Melissa A. Geller, MD, MS, FACOG

Melissa A. Geller, MD, MS, FACOG, is a tenured professor and gynecologic oncologist in the Division of Gynecologic Oncology, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Women’s Health, at the University of Minnesota and holds the Shirley A. Sparboe Endowed Chair in Women’s Cancer Research. A former division director, she currently serves as vice chair of the department and as associate director of clinical research at the University of Minnesota Masonic Cancer Center.

Dr Geller leads the Gynecologic Cancers Translational Working Group at the Masonic Cancer Center and serves on the Fairview Health Services Board of Directors. She has held leadership roles on multiple national committees focused on gynecologic malignancies, including the NRG Oncology Developmental Therapeutics/Phase I/Experimental Medicine Committee and the NRG Oncology Ovarian Cancer Subcommittee, and is a frequent invited speaker at national and international meetings.

Dr Geller has authored more than 100 peer-reviewed publications and has maintained continuous federal funding to support her translational and clinical research programs. An established clinical trialist and translational researcher, she has led several pivotal studies within NRG Oncology and directs multiple clinical investigations evaluating the intraperitoneal delivery of natural killer cells and other immunotherapies for women with recurrent ovarian cancer. Her translational research laboratory focuses on modulating the tumor microenvironment to enhance natural killer cell–mediated cytotoxicity and advancing novel cellular therapy platforms toward first-in-human clinical trials. Her work is supported by the National Institutes of Health and the US Department of Defense.

A dedicated mentor, Dr Geller has trained numerous fellows, graduate students, and junior faculty who have gone on to have successful academic and clinical research careers.

Dr Geller was selected as a 2024-2025 Fulbright US Scholar in Ireland, where her research focused on advancing and scaling an intraperitoneal catheter device to a functional prototype for use in human clinical trials, further bridging innovation from bench to bedside.