Kieron M Dunleavy, MD

Provider accepts MedStar Select insurance

An internationally recognized lymphoma expert, Dr. Dunleavy is a medical oncologist and hematologist who serves as section chief, Hematology, and disease group lead, Malignant Hematology, for MedStar Georgetown University Hospital at the Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Dr. Dunleavy specializes in treating patients with the following conditions:

• Aggressive (fast growing) and indolent (slow growing) lymphomas
• Viral-associated lymphomas such as those associated with HIV and EBV
• Lymphomas following transplantation
• Lymphoma in adolescent and young adult (AYA) populations such as mediastinal B-cell lymphoma and Burkitt lymphoma
• Lymphomas of the central nervous system
• Chronic lymphocytic leukemia

His work combines active clinical research and outstanding patient care with the goal of developing new treatments that will improve outcomes for people with lymphoma.  His clinical drug discovery work includes phase I, II, and III clinical trials as a principal investigator and co-investigator on several single and multicenter studies.

As the director of hematological malignancies at MedStar Georgetown, Dr. Dunleavy oversees the team responsible for treating blood cancers, including leukemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma. Our physician teams work collaboratively, engaging with each other, discussing promising treatments being developed in their specialties, sharing outcomes, and partnering on research projects.

Dr. Dunleavy serves on the scientific advisory board of the Lymphoma Research Foundation and on the editorial board of several journals. He has published more than 100 manuscripts and textbook chapters and frequently presents his research across the country and the world.

Dr. Dunleavy grew up in Ireland, where he was interested in medicine from a young age. He earned his medical degree from University College Dublin and completed fellowships in medical oncology at University College Dublin and the National Cancer Institute (NIH), where he continued to work after his fellowship as an attending physician and clinical director of the Lymphoid Malignancies Branch. Before joining MedStar Health, Dr. Dunleavy was professor of medicine, director of the lymphoma program, and co-director of the microbial oncology program in the Division of Hematology and Oncology at George Washington University Cancer Center.

Dr. Dunleavy’s Philosophy of Care
“We’re now in an era where we have developed dramatic new cancer therapies in the last few years. We have so many ways of tackling lymphoma, and scientific discovery continues to move at a fast pace. My role is to bring these leading-edge advances to the bedside, working in close collaboration with my malignant hematology colleagues across the system.

Broadly speaking, my clinical and research goals are two-fold: first, to increase the cure rate of lymphomas – many of which are highly curable – and second, to reduce treatment toxicity for patients. We have lot to offer in terms of being able to do our own studies. My role is to bring all our resources together, to find new ways of collaborating, and ultimately to improve patient outcomes. We’ll also focus on addressing cancer needs specific to the Washington, D.C., region in the research that we do, to address unmet needs with investigator-initiated studies to test new ideas and strategies.”

About MedStar Georgetown Cancer Institute
MedStar Georgetown is part of the MedStar Georgetown Cancer Institute, which combines medical expertise, the latest therapies, and research across MedStar Health. Our research engine, the Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, is the only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center in the Washington, D.C., region. This partnership means we provide access to cutting-edge clinical trials and the latest breakthroughs in cancer care.