck and also gastrointestinal malignancies. He has seven half-day clinics per week at the Hollings Cancer Center. He is active in the development of clinical trials and also serves as the inpatient attending on the medical oncology service three months per year. Dr. O'Brien is developing a curriculum for the residents and medical students during their rotations in medical oncology.

Kimberley Youkhana, M.D., is a Hematologist specializing in caring for patients with blood clots, inherited bleeding and platelet disorders, and hemoglobinopathies.





Dr Youkhana (said You-con-a) trained in both Pediatric Hematology/Oncology and Medical Hematology, positioning her to care for patients transitioning from Pediatric to Adult Classical Hematology care and for adult patients with any of these acquired or inherited rare blood diseases.





It also makes her well-suited for her role as the Director of the Hemostasis and Thrombosis program at MUSC. Her research focuses on optimizing individual patient care and health care delivery for patients with blood diseases. When asked about her choice of a career caring for patients with non-cancerous blood diseases, Dr. Youkhana says, "One of the things I enjoy about Classical Hematology is piecing together what is happening with my patients: taking apart the complex case and making a plan that is centered on evidence and adapted to the patient.".

Dr. Albert Lockhart has been caring for patients with gastrointestinal cancers for over 20 years. His particular areas of expertise and the focus of his research is in treating gastric and esophageal cancers. He also sees patients with colorectal and pancreatic cancers.





Dr. Lockhart's research aims to bring new therapies to cancer patients by conducting clinical research studies involving new treatment approaches and personalized medicine.





At MUSC Hollings Cancer Center, Dr. Lockhart is the Director of the Division of Hematology \& Oncology and Associate Director for Clinical Science. Prior to joining MUSC, Dr. Lockhart was on the faculty and in leadership roles at the University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine, Washington University in St. Louis/Siteman Cancer Center, and at Vanderbilt University/Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center.





Dr. Lockhart graduated from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School at Dallas in 1993. He completed residency training at Barnes Hospital at Washington University, fellowship training in hematology/oncology at Duke University, and a fellowship in drug development at GlaxoSmithKline in the North Carolina Research Triangle Park. He also earned a master's of health science (MHS) in clinical trials at Duke University. He completed his undergraduate degree, a bachelor's degree in biology, from Rice University.

Dr. Edwards is a medical oncologist dedicated to caring for breast cancer patients. Her journey began in the Republic of Georgia, where she earned her M.D. degree with honors from Tbilisi State Medical University and was recognized for her academic achievements with a Silver Medal from the Ministry of Public Education. Following training in obstetrics and gynecology in Georgia and the United Kingdom, she relocated to the United States to pursue further medical education.





Dr. Edwards obtained her D.O. from the New York College of Osteopathic Medicine and completed her internal medicine residency at the University of Buffalo, where she also conducted clinical research at the Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center. Her medical training culminated in a Hematology and Medical Oncology fellowship at the University of Rochester Medical Center.





Dr. Edwards was recognized for her contributions to the field and was awarded the Segel-Halterman Award for Research in Medical Oncology in 2023. Her passion lies in providing compassionate and comprehensive care to breast cancer patients, offering hope and guidance throughout their treatment journey. At Holling Cancer Center, she collaborates closely with a multidisciplinary team to deliver exceptional care and achieve optimal outcomes.