Eleni Tousimis to Lead Ourisman Breast Health Center
Posted in GUMC Stories
A renowned breast surgical oncologist with expertise in minimally invasive breast cancer surgery has been named the new director of the Betty Lou Ourisman Breast Health Center at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital (MGUH).
Eleni Tousimis, MD, director of the MedStar Breast Health Program at MGUH, will assume the new leadership role in addition to her current responsibilities, which include serving as chief of breast surgery and director of the hospital’s breast surgery fellowship program. She is also a member of Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Tousimis has earned recognition for her pursuit of new initiatives in breast cancer management, including nipple-sparing mastectomy, partial breast radiation and new anesthetic techniques for breast surgery.
“As the new director of the Ourisman Breast Center, I am very excited and proud to continue to build the program as the leader for high quality breast care both locally and nationally,” says Tousimis. “My goal is to offer women a wide range of minimally invasive surgical, radiology and radiation techniques as well as cutting-edge research in medical oncology investigating new therapies. With these advances, our multidisciplinary team continues to improve the overall quality of life for our patients while maintaining improved survival rates.”
Tousimis came to Georgetown in 2012 from the Weill Cornell Medical College, New York Presbyterian Hospital in New York City, where she was associate program director of surgical education and associate professor of surgery.
She has received numerous awards, including the New York Commendation Award. She also holds leadership positions in several professional societies, including serving as the current president of the American Medical Women’s Association and is also on the editorial board of the Aesthetic Plastic Surgery Journal.
Dedicated in the fall of 1998, the Betty Lou Ourisman Breast Health Center provides a multidisciplinary clinic that coordinates services across specialties to produce optimal patient outcomes.
The center was previously led by Director Shawna Willey, MD, and co-directed by Robert Warren, MD. Willey has assumed full-time leadership of the MedStar Regional Breast Program, which entails leading the breast program throughout the MedStar hospital network. In addition, she serves as vice-chair of clinical affairs in the department of surgery at MGUH.
Warren will continue to provide leadership in providing women at high risk of developing breast cancer state-of-the-art screening, patient education and training in breast self-examination. He also runs “Celebremos la Vida,” a free well women’s clinic where Latina women from Northern Virginia receive breast and cervical cancer education and screenings via mammograms and pap smears.
By Lauren Wolkoff
GUMC Communications