Tampa General Hospital’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Peggy Duggan Honored to Serve as a Senior Member of the New TGH Cancer Institute’s Breast Oncology Program

 

Dr. Duggan brings decades of clinical experience, leadership, and passion to help Tampa General Hospital breast cancer patients receive state-of-the-art and compassionate care in a multidisciplinary academic setting.

Tampa, FL (Nov. 29, 2021) – As Tampa General Hospital's (TGH) Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Peggy Duggan oversees a multitude of critical functions related to physicians and patient care. Now, she will add a new role that leverages her top-tier credentials in breast cancer surgery as a senior member of the breast oncology program at the Tampa General Hospital Cancer Institute.

A Boston native, Duggan earned her medical degree from Boston University’s School of Medicine in 1990, training as a resident and administrative chief resident in general surgery at Boston Medical Center. She then became an assistant professor of surgery at BU’s School of Medicine, which was followed by more than 15 years’ experience at Massachusetts General Brigham health system as a breast surgeon and medical director of the breast center, ultimately becoming chief medical officer for the Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital in 2013.

Duggan also had a distinguished career as a faculty member at Harvard Medical School, where she worked through December 2020 before coming to Tampa General Hospital. She joined TGH at a critical time, during the global pandemic, when she supported the medical staff with effectively navigating patient care. She now will play a pivotal role in elevating cancer care as part of a world-class team of renowned surgical oncologists and specialists from all disciplines.

“Shared decision-making is one of the qualities that differentiates Tampa General Hospital,” Duggan said. “I want to give patients ample time to learn about their options and figure out what the best course is for them. I also consider it critical that care is multidisciplinary. A patient should be able to see their surgeon and oncologist on the same day. Synergistic patient navigation is extremely important.”

Duggan has held a dozen major administrative leadership positions over the last two decades, including president of the Board of Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital for nine years and serving as co-chairperson of Best Practices in Mastectomy and Breast Reconstruction for the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine.

She has also published numerous peer-reviewed manuscripts, made teaching presentations nationally and internationally, and won a variety of awards during her distinguished career – including, from 2017-19, Top Doctor honors from Boston magazine and Castle Connolly, an annual guide to the best physicians in the United States.

In her role as senior member of the new TGH Cancer Institute’s breast oncology program, Duggan will share her extensive leadership experience and surgical skill in program planning, while also seeing patients and performing surgery.

“Dr. Duggan’s combination of outstanding leadership abilities, her extensive experience as a surgeon, and her special skills related to breast cancer and compassionate patient care make her a vital addition to our breast oncology program and to the leadership team of the Cancer Institute,” said Dr. Eduardo M. Sotomayor, director of the TGH Cancer Institute. “She brings a wealth of surgical knowledge, the highest of standards and a deep passion for helping breast cancer patients. In her dual leadership role at TGH as well as in the Cancer Institute, she will help us achieve our vision of providing the safest and most innovative treatment and care for our cancer patients and their families.”

Her prior surgical work has included breast conservation approaches with breast cancer patients, nipple-sparing mastectomy, and breast reconstruction. “Dr. Duggan is a very welcome addition to the breast cancer team,” said Dr. Jorge Marcet, professor, and director of the division of colon and rectal surgery at the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, leader of Tampa General’s surgical oncology program, and medical director of the hospital’s colorectal surgery services. “Her surgical prowess combined with her compassion and understanding of a breast cancer patient’s needs and concerns are a true asset for our goal of treating the whole patient.”

Trained in general surgery, Duggan discovered that she loved performing breast cancer surgery cases in her first job in a small community hospital and helping patients deal with the anxiety and challenges they faced. Her role in the breast cancer program at TGH Cancer Institute will be primarily that of a surgeon.

“I always say that being a capable surgeon is remarkable, but that is what training is for,” she said. “Being a good doctor, one who listens to their patients, is another thing. I help people understand their disease. Most people diagnosed with breast cancer survive. They go through challenging treatments but even someone with a stage 3 or metastatic breast cancer diagnosis can live for years. ‘Right-sizing‘  anxiety is very important. Breast cancer is a spectrum of disease – even stage 4 is treatable. No matter what, patients should not worry. They should understand that they have options.”

Building on the success of the Tampa General Hospital oncology program – rated among the top 10 percent for cancer care in the U.S. according to U.S. News & World Report’s 2021-2022 rankings – the Tampa General Hospital Cancer Institute is providing comprehensive care via leading-edge therapies and advanced diagnostic imaging tools. The addition of Duggan to the Cancer Institute underscores Tampa General’s priority to providing state-of-the-art, innovative care to cancer patients in a leading academic medical center.

“Dr. Duggan’s acumen of expertise in the surgical management of breast malignancies and in providing second opinions, consultations and treatments of complex breast tumors is second to none. She will be joining a world-class team that will be at the forefront of developing novel therapies and in connecting breast cancer patients with state-of-the-art treatment options in a compassionate environment,” said Dr. Abraham Schwarzberg, senior vice president of oncology and network development at Tampa General Hospital, who also works with Dr. Duggan in her other role as CMO and member of the executive leadership team at Tampa General.

Tampa General’s cancer physicians offer a highly coordinated range of multidisciplinary specialties such as hematologic malignancies, stem cell and cellular therapies as well as thoracic, breast, colorectal and gynecologic oncology. Advanced subspecialties will be offered as well, including liver and hepatobiliary oncology, otolaryngology (ear, nose, and throat) and genitourinary (reproductive system and genitourinary tract). Tampa General will continue to take a multidisciplinary approach and will strongly emphasize compassionate and personalized care that focuses on the whole patient. For more information about the Tampa General Hospital Cancer Institute, visit www.tgh.org/cancer.

ABOUT TAMPA GENERAL HOSPITAL
Tampa General Hospital, a 1,041-bed non-profit academic medical center, is one of the largest hospitals in America and delivers world-class care as the region’s only center for Level l trauma and comprehensive burn care. Tampa General Hospital is the highest-ranked hospital in the market in U.S. News & World Report's 2021-22 Best Hospitals, and one of the top 4 hospitals in Florida, with five specialties ranking among the best programs in the United States. The academic medical center’s commitment to growing and developing its team members is recognized by two prestigious 2021 Forbes magazine rankings – America’s Best Employers by State, third out of 100 Florida companies and first among health care and social organizations and 13^th nationally in America’s Best Employers for Women. Tampa General is the safety net hospital for the region, caring for everyone regardless of their ability to pay, and in fiscal 2020 provided a net community benefit worth more than $182.5 million in the form of health care for underinsured patients, community education and financial support to community health organizations in Tampa Bay. It is one of the nation’s busiest adult solid organ transplant centers and is the primary teaching hospital for the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. With five medical helicopters, Tampa General Hospital transports critically injured or ill patients from 23 surrounding counties to receive the advanced care they need. Tampa General houses a nationally accredited comprehensive stroke center, and its 32-bed Neuroscience Intensive Care Unit is the largest on the West Coast of Florida. It also is home to the Jennifer Leigh Muma 82-bed Level IV neonatal intensive care unit, and a nationally accredited rehabilitation center. Tampa General Hospital’s footprint includes 17 Tampa General Medical Group Primary Care offices, TGH Family Care Center Kennedy, TGH Brandon Healthplex, TGH Virtual Health and 19 outpatient Radiology Centers. Tampa Bay residents also receive world-class care from the TGH Urgent Care powered by Fast Track network of clinics, and they can even receive home visits in select areas through TGH Urgent Care at Home, powered by Fast Track.  As one of the largest hospitals in the country, Tampa General Hospital is first in Florida to partner with GE Healthcare and open a clinical command center that uses artificial intelligence and predictive analytics to improve and better coordinate patient care at a lower cost.  For more information, go to www.tgh.org.