Ashleigh M. Francis, MD, FACS
Department of Plastic Surgery, Division of Surgery
About Dr. Ashleigh M. Francis
Dr. Ashleigh Francis is an assistant professor in the Department of Plastic Surgery at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Dr. Francis specializes in reconstructive surgery with a focus in microsurgical reconstruction. Her areas of expertise include reconstruction of the head and neck, breast and lymphedema surgery. She has authored 12 peer-reviewed journal articles and 2 book chapters. She has been invited to speak 11 times and has presented at the prestigious American Surgical Association as well as other notable conferences. She is an active member of many national societies including American College of Surgeons and American Society for Reconstructive Microsurgery. She is a Diplomate of the American Board of Surgery.
Dr. Francis earned a B.S.P.H. in Biostatistics at the University of North Carolina’s School of Public Health. She obtained her Medical Doctorate at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, where she graduated with Alpha Omega Alpha distinction. Dr. Francis completed her General Surgery residency at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. She completed a two-year NIH T32 fellowship in basic science and translation research at MD Anderson Cancer Center. Subsequently, she completed her Plastic Surgery residency at Harvard and a fellowship in microvascular reconstructive surgery at MD Anderson Cancer Center. Upon completion of her fellowship, Dr. Francis joined the faculty in the Department of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery at MD Anderson.
Present Title & Affiliation
Primary Appointment
Assistant Professor, Department of Plastic Surgery, Division of Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 2010 | University of Texas Medical School - Houston, Houston, TX, USA, MD, Medicine |
| 2006 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA, BS, Biostatistics |
Experience & Service
Academic Appointments
Clinical Specialist, Department of Plastic Surgery, Division of Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2020 - 2021
Professional Memberships
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Karakas C, Francis AM, Ha MJ, Wingate HF, Meena RA, Yi M, Rasaputra KS, Barrera AMG, Arun B, Do KA, Sahin A, Keyomarsi K, Hunt KK. Cytoplasmic Cyclin E Expression Predicts for Response to Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy in Breast Cancer. Ann Surg 274(2):e150-e159, 2021. PMID: 31436549.
- Yu J, Wong FK, Aycart M, Francis AM, Thompson KM, Labow B, Upton J, Taghinia A. Overcoming Microsurgical Anastomotic Challenges in Supercharged Pedicled Jejunal Interpositon for Pediatric Esophageal Reconstruction. Plast Reconstr Surg Glob Open 9(8):e3780, 2021. PMID: 34667706.
- Hamaguchi R, Francis AM, Kramer KM, Lian CG, O'Leary MP, Orgill DP. Multimodal Surgical Management of Severe Scrotal Lymphedema and Buried Penis. Urology 144:e19-e23, 2020. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 32593626.
- Francis AM, Taghinia A. Peer commentary of “The Ethics of Hand Transplantation: A Systematic Review” by Cooney et al. PSEN: Literature Reviews, 2017.
- Francis AM, Alexander A, Liu Y, Vijayaraghavan S, Low KH, Yang D, Bui T, Somaiah N, Ravi V, Keyomarsi K, Hunt KK. CDK4/6 Inhibitors Sensitize Rb-positive Sarcoma Cells to Wee1 Kinase Inhibition through Reversible Cell-Cycle Arrest. Mol Cancer Ther 16(9):1751-1764, 2017. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 28619757.
- Srinivasa DR, Miranda RN, Kaura A, Francis AM, Campanale A, Boldrini R, Alexander J, Deva AK, Gravina PR, Medeiros LJ, Nast K, Butler CE, Clemens MW. Global Adverse Event Reports of Breast Implant-Associated ALCL: An International Review of 40 Government Authority Databases. Plast Reconstr Surg 139(5):1029-1039, 2017. PMID: 28157770.
- Francis AM, Haugen CE, Grimes LM, Crow JR, Yi M, Mittendorf EA, Bedrosian I, Caudle AS, Babiera GV, Krishnamurthy S, Kuerer HM, Hunt KK. Is Sentinel Lymph Node Dissection Warranted for Patients with a Diagnosis of Ductal Carcinoma In Situ?. Ann Surg Oncol 22(13):4270-9, 2015. e-Pub 2015. PMID: 25905585.
- Francis AM, Clemens MW. Assessment of Patient Factors, Surgeons, and Surgeon Teams in Immediate Implant-Based Breast Reconstruction Outcomes: Gfrerer L, Mattos D, Mastroianni M, et al (Massachusetts General Hosp, Boston; Harvard Stem Cell Inst, Cambridge, MA) Plast Reconstr Surg 135:245e-252e, 2015. Breast Diseases: A Year Book Quarterly 26(4):328-330, 2015.
- Francis AM, Sepesi B, Correa AM, Blum MA, Erasmus JJ, Lee JH, Maru DM, Mehran RJ, Rice DC, Roth JA, Vaporciyan AA, Walsh GL, Welsh JW, Swisher SG, Hofstetter WL, University of Texas MD Anderson Esophageal Cancer Group. The influence of histopathologic tumor viability on long-term survival and recurrence rates following neoadjuvant therapy for esophageal adenocarcinoma. Ann Surg 258(3):500-7, 2013. PMID: 24022442.
- Bolton WD, Hofstetter WL, Francis AM, Correa AM, Ajani JA, Bhutani MS, Erasmus J, Komaki R, Maru DM, Mehran RJ, Rice DC, Roth JA, Vaporciyan AA, Walsh GL, Swisher SG. Impact of tumor length on long-term survival of pT1 esophageal adenocarcinoma. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 138(4):831-6, 2009. e-Pub 2009. PMID: 19660349.
- Yendamuri S, Swisher SG, Correa AM, Hofstetter W, Ajani J, Francis A, Maru D, Mehran RJ, Rice D, Roth JA, Walsh G, Vaporicyan AA. Esophageal Tumor Length is Independently Associated with Long-Term Survival. Cancer 115(3):508-516, 2009.
- Mittendorf EA, Wang X, Perrier ND, Francis AM, Edeiken BS, Shapiro SE, Lee JE, Evans DB. Followup of patients with papillary thyroid cancer: in search of the optimal algorithm. J Am Coll Surg 205(2):239-47, 2007. e-Pub 2007. PMID: 17660070.
- Hofstetter W, Correa AM, Bekele N, Ajani JA, Phan A, Komaki RR, Liao Z, Maru D, Wu TT, Mehran RJ, Rice DC, Roth JA, Vaporciyan AA, Walsh GL, Francis A, Blackmon S, Swisher SG. Proposed Modification of Nodal Status in AJCC Esophageal Cancer Staging System. The Annals of Thoracic Surgery 84(2):365-375, 2007.
- Shen J, Gilcrease MZ, Babiera GV, Ross MI, Meric-Bernstam F, Feig BW, Kuerer HM, Francis AM, Ames FC, Hunt KK. Feasibility and Accuracy of Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy After Preoperative Chemotherapy in Breast Cancer Patients With Documented Axillary Metastases. Cancer 109(7):1255-1263, 2007.
Book Chapters
- Sood RF, Francis AM, Talbot SG. SCORE Module: Tendon – Repair. In: The SCORE Portal, 2019.
Patient Reviews
CV information above last modified June 25, 2024