Yun Song, MD
Department of Surgical Oncology, Division of Surgery
About Dr. Yun Song
Yun Song, MD, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgical Oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. She received her medical degree from Harvard Medical School. She then completed residency training in General Surgery at the University of Pennsylvania and fellowship in Complex General Surgical Oncology at MD Anderson. Dr. Song's clinical practice focuses on peritoneal surface malignancies, including tumors of the appendix, peritoneal mesothelioma, and peritoneal metastases from other advanced malignancies. She offers minimally invasive approaches, including robotic colon surgery, to the appropriate patients with localized appendiceal tumors. She also performs cytoreductive surgery with or without heated intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) for patients with disseminated disease. Dr. Song's research focuses on clinical outcomes and quality improvement in gastrointestinal malignancies and complex cancer operations.
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Present Title & Affiliation
Primary Appointment
Assistant Professor, Department of Surgical Oncology, Division of Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
Dual/Joint/Adjunct Appointment
Assistant Professor, Department of Surgical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
Research Interests
Dr. Song's research focuses on clinical outcomes and quality improvement in gastrointestinal malignancies and complex cancer operations
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 2015 | Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, US, Medicine, MD |
| 2010 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, US, Biology, Bachelor of Science |
Postgraduate Training
| 2022-2024 | Fellow, Complex General Surgical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX |
| 2018-2020 | Research Fellow, Surgical Oncology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| 2015-2022 | Resident, General Surgery, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
Experience & Service
Administrative Appointments/Responsibilities
Associate Program Director for Medical Students and Residents, Department of Surgical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2024 - Present
Honors & Awards
| Phi Beta Kappa | |
| First Place Trainee Award, 8th International Congress on Cancer Metastasis | |
| Jonathan E. Rhoads Research Award, Department of Surgery, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine | |
| Conquer Cancer Merit Award, American Society of Clinical Oncology |
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Song Y, Hirata Y, Ajani JA, Blum Murphy M, Li JJ, Das P, Minsky BD, Mansfield PF, Ikoma N, Badgwell BD. Survival Outcomes in Patients with Resectable Gastric Cancer Treated with Total Neoadjuvant Therapy. Ann Surg Oncol 31(10):6918-6930, 2024. PMID: 39048909.
- Song Y, Chen E, Chiang YJ, Yao JC, Halperin DM, Chatterjee D, Badgwell BD. Classification of Gastric Neuroendocrine Tumors and Associations With Survival. J Surg Oncol None(None):None, 2024. PMID: 39257200.
- Song Y, Chen E, Ikoma N, Mansfield PF, Bruera E, Badgwell BD. Palliative Surgery for Patients with Gastroesophageal Junction or Gastric Cancer: A Report on Clinical Observational Outcomes. Ann Surg Oncol 31(8):5252-5262, 2024. PMID: 38743284.
- Broman KK, Hughes TM, Bredbeck BC, Sun J, Kirichenko D, Carr MJ, Sharma A, Bartlett EK, Nijhuis AAG, Thompson JF, Hieken TJ, Kottschade L, Downs J, Gyorki DE, Stahlie E, van Akkooi A, Ollila DW, O'shea K, Song Y, Karakousis G, Moncrieff M, Nobes J, Vetto J, Han D, Hotz M, Farma JM, Deneve JL, Fleming MD, Perez M, Baecher K, Lowe M, Bagge RO, Mattsson J, Lee AY, Berman RS, Chai H, Kroon HM, Teras J, Teras RM, Farrow NE, Beasley GM, Hui JYC, Been L, Kruijff S, Sinco B, Sarnaik AA, Sondak VK, Zager JS, Dossett LA. International Center-Level Variation in Utilization of Completion Lymph Node Dissection and Adjuvant Systemic Therapy for Sentinel Lymph Node-Positive Melanoma at Major Referral Centers. Ann Surg 277(5):e1106-e1115, 2023. PMID: 35129464.
- Lynch KT, Hu Y, Farrow NE, Song Y, Meneveau MO, Kwak M, Lowe MC, Bartlett EK, Beasley GM, Karakousis GC, Slingluff CL. Regional control after precision lymph node dissection for clinically evident melanoma metastasis. J Surg Oncol 127(1):140-147, 2023. PMID: 36115028.
- Sharon CE, Song Y, Straker RJ 3rd, Kelly N, Shannon AB, Kelz RR, Mahmoud NN, Saur NM, Miura JT, Karakousis GC. Impact of the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion on presentation stage and perioperative outcomes of colorectal cancer. J Surg Oncol 126(8):1471-1480, 2022. PMID: 35984366.
- Eroglu Z, Broman KK, Thompson JF, Nijhuis A, Hieken TJ, Kottschade L, Farma JM, Hotz M, Deneve J, Fleming M, Bartlett EK, Sharma A, Dossett L, Hughes T, Gyorki DE, Downs J, Karakousis G, Song Y, Lee A, Berman RS, van Akkooi A, Stahlie E, Han D, Vetto J, Beasley G, Farrow NE, Hui JYC, Moncrieff M, Nobes J, Baecher K, Perez M, Lowe M, Ollila DW, Collichio FA, Bagge RO, Mattsson J, Kroon HM, Chai H, Teras J, Sun J, Carr MJ, Tandon A, Babacan NA, Kim Y, Naqvi M, Zager J, Khushalani NI. Outcomes with adjuvant anti-PD-1 therapy in patients with sentinel lymph node-positive melanoma without completion lymph node dissection. J Immunother Cancer 10(8), 2022. PMID: 36002183.
- Song Y, Shannon AB, Concors SJ, Roses RE, Fraker DL, DeMatteo RP, Kelz RR, Karakousis GC. Are Volume Pledge Standards Worth the Travel Burden for Major Abdominal Cancer Operations?. Ann Surg 275(6):e743-e751, 2022. PMID: 33074899.
- Carr MJ, Sun J, DePalo D, Rothermel LD, Song Y, Straker RJ, Baecher K, Louie RJ, Stahlie EHA, Wright GP, Naqvi SMH, Kim Y, Sarnaik AA, Karakousis GC, Lowe MC, Delman KA, van Akkooi ACJ, Ollila DW, Collichio F, Zager JS. Talimogene Laherparepvec (T-VEC) for the Treatment of Advanced Locoregional Melanoma After Failure of Immunotherapy: An International Multi-Institutional Experience. Ann Surg Oncol 29(2):791-801, 2022. PMID: 34648098.
- Shannon AB, Song Y, Fraker DL, Roses RE, DeMatteo RP, Miura JT, Karakousis GC. Surgical resection of gastric gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) in octogenarians. Am J Surg 223(2):325-330, 2022. PMID: 33867048.
- Song Y, Metzger DA, Bruce AN, Krouse RS, Roses RE, Fraker DL, Kelz RR, Karakousis GC. Surgical Outcomes in Patients With Malignant Small Bowel Obstruction: A National Cohort Study. Ann Surg 275(1):e198-e205, 2022. PMID: 32209901.
- Song Y, Tang R, Roses RE, Fraker DL, DeMatteo RP, Kelz RR, Karakousis GC. Opioid Use Disorder is Associated With Complications and Increased Length of Stay After Major Abdominal Surgery. Ann Surg 274(6):992-1000, 2021. PMID: 31800489.
- Shannon AB, Straker RJ 3rd, Song Y, Kelz RR, Miura JT, Karakousis GC. Patient characteristics, outcomes, and trends in extremity sarcoma management by surgeon specialty. Surgery 170(4):1168-1174, 2021. PMID: 34024475.
- Straker RJ 3rd, Song Y, Shannon AB, Marcinak CT, Miura JT, Fraker DL, Karakousis GC. Preoperative Biopsy in Patients with Retroperitoneal Sarcoma: Usage and Outcomes in a National Cohort. Ann Surg Oncol 28(11):6868-6879, 2021. PMID: 33591480.
- Shannon AB, Roberson JL, Clapp JT, Vaughan C, Kleid M, Song Y, Miura JT, Dempsey DT, DeMatteo RP, Fleisher LA, Karakousis GC. What is the patient experience of surgical care during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic? A mixed-methods study at a single institution. Surgery 170(2):550-557, 2021. PMID: 33715849.
- Broman KK, Hughes T, Dossett L, Sun J, Kirichenko D, Carr MJ, Sharma A, Bartlett EK, Nijhuis AAG, Thompson JF, Hieken TJ, Kottschade L, Downs J, Gyorki DE, Stahlie E, van Akkooi A, Ollila DW, Frank J, Song Y, Karakousis G, Moncrieff M, Nobes J, Vetto J, Han D, Farma JM, Deneve JL, Fleming MD, Perez MC, Lowe MC, Olofsson Bagge R, Mattsson J, Lee AY, Berman RS, Chai H, Kroon HM, Teras J, Teras RM, Farrow NE, Beasley G, Hui JYC, Been L, Kruijff S, Kim Y, Naqvi SMH, Sarnaik AA, Sondak VK, Zager JS. Active surveillance of patients who have sentinel node positive melanoma: An international, multi-institution evaluation of adoption and early outcomes after the Multicenter Selective Lymphadenectomy Trial II (MSLT-2). Cancer 127(13):2251-2261, 2021. PMID: 33826754.
- Straker RJ 3rd, Song Y, Sun J, Shannon AB, Cohen LS, Muradova E, Daou H, Krause K, Li S, Frederick DT, Rhodin KE, Brizel DM, Boland GM, Beasley GM, Wuthrick EJ, Sondak VK, Zager JS, Lin A, Lukens JN, Karakousis GC. Adjuvant Radiation Therapy for Clinical Stage III Melanoma in the Modern Therapeutic Era. Ann Surg Oncol 28(7):3512-3521, 2021. PMID: 33230747.
- Straker RJ 3rd, Song Y, Shannon AB, Chu EY, Miura JT, Ming ME, Karakousis GC. Association of the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion with the diagnosis and treatment of clinically localized melanoma: A National Cancer Database study. J Am Acad Dermatol 84(6):1628-1635, 2021. PMID: 33549653.
- Shannon AB, Song Y, Davis Rivera LB, Roses RE, Fraker DL, Kelz RR, Miura JT, Karakousis GC. Preoperative Transfusion for Anemia in Patients Undergoing Abdominal Surgery for Malignancy. J Gastrointest Surg 25(6):1534-1544, 2021. PMID: 32462495.
- Nehemiah A, Roberts SE, Song Y, Kelz RR, Butler PD, Morris JB, Aarons CB. Looking Beyond the Numbers: Increasing Diversity and Inclusion Through Holistic Review in General Surgery Recruitment. J Surg Educ 78(3):763-769, 2021. PMID: 32950431.
- Broman KK, Hughes TM, Dossett LA, Sun J, Carr MJ, Kirichenko DA, Sharma A, Bartlett EK, Nijhuis AA, Thompson JF, Hieken TJ, Kottschade L, Downs J, Gyorki DE, Stahlie E, van Akkooi A, Ollila DW, Frank J, Song Y, Karakousis G, Moncrieff M, Nobes J, Vetto J, Han D, Farma J, Deneve JL, Fleming MD, Perez M, Baecher K, Lowe M, Bagge RO, Mattsson J, Lee AY, Berman RS, Chai H, Kroon HM, Teras RM, Teras J, Farrow NE, Beasley GM, Hui JY, Been L, Kruijff S, Boulware D, Sarnaik AA, Sondak VK, Zager JS. Surveillance of Sentinel Node-Positive Melanoma Patients with Reasons for Exclusion from MSLT-II: Multi-Institutional Propensity Score Matched Analysis. J Am Coll Surg 232(4):424-431, 2021. PMID: 33316427.
- Shannon AB, Roberson JL, Keele L, Bharani T, Song Y, Miura JT, Kelz RR, Dempsey DT, Fleisher LA, DeMatteo RP, Karakousis GC. Impact of COVID-19 Restrictions on Demographics and Outcomes of Patients Undergoing Medically Necessary Non-Emergent Surgeries During the Pandemic. World J Surg 45(4):946-954, 2021. PMID: 33511422.
- Shannon AB, Song Y, Fraker DL, Roses RE, DeMatteo RP, Miura JT, Karakousis GC. Do microscopic surgical margins matter for primary gastric gastrointestinal stromal tumor?. Surgery 169(2):419-425, 2021. PMID: 32863011.
- Shannon AB, Song Y, Roses RE, Fraker DL, Miura JT, Karakousis GC. National trends in the presentation of surgically resected appendiceal adenocarcinoma over a decade. J Surg Oncol 123(2):606-613, 2021. PMID: 33169840.
- Song Y, Azari FS, Tang R, Shannon AB, Miura JT, Fraker DL, Karakousis GC. Patterns of Metastasis in Merkel Cell Carcinoma. Ann Surg Oncol 28(1):519-529, 2021. PMID: 32405979.
- Butala AA, Jain V, Reddy VK, Sebro RA, Song Y, Karakousis G, Mitchell TC, Lukens JN, Shabason JE. Impact of Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes on Overall Survival in Merkel Cell Carcinoma. Oncologist 26(1):63-69, 2021. PMID: 32886418.
- Song Y, Swendiman RA, Shannon AB, Torres-Landa S, Khan FN, Williams NN, Dumon KR, Brooks AD, DeMatteo RP, Aarons CB. Can We Coach Resilience? An Evaluation of Professional Resilience Coaching as a Well-Being Initiative for Surgical Interns. J Surg Educ 77(6):1481-1489, 2020. PMID: 32446771.
- Shannon AB, Mo J, Song Y, Paulson EC, Roses RE, Fraker DL, Kelz RR, Miura JT, Karakousis GC. Does multicenter care impact the outcomes of surgical patients with gastrointestinal malignancies requiring complex multimodality therapy?. J Surg Oncol 122(4):729-738, 2020. PMID: 32563196.
- Shannon AB, Goldberg D, Song Y, Paulson EC, Roses RE, Fraker DL, Kelz RR, Miura J, Karakousis GC. Predictors of lymph node metastases in patients with mucinous appendiceal adenocarcinoma. J Surg Oncol 122(3):399-406, 2020. PMID: 32346885.
- Song Y, Zheng C, Shannon AB, Fraker DL, Miura JT, Karakousis GC. Sentinel lymph node positivity and overall survival in immunosuppressed patients with Merkel cell carcinoma: a national cohort study. Br J Dermatol 183(3):569-571, 2020. PMID: 32147810.
- Song Y, Shannon AB, Roses RE, Fraker DL, Kelz RR, Karakousis GC. National trends in ventral hernia repairs for patients with intra-abdominal metastases. Surgery 168(3):509-517, 2020. PMID: 32439207.
- Song Y, Straker RJ 3rd, Xu X, Elder DE, Gimotty PA, Huang AC, Mitchell TC, Amaravadi RK, Schuchter LM, Karakousis GC. Neoadjuvant Versus Adjuvant Immune Checkpoint Blockade in the Treatment of Clinical Stage III Melanoma. Ann Surg Oncol 27(8):2915-2926, 2020. PMID: 31898103.
- Song Y, Barry WT, Seah DS, Tung NM, Garber JE, Lin NU. Patterns of recurrence and metastasis in BRCA1/BRCA2-associated breast cancers. Cancer 126(2):271-280, 2020. PMID: 31581314.
- Song Y, Azari FS, Metzger DA, Fraker DL, Karakousis GC. Practice Patterns and Prognostic Value of Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy for Thick Melanoma: A National Cancer Database Study. Ann Surg Oncol 26(13):4651-4662, 2019. PMID: 31485823.
- Song Y, Tieniber AD, Gimotty PA, Mitchell TC, Amaravadi RK, Schuchter LM, Fraker DL, Karakousis GC. Survival Outcomes of Patients with Clinical Stage III Melanoma in the Era of Novel Systemic Therapies. Ann Surg Oncol 26(13):4621-4630, 2019. PMID: 31270717.
- Song Y, Tieniber AD, Roses RE, Fraker DL, Kelz RR, Karakousis GC. National trends in centralization and perioperative outcomes of complex operations for cancer. Surgery 166(5):800-811, 2019. PMID: 31230839.
- Kwak M, Song Y, Gimotty PA, Farrow NE, Tieniber AD, Davick JG, Tortorello GN, Beasley GM, Slingluff CL Jr, Karakousis GC. Characteristics Associated with Pathologic Nodal Burden in Patients Presenting with Clinical Melanoma Nodal Metastasis. Ann Surg Oncol 26(12):3962-3971, 2019. PMID: 31392529.
- Song Y, Bruce AN, Fraker DL, Karakousis GC. Isolated limb perfusion and infusion in the treatment of melanoma and soft tissue sarcoma in the era of modern systemic therapies. J Surg Oncol 120(3):540-549, 2019. PMID: 31267571.
- Song Y, Tieniber AD, Vollmer CM, Lee MK, Roses RE, Fraker DL, Kelz RR, Karakousis GC. Predictors and outcomes of jejunostomy tube placement at the time of pancreatoduodenectomy. Surgery 165(6):1136-1143, 2019. PMID: 31076092.
- Song Y, Ecker BL, Tang R, Maggino L, Roses RE, DeMatteo RP, Fraker DL, Karakousis GC. Trends in practice patterns and outcomes: A decade of sarcoma care in the United States. Surg Oncol 29(None):168-177, 2019. PMID: 31196484.
- Sinnamon AJ, Neuwirth MG, Song Y, Schultz SM, Liu S, Xu X, Sehgal CM, Karakousis GC. Multispectral photoacoustic imaging for the detection of subclinical melanoma. J Surg Oncol 119(8):1070-1076, 2019. PMID: 30874312.
- Sinnamon AJ, Song Y, Sharon CE, Yang YX, Elder DE, Zhang PJ, Xu X, Roses RE, Kelz RR, Fraker DL, Karakousis GC. Prediction of Residual Nodal Disease at Completion Dissection Following Positive Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy for Melanoma. Ann Surg Oncol 25(12):3469-3475, 2018. PMID: 30043316.
- Sinnamon AJ, Sharon CE, Song Y, Neuwirth MG, Elder DE, Xu X, Chu EY, Ming ME, Fraker DL, Gimotty PA, Karakousis GC. The prognostic significance of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes for primary melanoma varies by sex. J Am Acad Dermatol 79(2):245-251, 2018. PMID: 29518458.
- Cho RW, Song Y, Littleton JT. Comparative analysis of Drosophila and mammalian complexins as fusion clamps and facilitators of neurotransmitter release. Mol Cell Neurosci 45(4):389-97, 2010. PMID: 20678575.
- Schulte J, Sepp KJ, Jorquera RA, Wu C, Song Y, Hong P, Littleton JT. DMob4/Phocein regulates synapse formation, axonal transport, and microtubule organization. J Neurosci 30(15):5189-203, 2010. PMID: 20392941.
Other Articles
- Shannon AB, Song Y, Xu X, Karakousis GC Age and Melanocytic Lesions. Surg Oncol Clin N Am 29(3):369-386, 2020. PMID: 32482314.
- Kwak M, Song Y, Gimotty PA, Farrow NE, Tieniber AD, Davick JG, Tortorello GN, Beasley GM, Slingluff CL Jr, Karakousis GC Correction to: Characteristics Associated with Pathologic Nodal Burden in Patients Presenting with Clinical Melanoma Nodal Metastasis. Ann Surg Oncol 26(Suppl 3):893, 2019. PMID: 31673939.
- Song Y, Karakousis GC Melanoma of unknown primary. J Surg Oncol 119(2):232-241, 2019. PMID: 30481368.
- Neuwirth MG, Song Y, Sinnamon AJ, Fraker DL, Zager JS, Karakousis GC Isolated Limb Perfusion and Infusion for Extremity Soft Tissue Sarcoma: A Contemporary Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Ann Surg Oncol 24(13):3803-3810, 2017. PMID: 29022281.
Editorials
- Song Y, Karakousis GC. ASO Author Reflections: Survival for Stage III Melanoma-Where Do We Stand in the Current Landscape of Melanoma Therapies?. Ann Surg Oncol 26(13):4631-4632, 2019. PMID: 31576473.
Book Chapters
- Song Y, Bruce AN, Tieniber AD, Xu X, Karakousis GC. Regional Nodal Staging: Clinically Node-Negative. In: Practice Manual for Clinical Melanoma Management. None. Springer International Publishing, 125-147, 2020.
- Song Y, Karakousis GC. Trial Data for Sarcoma. In: Limb Infusional and Perfusional Therapies. None. Springer International Publishing, 395-409, 2020.
- Song Y, Jain A, Badgwell BD. Metastasectomy for gastric cancer. In: Difficult Decisions in Surgical Oncology. None. Springer International Publishing, None.
Letters to the Editor
- Straker RJ 3rd, Song Y, Shannon AB, Chu EY, Miura JT, Ming ME, Karakousis GC. Response to a letter to the editor regarding "limitations of using the National Cancer Database to examine the effect of policy change on stage at presentation at the population-level". J Am Acad Dermatol 85: e197-e198, 2021.
Patient Reviews
CV information above last modified November 21, 2024