James Cusack, MD
Dr. James Cusack is the Director of the Peritoneal Surface Malignancy and HIPEC program at Massachusetts General Hospital, as well as the Director of the Surgical Oncology Laboratories. Dr. Cusack is an expert in cytoreductive surgery and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy, the innovative surgical treatment in which patients diagnosed with malignant peritoneal mesothelioma undergo surgery to remove as much tumor material as possible, and then have the surgical site bathed with heated chemotherapy.[1]
Dr. Cusack served on the Executive Council of the Society of Surgical Oncology and was Chair of the SSO Scientific Program Committee. He also served on the American Society of Clinical Oncology Gastrointestinal Symposium Program Committee.[1]
Education and Career
Dr. Cusack graduated from Dartmouth College as an undergraduate and then earned his medical degree at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. He then completed his internship and residency at Tufts-New England Medical Center and a Research Fellowship at Brigham and Women’s Hospital before completing a Surgical Oncology fellowship at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.[1]
After he completed his medical education and training, he joined the staff at Massachusetts General, the faculty of Harvard Medical School, and the consulting staff at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
Professional Memberships and Activities
Dr. Cusack is the Director of the MGH Global Surgery Initiative and is Co-Chair of the MGH Cancer Center Global Health Committee. He is committed to improving access to affordable surgical treatment and cancer care in resource-limited settings and leads the MGH Cancer Care Initiative in Mbarara, Uganda.[1]
Research
Dr. Cusack’s laboratory has made significant contributions to understanding the molecular mechanisms of chemotherapy resistance. His work has been funded by NIH, the American Cancer Society, biotech companies, and his patients since 1995.[1]
Dr. Cusack’s current research focus is on biomarkers of resistance and new targets for therapeutic intervention in colorectal and appendiceal cancer, melanoma, and Merkel Cell carcinoma. He has authored or co-authored over 70 articles that have appeared in peer-reviewed medical publications and he serves on several editorial boards.[1]
Selected publications include: [1]
- Chan CHF, Cusack, JC, Ryan DP. A critical look at local-regional management of peritoneal metastasis. Hem Onc Clinics N Am 2015 Feb; 29 (1):153-58.
- Cercek A, MD, Cusack JC, Ryan DP. Treatment of Peritoneal Carcinomatosis of Colorectal Origin. Am Soc Clin Oncol Educ Book. 2015; 35:e208-11.
- Chao TE, Riesel J, Anderson G, Mullen JT, Doyle J, Briggs S, Lillemoe KD, Goldstein C, Kitya D, Cusack JC. Building a Global Surgery Initiative Through Evaluation, Collaboration, and Training: The Massachusetts General Hospital Experience. J Surg Educ. 2015 Jul-Aug; 72(4):e21-8.
- Santamaria-Barria J, Boland G, Yeap BY, Nardi V, Dias-Santagata D, Cusack JC. Merkel Cell Carcinoma: 30-year experience from a single institution. Ann Surg Onc 2013;20(4):1365-73..
- Chan CH, Liesenfeld LF, Ferreiro-Neira I, Cusack JC Jr. Preclinical evaluation of Cathepsin-based fluorescent imaging system for cytoreductive surgery. Ann Surg Oncol. 2017 Apr;24(4):931-938.
- Yozu M, Johncilla M, Srivastava A, Ryan DP, Cusack JC, Doyle L, Setia N, Yang M, Lauwers G, Odze R, Misdraji J. Histologic and Outcome Study Supports Reclassifying Appendiceal Goblet Cell Carcinoids as Goblet Cell Adenocarcinomas, and Grading and Staging Similar to Colonic Adenocarcinomas. Am J Surg Pathol. 2018 Jul; 42(7): 898-910.
- Chawla A, Zhu C, Backer G, O’Gara J, Fong Z, Deng H, Bao X, Cusack J. Perioperative management of patients undergoing CRS and HIPEC. Clinics in Surgery. March 2020; 5: article 2788 pp1-7.
- Chicago Consensus Working Group. The Chicago Consensus Guidelines for Peritoneal Surface Malignancies: Introduction. Ann Surg Oncol. 2020 Jun; 27(6)1737-40.
