Head & Neck, Sarcoma, and Endocrine

Barbara Burtness, MD is Professor of Medicine (Medical Oncology) at the Yale School of Medicine, Chief Translational Research Officer, and Associate Cancer Center Director for Translational Research at the Yale Cancer Center. She serves as Co-Leader of the Developmental Therapeutics Program, Division Chief for Head and Neck/Sarcoma Oncology, and Director of the Yale Head and Neck Specialized Program of Research Excellence. Dr. Burtness is internationally recognized for her research in head and neck cancer. She chairs the ECOG-ACRIN Cooperative Group Head and Neck Cancer Therapeutics Committee and the ECOG-ACRIN Task Force for the Advancement of Women, and leads national and international trials of targeted therapy in head and neck cancer. Her laboratory studies synthetic lethal therapeutic strategies in head and neck cancer and the targeting of aurora kinase A to overcome adaptive resistance to EGFR inhibition and - in lung cancer- to direct KRAS inhibition.

Dr. Hari Deshpande, Associate Professor of Medicine in the Section of Medical Oncology, cares for patients with sarcomas along with the sarcoma multidisciplinary team.Previously in practice at both the New London Cancer Center and Las Vegas Cancer Center, Dr. Deshpande also has clinical interests in sarcomas, cancers of unknown primary, and thyroid cancers. He is a member of the Head and Neck Cancer and GU cancer teams. He is the Director of the Medical Oncology Inpatient Consult service.Learn more about Dr. Deshpande>>

Dr. Judson is a head and neck surgeon, investigator, and educator, who is passionate about the mission of academic medicine. He previously served as Chief Ambulatory Officer of Smilow Cancer Hospital and Program Director of the Yale Otolaryngology Residency. His surgical practice focuses on the treatment of benign and malignant tumors and other surgical disorders of the head and neck. He was an early adopter of trans oral robotic surgery and specializes in minimally invasive surgical approaches including endoscopic laser and tailored open surgeries. He routinely operates on complex and difficult cases and works with a multidisciplinary team of other surgeons, medical oncologists, radiation doctors, and other specialist providers. As an investigator, Dr. Judson started a tumor biorepository that supports multiple laboratory investigations of head and neck cancer at Yale and other institutions. His recent investigation has been on the role of bile acid reflux in hypopharyngeal carcinogenesis and identifying saliva biomarkers of oral potentially malignant disorders and cancers. He was an early adaptor of using large national databases to study uncommon head and neck tumors. He is Associate Editor of the journal Head & Neck. Dr. Judson attended Middlebury College, obtained a master’s degree at the University of Pennsylvania, and graduated from Jefferson Medical College. He completed a residency at Georgetown University Hospital in Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, and a fellowship at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in Head and Neck Surgical Oncology. Before working in medicine, he was a Peace Corp Volunteer in Sri Lanka and worked as Assistant Deputy Mayor of the City of Philadelphia. He completed a Master of Business Administration degree at the Yale School of Management in 2022.

Dr. Saral Mehra serves as Chief of the Section of Head and Neck Surgery, Director of the Head and Neck Tumor Board, and the Fellowship Director for our Internationally renowned Advanced Training Program in Head and Neck Oncologic and Reconstructive Surgery. He has received teaching and clinical accolades from within the Institution and beyond, including the 2023 Yale Cancer Center Award for Excellence in Clinical Care (awarded to only one-two physicians a year). He is proud to be part of an incredible Head and Neck Tumor Center of Excellence at Yale delivering cutting edge multi-disciplinary care to patients throughout Connecticut and beyond. Learn more about Dr. Mehra>> Dr. Mehra’s clinical practice focuses on treating patients with Head and Neck, Salivary, and Thyroid diseases, particularly tumor and cancer. His expertise also includes advanced reconstruction and rehabilitation. He sees patients with all stages of cancer, from early stage to far advanced and recurrent cancers of the head and neck. He makes use of the latest in minimally invasive techniques such as transoral laser and robotic surgery. He also has special interest in minimally invasive diagnosis and treatment of salivary disease with use of salivary endoscopy. His primary research interests are in measuring and improving the quality of life in patients being treated for head and neck cancers, as well as leveraging his Business education to perform Health Services research with the goal of measuring and thus improving the quality of care delivered to such patients. Dr. Mehra has over 100 peer-reviewed publications, a number of book chapters, and regularly presents original research at National and International meetings. He is an active Member of the American Head and Neck Society. Dr. Mehra earned his Medical Degree from Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City, and a Masters in Business Administration from Columbia Business School. He then went on to a residency in Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery at New York Presbyterian Hospital / Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. He completed his training at Mt Sinai Beth Israel Medical Center with a highly coveted Fellowship in Head and Neck and Thyroid Cancer surgery, with further sub-specialization in complex reconstructive surgery including the use of free tissue transfer through state-of the art microvascular surgical techniques. During training, Dr. Mehra was awarded the Department’s research award twice, the Department’s teaching award at his graduation, and the Distinguished House Staff award from New York Hospital.

Dr. Henry S. Park is a board-certified radiation oncologist who serves as professor, vice chair for clinical research, chief of thoracic radiotherapy, and chief of PET-guided radiotherapy for the Department of Therapeutic Radiology at the Yale School of Medicine. For the Yale Cancer Center, he is an assistant medical director of the Clinical Trials Office, where he also leads the radiation oncology committee and is associate leader of the lung clinical research team. For the medical school's Office of Student Affairs, he is the head of Horstmann House, one of the six advisory houses for medical and physician associate students. He has previously held roles as the associate residency program director, medical student electives director, and continuing medical education director for radiation oncology. Dr. Henry S. Park received his undergraduate degree from Yale College in 2007, master's degree from the Harvard School of Public Health in 2012, and medical doctorate degree from the Yale School of Medicine in 2012. He completed his internal medicine internship at Harvard Medical School's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in 2013 before returning to Yale New Haven Hospital for his residency and chief residency in radiation oncology. He joined the Yale faculty in 2017 and was named as associate professor and vice chair in 2022 before being promoted to professor in 2025. Dr. Park subspecializes in radiation therapy for cancers of the lung and the head and neck. He leads a wide-ranging research program in clinical trials, real-world evidence, novel radiotherapy technology, and health services. He has co-authored over 200 peer-reviewed original research articles, reviews, book chapters, invited editorials, and practice guidelines. He serves as an oral and written boards examiner for the American Board of Radiology, an associate editor for Advances in Radiation Oncology and American Journal of Clinical Oncology, and an active committee member for the American Society for Radiation Oncology, American Radium Society, SWOG, and NRG. He has been honored with multiple awards for his contributions to patient care, clinical research, medical education, and journal peer reviewing. In his spare time, Dr. Park enjoys classical music, sports, and quality time with his wife, two children, and dog. Learn more about Dr. Park>>

Avanti Verma, MD has returned to Yale after completing her undergraduate studies here. She earned her medical degree from New York University where she also completed her residency training in Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery. During her residency, she developed an interest in caring for head and neck cancer patients and was inducted into the Gold Humanism Honor Society. She subsequently completed fellowship training in Head and Neck Surgical Oncology with Microvascular Reconstruction at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia.Dr. Verma focuses on the surgical treatment of patients with both benign and cancerous tumors of the head and neck, including thyroid and salivary diseases. Her clinical practice ranges from advanced reconstruction to minimally invasive techniques such as robotic surgery. She prioritizes the aesthetic and functional outcomes of her patients.

Dr. Young completed her MD, PhD training as part of the medical scientist training program in Dallas, Texas at the University of Texas, Southwestern Medical Center in 2010. She then continued her training in Radiation Oncology at the Yale School of Medicine and Yale New Haven Hospital, and stayed on to join the faculty ranks in 2015. She specializes in Head and Neck Cancer and treatment of malignant and benign skin conditions at the Smilow Cancer Hospital main campus. In addition to her clinical responsibilities, she also serves as medical director of the New Haven Radiation Oncology center at Smilow Cancer Hospital.