Leadership

Matthew J. Carpenter, Ph.D., is the Flora McLeod Edwards Distinguished Chair in Cancer Research and a clinical psychologist with strong research expertise in behavioral science, particularly addictive behaviors and smoking cessation. In his associate director role, he provides strategic direction, research leadership, and program development to advance behavioral, epidemiologic, and population science across the cancer continuum, with an emphasis on cancer prevention, early detection, health disparities, survivorship, and implementation science.

A professor of public health sciences, Marvella E. Ford, Ph.D., oversees the center’s effort to address the state’s critical cancer disparities. Through community outreach and educational programs, Ford and her team work with leaders throughout the state to build bi-directional, trusting, and long-lasting partnerships, which are critical to Hollings investigators in tailoring culturally and contextually knowledgeable cancer interventions. She also works with the South Carolina Department of Public Health to implement cancer-focused initiatives, including the State Cancer Plan.

Denis C. Guttridge, Ph.D., joined MUSC in 2018 as the Hollings Cancer Center associate director of translational science and the director of the Charles P. Darby Children’s Research Institute. Guttridge holds a robust research funding portfolio and has authored more than 130 peer-reviewed publications. He has received numerous recognitions for his contributions to cancer research and his dedication to fostering multidisciplinary and collaborative science.

Amanda C. LaRue, Ph.D., is director of the Flow Cytometry & Cell Sorting Shared Resource and a professor of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine in the College of Medicine. As Associate Director of Shared Resources, she oversees the ongoing evaluation, development and growth of Hollings' shared resources. These shared facilities provide access to critical technologies, services and consultation that enhance scientific interaction and productivity of cancer center members.

A. Craig Lockhart, M.D., MHS, FASCO, is Chief of the Division of Hematology & Oncology in the MUSC Department of Medicine and Associate Director of Clinical Science at Hollings Cancer Center. With over 20 years of experience conducting clinical trials, a key part of his role as Associate Director is facilitating efforts to bring scientific discoveries from Hollings' laboratories into clinical application through clinical trials.

Besim Ogretmen, Ph.D., is a professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the SmartState Endowed Chair of Lipidomics and Drug Discovery. An internationally renowned investigator, Ogretmen has over 25 years of experience in cancer research, specializing in the field of lipid signaling and metabolism. In his associate director role, Ogretmen integrates fundamental discoveries across multiple discipline areas, helping to accelerate translational advances into the clinic. His overall goal is to improve survival outcomes of cancer patients by developing collaborative/team science-based research projects between basic and clinical researchers.

Travis Poole, MHA, serves as the Chief Administrative Officer at Hollings Cancer Center. He is responsible for administrative leadership, oversight, and support for the research infrastructure and activities of Hollings. He promotes and coordinates the cancer center’s inter-programmatic and transdisciplinary activities, provides fiscal oversight of Hollings’ operational budget, and leads the execution and monitoring of Hollings’ strategic priorities. This support extends across the cancer center’s research programs and core facilities, as well as the essential offices that play a pivotal role in facilitating educational opportunities, engaging with our community to promote awareness, and the development of lifesaving clinical trials.

Dr. Nicholas Shungu is a family medicine physician at MUSC Health who strives to provide compassionate and high quality care to patients of all ages and backgrounds. His clinical interests include chronic disease management, self-care, care for underserved populations, and medical student education. He provides office-based procedures including trigger point injections, joint injections, long-term contraception, and treatment of warts and calluses. He has a special interest in care for adolescents and individuals with HIV.

Dr. Shungu attended Duke University for college and received his medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania. He completed his residency in family medicine at Thomas Jefferson University, where he also served as chief resident. He practiced in Philadelphia and Chapel Hill before relocating to Charleston. While practicing in North Carolina, he was recognized with the UNC Health Care and UNC Faculty Physicians Award for Carolina Care Excellence. He has also been the recipient of the Thomas Jefferson University Department of Family Medicine Faculty Teaching Award.

Dr. Shungu is committed to addressing healthcare disparities through patient care, teaching, and research. He loves to learn from and grow with his patients. His favorite part of practicing medicine are the relationships he is able to establish with a diverse group of people. He is proudly Safe Zone trained.

Benjamin Toll, Ph.D., a professor of public health sciences and psychiatry at MUSC, specializes in the treatment of tobacco use disorders and improvement of health behaviors. As associate director, his goal is to provide well-structured and effective education and training opportunities for pre- and post-doctoral students and junior faculty at Hollings Cancer Center.

David Long, Ph.D., is the director of graduate training for the Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and associate director of the Integrative Training in Oncogenic Signaling (ITOS) T32 program. As assistant director of education and training for Hollings Cancer Center, Dr. Long oversees the education and training programs across the cancer center.

Joni Nelson, Ph.D., has dual appointments in the Department of Public Health Sciences in the College of Medicine and the Department of Biomedical & Community Health Sciences in the James B. Edwards College of Dental Medicine, where she also serves as chief of the Division of Population Oral Health. As assistant director of OWD, she works to promote workforce development and advance organizational culture at Hollings Cancer Center.

As a senior clinical investigator, David Marshall, M.D., leads the Hollings clinical trials office and mentors Hollings investigators to support the growth and high-performance of Hollings clinical trials. As the chair of Radiation Medicine, contact PI for the MUSC NCI Community Oncology Research Program (NCORP), and with over a decade of service on the IRB, Marshall helps integrate clinical and research activities within MUSC and MUSC's statewide partners.

John Kaczmar, M.D., is the Clinical Trials Office Deputy Medical Director and Director of the Phase 1 Clinical Tials Program at MUSC Hollings Cancer Center. Dr. Kaczmar also serves as Director of the Anderson Advanced Cancer Therapy Clinic which is a specialized unit that provides a team of clinicians who are completely dedicated to the needs of patients participating in Phase 1 clinical trials. Dr. Kaczmar is a medical oncologist who specializes in caring for patients with head and neck cancers.

Tricia Adrales Bentz, MHA, MHS-HIA, oversees the Hollings Clinical Trials Office which provides centralized clinical, regulatory and financial support services to Hollings investigators. She leads initiatives to expand patient access to innovative cancer clinical trials and promote high quality assurance and clinical research education services. She obtained her masters in health administration and health information management and has over 20 years of oncology research experience.

Katherine Vosburgh, BSN, RN, engages in clinical trial activities across all CTO Administrative and Clinical Operation Units, and supports executive level functions regarding all oncology clinical research activities at Hollings, Hollings satellite sites, MUSC Health Regional Health Network (RHN) sites, and MUSC NCI Community Oncology Research Program (NCORP) affiliate sites. She supports Hollings leadership in the development and implementation of initiatives to enhance trial accrual, trial time to activation, and quality assurance.

As a physician providing cancer care daily to people who come to Charleston from across the state, Jason Newman, M.D., believes deeply in the importance of the strategic growth of cancer programs at Hollings Cancer Center. The expansion of clinical care, research and clinical trials makes innovative treatments more accessible to more patients and helps Hollings reach populations in rural and underserved areas. As the network grows, regional teams will be able to deliver care to patients locally with specialized treatment available in Charleston. In his role as the Oncology Integrated Center of Clinical Excellence (ICCE) chief, Newman oversees the clinical activities and performance of Hollings and executes strategies for program development and growth.

Kristin Mensonides, MHA, MLS, FACHE, oversees the administrative and strategic initiatives for the Oncology ICCE, ensuring alignment with MUSC Health's mission to provide cutting-edge, patient-centered cancer care and advance cancer research across the state of South Carolina. With over 15 years of senior health care leadership experience, Kristin has served in prominent roles across nationally recognized institutions, including UC Davis Health, Sutter Health, Cleveland Clinic and BJC Healthcare, where she developed a reputation for operational excellence, strategic vision, and relentless focus on improving patient outcomes.

As the Oncology Network Administrator, Laura Sample, DHA, MHA, FACHE, is leading the efforts to expand cancer services throughout South Carolina. She comes to MUSC from Duke University Health System, where she brings 15+ years of experience in oncology, strategy and business development.