Monique Gary, DO, MSc, FACS
Medical Director, Grand View Health and Penn Cancer Network Cancer Program
Highlights
- LBBC Medical Advisory Board member
- Board certified, fellowship-trained breast surgical oncologist
- Physician, researcher, advocate, and expert on cancer and healthcare disparities
- Pennsylvania's only black breast cancer surgeon
- 2024 Butterfly Ball Emcee
- 2022 Donna Noce Colaco Going Beyond Honoree
Connect
Dr. Monique Gary – “Dr. Mo” – is a breast surgeon, educator, and advocate for wellness. Dr. Gary currently serves as the Medical Director of the Grand View Health and Penn Cancer Network cancer program, where she also serves as director of the breast program.
Dr. Gary believes in the power of the connection between mind, body, and spirit to promote overall wellness, and is passionate about addressing the disparities in health outcomes for marginalized people. By both exploring the inequities that lead to these disparities and helping to create pathways for access, Dr. Gary’s work, which has been published online, in print media, and featured in peer-reviewed journals, aims to make wellness – physical, mental, and emotional – accessible to all.
Dr. Gary completed her medical degree at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, and her general surgery training at the United of Massachusetts, followed by the Breast Surgical Oncology Fellowship at Georgetown University Hospital. She holds faculty appointments in surgery and serves as the Adjunct Associate Professor of the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice and as a medical advisor/contributor for national breast cancer advocacy organizations, including Living Beyond Breast Cancer, Touch, the Black Breast Cancer Alliance, Tigerlily Foundation, The Chrysalis Initiative, and the National LGBT Cancer Network.
My mother was 29 and in a very abusive relationship when she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. It was very advanced. I remember watching her skin turn dark. I remember her wearing more wigs. She used to wear these fabulous wigs, great shoes, and she was a total glamazon. Diagnosed too late and gone too soon. She didn’t make it to 30. One thing people don’t know about me is that I wear great shoes in her honor and her memory.
Experience & Accolades
Expertise
- Breast Surgery, Surgical Oncology
Education
- Georgetown University Medical Center
- Breast Surgical Oncology, 2015
- Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine
- Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, 2009
- MSc. Molecular Biology, 2005
Experience
- Grand View Health
- Medical Director Cancer Program, 2018-Present
- Breast Program Director, 2016-Present
- Cancer Genetics & Risk Assessment Program Director, 2015-Present
- Breast Surgical Oncologist, 2015-Present
- Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine
- Clinical Faculty, Surgery, 2016-Present
- Penn Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Health System
- Clinical Associate, Department of Surgery, 2018-Present
Awards and Distinctions
- CBS-KYW Philadelphia Women’s Achievement Award
- 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020
- American College of Surgeons Fellow
- 2018, 2019, 2020
Professional Memberships and Board Positions
Publications
- 5-aminosalicylic acid inhibits colitis-associated colorectal dysplasias in the mouse model of azoxymethane/dextran sulfate sodium-induced colitis. Clapper, M.L., Gary, M.A., Coudry, R.A., et al.
- Generation of a unique strain of multiple intestinal neoplasia (Apc(+/Min-FCCC)) mice with significantly increased numbers of colorectal adenomas. Cooper HS, Chang WC, Coudry R, et al.
