Physician Scientist Collective Distinguished Speaker Series

Dr. Miguel Villalonaserves as Deputy Director of the UCI Health Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center and Chief of the Division of Hematology Oncology at UC Irvine School of Medicine, leading over 70 oncologists and hematologists across multiple cancer subspecialties. A distinguished translational oncologist, Dr. Villalona specializes in bridging laboratory discoveries to clinical applications. His research encompasses lung cancer, early phase clinical trials, genomic driven therapies, and immunotherapy, with particular emphasis on developing novel anticancer agents and targeted therapies for DNA repair deficiencies. He currently leads an NCI/NIH funded phase one trial utilizing enhanced natural killer cells for non-small cell lung cancer. Throughout his career, Dr. Villalona has held senior positions at premier institutions including City of Hope National Medical Center, Miami Cancer Institute, and The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center. With over 140 peer reviewed publications, he is a Fellow of both the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American College of Physicians. Beyond his scientific contributions, Dr. Villalona has championed access to innovative therapies for underserved populations and remains committed to mentoring the next generation of oncologists.