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Floyd Christopher Holsinger, M.D., F.A.C.S.

Present Title & Affiliation

Primary Appointment

Associate Professor, Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Division of Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX

Dual/Joint/Adjunct Appointment

Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Communicative Sciences, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX

Bio Statement

Dr. Holsinger received his medical degree from Vanderbilt School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee. He completed his internship and residency at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and his Fellowship in head and neck surgical oncology at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.

In 2003, he was awarded Fulbright Scholarship to study surgery at the University of Paris with Professor Ollivier Laccourreye and with Professor Wolfgang Steiner at the Georg-August University in Göttingen. 

Dr. Holsinger’s surgical practice focuses on the surgical management of benign and malignant diseases of the thyroid, parathyroid and head and neck.  

He is a recognized leader in the field of robotic thyroidectomy, performing his first cases in the Spring of 2009, after years of study in the laboratory and a close collaboration with Dr. Woong Youn Chung in Seoul Korea.

His areas of research interest include laryngeal function after robotic thyroidectomy, transoral robotic surgery and transoral laser microsurgery. He continues to practice open conservation surgery incorporating supracricoid partial laryngectomy as part of a multidisciplinary approach to head and neck cancer.

Dr. Holsinger has authored or co-authored numerous articles and abstracts, which have appeared in publications such as the New England Journal of Medicine, Journal of the American College of Surgeons, the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Clinical Cancer Research, Head & Neck, Laryngoscope, and the Archives of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery.

He is coordinating several clinical trials focused on robotic thyroidectomy and endoscopic minimally invasive surgery. As well, he maintains a translational research lab and conducts patient-based biological research in the thyroid cancer, laryngeal cancer and molecular determinants of resistance to induction chemotherapy and in the prediction of distant metastasis from head and neck cancer.

Board-certified by the American Board of Otolaryngology, Dr. Holsinger is a member of several medical societies including the American College of Surgeons, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), and the American Head and Neck Society. 

Research Interests

Novel surgical techniques for patients with thyroid and head and neck cancers, including robotic surgery and transoral laser microsurgery

Clinical Trials in Head and Neck Cancer

The Role of Neoadjuvant/induction Chemotherapy in Patients with Head and Neck Cancer

Office Address

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Department of Head and Neck Surgery
1400 Pressler Drive
Unit Number: 1445
Houston, TX 77030-4009

Education & Training

Degree-Granting Education

1995 Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, MD, Medical School
1990 Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, BA, Molecular Biology

Postgraduate Training

8/2003-12/2003 Fulbright Scholarship, Université de Paris, Hôpital Europeen Georges-Pompidou, Paris, France, Ollivier Laccourreye, MD
7/2001-6/2002 Research Fellowship, Head and Neck Surgical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
1997-2001 Residency, Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Baylor Affiliated Hospitals, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
1995-1996 Internship, General Surgery, Baylor Affiliated Hospitals, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX

Board Certifications

2002 American Board of Otolaryngology

Honors and Awards

2007 M D Anderson Apple Award for Excellence in Patient Education, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
2005-2007 National Institutes of Health Loan Repayment Program for Clinical Research, National Institute of Health
2001 J. Charles Dickson Clinical Research Award, Baylor College of Medicine, Department of Otolaryngology

Professional Memberships

American Head and Neck Society
Chair, Education Committee, 2007-present
Member, Scientific Review Annual Program Committee, 2005-present
The American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery
Member, Head and Neck Surgery Education Committee, 2006-present

Selected Publications

Peer-Reviewed Original Research Articles
1. Benito J, Holsinger FC, Pérez-Martín A, Garcia D, Weinstein GS, Laccourreye O. Aspiration after supracricoid partial laryngectomy: Incidence, risk factors, management, and outcomes. Head Neck 33(5):679-85, 5/2011. e-Pub 8/2010. PMID: 20737502.
2. Simon C, El-Baba B, Albrecht T, Holsinger, FC, Plinkert PK. First Experience in Germany with Transoral Robotic Surgery. HNO 59(3):261-5, 3/2011. PMID: 21424364.
3. Kuppersmith RB, Holsinger FC. Robotic Thyroid Surgery: An Initial Experience with North American Patients. Laryngoscope 121(3):521-6, 3/2011. e-Pub 12/2010. PMID: 21125635.
4. Seybt M, Kuppersmith RB, Holsinger FC, Terris DJ. Robotic Axillary Thyroidectomy: Multi-Institutional Clinical Experience with the daVinci. Laryngoscope 120(Supplement S4). e-Pub 1/2011. PMID: 21225780.
5. Bhayani MK, Holsinger FC, Lai SY. A shifting paradigm for patients with head and neck cancer: transoral robotic surgery (TORS). Oncology (Williston Park) 24(11):1010-5, 10/2010. PMID: 21155450.
6. Byers LA, Holsinger FC, Kies MS, William WN, El-Naggar AK, Lee JJ, Hu J, Lopez A, Tran HT, Yan S, Du Z, Ang KK, Glisson BS, Raso MG, Wistuba II, Myers JN, Hong WK, Papadimitrakopoulou V, Lippman SM, Heymach JV. Serum signature of hypoxia-regulated factors is associated with progression after induction therapy in head and neck squamous cell cancer. Mol Cancer Ther 9(6):1755-63, 6/2010. e-Pub 6/2010. PMCID: PMC2913168.
7. Rosenthal DI, Fuller CD, Barker JL, Mason B, Garcia JA, Lewin JS, Holsinger FC, Stasney CR, Frank SJ, Schwartz DL, Morrison WH, Garden AS, Ang KK. Simple Carotid-Sparing Intensity-Modulated Radiotherapy Technique and Preliminary Experience for T1-2 Glottic Cancer. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 77(2):455-61, 6/2010. e-Pub 8/2009. PMCID: PMC3307784.
8. Holsinger FC, Nussenbaum B, Nakayama M, Saraiya S, Sewnaik A, Ark N, Ferris RL, Tufano RP, McWhorter AJ. Current concepts and new horizons in conservation laryngeal surgery: an important part of multidisciplinary care. Head Neck 32(5):656-65, 5/2010. PMID: 19672871.
9. Holsinger FC, Sweeney AD, Jantharapattana K, Salem A, Weber RS, Chung WY, Lewis CM, Grant DG. The emergence of endoscopic head and neck surgery. Curr Oncol Rep 12(3):216-22, 5/2010. PMID: 20425082.
10. Holsinger FC, Terris DJ, Kuppersmith RB. Robotic thyroidectomy: operative technique using a transaxillary endoscopic approach without CO2 insufflation. Otolaryngol Clin North Am 43(2):381-8, 4/2010. PMID: 20510721.
11. Kupferman ME, Jiffar T, El-Naggar A, Yilmaz T, Zhou G, Xie T, Feng L, Wang J, Holsinger FC, Yu D, Myers JN. TrkB induces EMT and has a key role in invasion of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Oncogene 29(14):2047-59, 4/2010. e-Pub 1/2010. PMCID: PMC3138334.
12. Selber JC, Robb G, Serletti JM, Weinstein G, Weber RS, Holsinger FC. Transoral robotic free flap reconstruction of oropharyngeal defects: a preclinical investigation. Plast Reconstr Surg 125(3):896-900, 3/2010. PMID: 20195117.
13. Lewis CM, Chung WY, Holsinger FC. Feasibility and surgical approach of transaxillary robotic thyroidectomy without CO(2) insufflation. Head Neck 32(1):121-6, 1/2010. PMID: 19998442.
14. Kies MS, Holsinger FC, Lee JJ, William WN, Glisson BS, Lin HY, Lewin JS, Ginsberg LE, Gillaspy KA, Massarelli E, Byers L, Lippman SM, Hong WK, El-Naggar AK, Garden AS, Papadimitrakopoulou V. Induction chemotherapy and cetuximab for locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck: results from a phase II prospective trial. J Clin Oncol 28(1):8-14, 1/2010. e-Pub 11/2009. PMCID: PMC2799235.

Grant & Contract Support

Title: RTOG0920 A Phase III Study of Postoperative Radiation Therapy (IMRT) +/- Cetuximab For Locally-Advanced Resected Head and Neck Cancer
Funding Source: NIH/NCI
Role: Principal Investigator-MDACC
Duration: 9/30/2011 - 9/30/2015

Last updated: 2/15/2013