Leadership

Dax Kurbegov, MD – Senior Vice President

Dax Kurbegov, MD, serves as Senior Vice President and leads Sarah Cannon, the oncology service line of HCA Healthcare. Dr. Kurbegov oversees all elements of Sarah Cannon’s market operations, ensuring consistency and quality and fostering collaboration across our global network of cancer programs. Across our 90+ Commission on Cancer and Foundation for the Accreditation of Cellular Therapy accredited programs, he ensures that our patients receive personalized care through robust multi-disciplinary conferences, physician-developed clinical pathways and the support of our more than 180 dedicated oncology nurse navigators.

In addition, Dr. Kurbegov is an investigator in the rapidly evolving field of blood-based early cancer detection technologies which promise a convenient way to screen for many cancers at once, including cancers that have had no screening strategies up until now. Sarah Cannon has enrolled more than 30,000 patients in early detection studies and is helping bring forward the very first tests in the commercial setting.

Dr. Kurbegov joined Sarah Cannon in 2017 from Catholic Health Initiatives where he led the national oncology service line. Dr. Kurbegov received his bachelor of science from Stanford University and his medical degree from Baylor College of Medicine. He completed his internship and residency in internal medicine at University of Colorado Health Sciences Center and his medical oncology fellowship from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. He has served as a physician advisor for the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO®) CancerLinQ program, and Chair of the ASCO Research Community Forum Steering Group for the 2017-2018 term. He is recognized as a Fellow of the American Society for Clinical Oncology.

Navneet Majhail, MD, MS, FASTCT – Physician-in-Chief of Blood Cancers

Dr. Majhail leads the Sarah Cannon Transplant & Cellular Therapy Network which provides a multidisciplinary approach to the treatment of blood cancers and offers increased access to cutting-edge cell and transplant therapies.

Prior to his time with Sarah Cannon, he served as the director of the Cleveland Clinic’s blood and marrow transplant program while also serving as the vice chair for the department of hematology and medical oncology and a professor of medicine with the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine. He is a past-president of the American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy (ASTCT) and has been recognized as a fellow for his contributions to the field of transplantation and cellular therapy. He is a respected thought leader in health outcomes research and has published extensively on the prevention and management of early and late complications of hematopoietic cell transplantation and health policy issues such as healthcare disparities, quality of care, survivorship and economic issues related to transplantation and cellular therapy.

In addition to his work at Sarah Cannon, Dr. Majhail serves as program medical director for the Sarah Cannon Transplant & Cellular Therapy Program at TriStar Centennial Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee.

Rocky Billups, MS – Vice President, Market Operations

Rocky Billups joined Sarah Cannon in 2011 and has more than 20 years of experience in clinical practice and developing oncology programs. He is responsible for the development and implementation of Sarah Cannon's strategy for the delivery of a comprehensive and integrated blood cancer service line in the United States. He was instrumental in the development of the Sarah Cannon Transplant and Cellular Therapy Network in 2011 and facilitated the opening of Sarah Cannon Research Institute - UK, the first phase I oncology research facility in the private sector and accredited by the Care Quality Commission.

Billups received his diploma in nursing from St. Mary's School of Nursing in Huntington, W. Va. and his Bachelor's and Master's degrees in health services administration from Regis University. Previously, he served as administrator of Sarah Cannon Cancer Network and director of oncology program development for HCA, TriStar Division. He is a professional member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, American Society of Hematology, American Society of Blood and Marrow Transplantation and the Association of Community Cancer Centers.

Jonathan Tinker, MHA, MBA – Vice President, Market Strategy

Jonathan Tinker serves as vice president of Sarah Cannon Cancer Network overseeing oncology programmatic developments in select markets throughout the United States. His focus is continuing the growth of Sarah Cannon Cancer Network programs as well as work to further integrate additional HCA Healthcare divisions into the Sarah Cannon Cancer Institute operational model.

Jonathan previously served as the regional vice president for cancer services in the Capital Division and San Antonio Division where he worked in tandem with key division leaders, hospital administrators, and physicians to focus on developing and implementing an oncology service line strategy across the entire continuum of care.

Jonathan’s vast experience includes management roles at MD Anderson Cancer Center, the Cancer Therapy Research Center and General Electric’s Health Care Division. He received his Bachelor of Science in biomedical science from Texas A&M University at College Station and his Master of Healthcare Administration and Master of Business Administration from the University of Houston-Clear Lake.

Richard Geer, MD – Physician-in-Chief, Physician Leadership

Dr. Geer joined Sarah Cannon in 2012 and serves as physician-in-chief of surgical oncology for Sarah Cannon Cancer Network. His primary responsibility includes programmatic development of solid tumor malignancies in Sarah Cannon core markets. This is accomplished by a patient-centered multidisciplinary approach through physician engagement which serves to improve patient experience and the quality of care delivered.

He is certified by the American Board of Surgery. His surgical oncology fellowship was performed at Memorial Sloan-Kettering in New York City, where he was also the chief administrative fellow. He is a member of the Society of Surgical Oncology, Nashville Surgical Society (past president), Fellow American College of Surgeons and American Society of Clinical Oncology. Geer received his medical degree from University of Alabama – Birmingham before completing his general surgery residency at Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee.

Andrew Kennedy, MD – Physician-in-Chief, Radiation Oncology

Dr. Kennedy joined Sarah Cannon in 2012 as the physician-in-chief of radiation oncology and the director of radiation oncology research at Sarah Cannon Cancer Network. He is responsible for strategic development of radiation oncology services for the HCA enterprise and development of radiation oncology research program within Sarah Cannon Cancer Network.

Kennedy is a graduate of the Loma Linda School of Medicine in California, and completed his residency at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is an internationally renowned radiation oncologist specializing in gastrointestinal, breast and lung cancers, brachytherapy and stereotactic approaches. Nationally, he served as a member of the Board of Chancellors for the American College of Radiation Oncology and is a Fellow of the College. He has been selected yearly since 2009 as one of America’s Best Doctors (top 5 percent of U.S.), and was inducted into Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) Honor Society as a faculty member in 1999.