Nationally Recognized Leader in Neuroendocrine and Endocrine Tumors Joins the TGH Cancer Institute

Dr. Boris Naraev specializes in the treatment and research of patients with gastrointestinal, neuroendocrine and endocrine cancers.

Tampa, FL (Feb. 12, 2025) – Tampa General Hospital (TGH) today announced that Dr. Boris Naraev, a medical oncologist specializing in caring for patients living with gastrointestinal, neuroendocrine and endocrine tumors, has joined the TGH Cancer Institute. In addition, he has been appointed as associate professor in the Department of Internal Medicine at the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine.

Bringing Naraev to the academic health system’s Cancer Institute will significantly aid the fight against difficult-to-treat cancers in the Tampa Bay area and beyond, said Dr. Eduardo M. Sotomayor, vice president and executive director of the TGH Cancer Institute.

“The strength of my enthusiasm for Dr. Naraev is based on his prestigious academic credentials and his clinical research accomplishments to date in the highly specialized area of neuroendocrine and endocrine cancers, where he is a recognized national leader,” Sotomayor said.

Naraev was previously with the Anderson Family Cancer Institute at the Jupiter Medical Center in Jupiter, Florida, where he served as leader of the Gastrointestinal, Neuroendocrine and Rare Cancers Program. He also worked at Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center in Phoenix, where he helped develop and lead one of the largest neuroendocrine cancer programs in the southwestern United States, while serving as an adjunct assistant professor with the Division of Cancer Medicine at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

He earned a Doctor of Medicine degree, Summa Cum Laude, in 1994 and a Doctor of Philosophy in Medical Sciences in 2001 from the Orenburg State Medical Academy in Orenburg, Russia.

Dr. Noman Ashraf, a medical oncologist and physician leader at the TGH Cancer Institute, works alongside Naraev in caring for patients with solid tumors. “Dr. Naraev’s accomplishments in clinical care, research and education make him an incredibly valuable asset to our team,” Ashraf said. “I’m confident in his ability to provide our patients cutting-edge treatment and access to novel clinical trials.”

Endocrine tumors can arise from any endocrine cell within hormone-producing glands and organs such as the thyroid, adrenal, parathyroid and pituitary glands, as well as the hypothalamus and pancreas. Neuroendocrine tumors are rare and can develop only from neuroendocrine cells, which share similar characteristics with nerve and hormone-producing cells.

“Since joining the TGH Cancer Institute, Dr. Naraev has become the driving force in bringing innovative and potentially practice-changing clinical trials to our institution to help patients with neuroendocrine, endocrine and gastrointestinal cancers,” said Dr. Richard Tuli, deputy director of the TGH Cancer Institute and professor and chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology at the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. As a nationally recognized expert on radiopharmaceutical therapy, Naraev brings his knowledge and expertise to the Cancer Institute. “We’re very fortunate he’s part of the team,’’ Tuli said.

For Naraev, the TGH Cancer Institute, its people and approach to treating patients won him over immediately. “To be part of one of the nation’s best medical centers is something I’ve always dreamed of,” he said. “I know I’ll do my best work here and translating that energy to our patients couldn’t make me more proud, both as a doctor and as a human being.”

“The introduction of Dr. Naraev to the Cancer Institute is another great stride toward Tampa General’s goal in becoming the nation’s best health care center,” says Dr. Abraham Schwarzberg, executive vice president, chief of Oncology, president of the Tampa General Provider Network, Tampa General and co-vice president of Clinical and Translational Research, TGH-USF Health Office of Clinical Research. “We are thrilled to have a renowned educator, researcher and exceptional physician join us in our efforts to deliver world-class care to all of our patients.”

 

One of the few Florida cancer centers backed by academic medicine, the TGH Cancer Institute ranks among the nation’s top 50 cancer centers in U.S. News & World Report's 2024-2025 Best Hospitals and No. 3 in the state. The institute provides comprehensive care via groundbreaking therapies, advanced diagnostic imaging tools and a highly coordinated, interdisciplinary approach to world-class patient care. It is certified by the American College of Surgeons’ Commission on Cancer Accreditation and by the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) for meeting the strict standards required by the society’s Quality Oncology Practice Initiative (QOPI®) program and has been named among America’s Best Cancer Hospitals by Newsweek. For more information about the TGH Cancer Institute, visit www.tgh.org/cancer.