Christopher Gallagher
MD
Christopher Gallagher, MD, is a hematologist/medical oncologist at MedStar Washington Hospital Center (MWHC). In addition, he is an assistant professor of Medicine, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD. Dr. Gallagher's clinical practice focuses on breast cancer. He specializes in advanced and metastatic breast cancer as well as human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)/neu-positive and triple-negative breast cancer.
Dr. Gallagher is a retired U.S. Army colonel. During his military career, his positions included program director of the hematology-oncology fellowship program; chief of the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center hematology-oncology service; and deputy director, John P. Murtha Cancer Center, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, MD.
Dr. Gallagher has served as the primary investigator on numerous National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded and industry-sponsored clinical trials. At MWHC, he serves as a principal investigator on a study of anti-nausea treatments for women receiving chemotherapy and as a co-investigator on numerous trials evaluating new therapies in women with early-stage and advanced breast cancer. He has written many peer-reviewed abstracts and publications focusing on long-term outcomes in women with breast cancer in the setting of HER2/neu-positive disease and other molecular subtypes of breast cancer.
Dr. Gallagher is a member if the American Society of Clinical Oncology. He is certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine in internal medicine, medical oncology, and hematology, and he speaks frequently at meetings of professional societies.
His medical degree is from Georgetown University School of Medicine. He completed his training in internal medicine/general surgery and hematology/oncology at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
Research Interests
Dr. Gallagher's research interests include
- Advanced/metastatic disease
- HER2/neu-positive breast cancer
- Triple-negative breast cancer
- Breast cancer genomics
Selected Research
Evaluation of anti-nausea treatments in women receiving chemotherapy
Dr. Gallagher serves as principal investigator for this clinical trial sponsored by the National Institutes of Health.
In addition, Dr. Gallagher serves as a co-investigator on several trials being conducted to evaluate new therapies in women with early- and advanced-stage breast cancer.
Selected Publications
Deyarmin B, Kane JL, Valente AL, Gallagher C, Shriver CD, Ellsworth RE. Effect of ASCO/CAP guidelines for determining ER status on molecular subtype. Annals of Surgical Oncology. 2013;20:87-93.
Chen H, Kovatich AJ, Fantacone-Campbell JL, Hooke JA, Kvecher L, Kovatich AW, Gallagher CM, Hueman MT, Hyslop T, Mural RJ, Shriver CD, Rui H, and Hu H. HER2+ and HER2- luminal B subtypes have similar overall survival and histologic grade distributions. 36th San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium. December 10-14, 2013. San Antonio, TX.
Gallagher C, More K, Hu H, Sicignano N, Masaquel A, Kamath T, Brammer M, Shriver C, Goehring E Jr, Kapasi A, Jones JK. Discordance rate between 2 tests used to diagnose patients with HER2-overexpressing breast cancer. Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy 26th Annual Meeting, April 1-4, 2014. Tampa, FL.
Gallagher C, More K, Masaquel A, et al. Relapse impact on overall survival in trastuzumab-treated women with HER2+ early stage breast cancer. J Clin Oncol 32, 2014 (suppl; abstr e11601).
Gallagher C, More K, Kamath T, et al. Overall survival in patients with HER2+ early-stage breast-cancer treated with trastuzumab in the U.S. Department of Defense practice setting. ISPOR 17th Annual European Congress, November 8-12, 2014 Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Gallagher C, More K, Masaquel A, et. al. Delay in trastuzumab initiation leads to decreased overall survival in patients with HER2+ early stage breast cancer. San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium December 9-13, 2014.
Schinkel JK, Zahm SH, Jatoi I, McGkynn KA, Gallagher C, Schairer C, Shriver CD, Zhu K. Racial/ethnic differences in breast cancer survival by inflammatory status and hormone receptor status: an analysis of Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Data. Cancer Causes and Control. 2014;25:959-68.
Research Areas
- Oncology