Medical Oncology

At ACTREC, our Department of Medical Oncology is dedicated to providing compassionate care along with cutting-edge cancer treatment. We strive to combine clinical excellence with research and education to improve patient outcomes. Our team works with commitment and empathy, ensuring that every patient receives holistic and personalized care.
– Dr. Amit Joshi
Professor & Head, Department of Medical Oncology

• Comprehensive diagnosis, and management of adult and paediatric hematological/ solid tumor malignancies.
• One of the largest Hematopoietic stem cell/ Bone marrow transplant Centres in Asia with more than 1500 transplants done so far and more than 100 transplants being conducted each year (including complicated adult and paediatric malignancies).
• State of the art Day care chemotherapy services with more than 150 chemotherapies administered on daily basis – available 365 days.
• Scalp cooling services for prevention of post chemotherapy hair loss.
• Advanced CAR-T and cellular therapy services.
• Joint clinics with multiple specialties including Radiation, surgical, radiology pathology (including molecular), and palliative oncology to provide comprehensive and holistic treatment for cancer patients.
• PICC (peripherally inserted central catheter) clinic: to provide counseling, line access and post-insertion care of central lines, Ports and catheters.
• Ongoing clinical research: Ongoing globally sponsored and investigator-initiated trials/ studies including Phase I/II/III/IV for novel molecules/therapies and drug combinations.
• Specialized and trained chemotherapy nursing staff to administer chemotherapy in day care and inpatient wards
• Well-equipped wards to manage all complications of chemotherapy and oncology related emergencies

• Neoadjuvant/ adjuvant and palliative chemotherapy for adult solid tumor malignancies- including head and neck, Thoracic, Bone and soft tissue, Gastro-intestinal and hepato- biliary, Genito-urinary and Breast.
• Chemotherapy for adult and paediatric hematological cancer.
• Cellular therapy, CAR T and hematopoietic stem cell transplant for adult and pediatric cancers.
• Availability of 24 x 7 emergency services for chemotherapy/ transplant related complications.
• Comprehensive Patient support initiatives for various cancers e.g. MENCAN www.mencan.in
• Social work and financial support with various NGOs, charitable trusts and individual/corporate donors.

• Largest and most successful BMT services for past 15 years (link for publication)
• First centre to start indigenous CART cellular therapy in India (link for publication)
• First centre to start adult onco Survivorship Clinic

• Narula G, Keerthivasagam S, Jain H, Punatar S, Chichra A, Dhamne C, Tembhare P, Subramanian PG, Patkar N, Poojary M, Gokarn A. Novel humanized CD19-CAR-T (Now talicabtagene autoleucel, Tali-cel™) cells in relapsed/refractory pediatric B-acute lymphoblastic leukemia-an open-label single-arm phase-I/Ib study. Blood Cancer Journal. 2025 Apr 24;15(1):75.


• Cortes JE, Saikia T, Kim DW, Alvarado Y, Nicolini FE, Khattry N, Rathnam K, Apperley J, Deininger MW, de Lavallade H, Charbonnier A. Phase 1 trial of vodobatinib, a novel oral BCR-ABL1 tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI): activity in CML chronic phase patients failing TKI therapies including ponatinib. Blood. 2020 Nov 5;136:51-2.


• Khattry N, Laskar S, Sengar M, Rangarajan V, Shet T, Subramanian PG, Epari S, Bagal B, Goda JS, Agarwal A, Jain H. Long term clinical outcomes of adult hematolymphoid malignancies treated at Tata Memorial Hospital: an institutional audit. Indian Journal of Cancer. 2018 Jan 1;55(1):9-15.


• Gambacorti‐Passerini C, Cortes JE, Lipton JH, Dmoszynska A, Wong RS, Rossiev V, Pavlov D, Gogat Marchant K, Duvillié L, Khattry N, Kantarjian HM. Safety of bosutinib versus imatinib in the phase 3 BELA trial in newly diagnosed chronic phase chronic myeloid leukemia. American journal of hematology. 2014 Oct;89(10):947-53


• Marks DI, Khattry N, Cummins M, Goulden N, Green A, Harvey J, Hunt LP, Keen L, Robinson SP, Steward CG, Cornish JM. Haploidentical stem cell transplantation for children with acute leukaemia. British journal of haematology. 2006 Jul;134(2):196-201.


• Joshi A, Anand A, Prabhash K, Noronha V, Shrirangwar S, Bakshi G, Pal M, Murthy V, Krishnatry R, Desai S, Menon S, Patil D, Kulkarni S, Sable N, Popat P, Agrawal A, Rangarajan V, Prakash G. Kidney cancer demographics and outcome data from 2013 at a tertiary cancer hospital in India. Indian J Cancer. 2017 Oct-Dec;54(4):601-604.


• Joshi A, Patil V, Noronha V, Dhumal S, Pande N, Chandrasekharan A, Turkar S, DSouza H, Shrirangwar S, Mahajan A, Arya S, Juvekar S, BhattaCharjee A, Prabhash K. Results of a phase II randomized controlled clinical trial comparing efficacy of Cabazitaxel versus Docetaxel as second line or above therapy in recurrent head and neck cancer. Oral Oncol. 2017 Dec;75:54-60.


• Joshi A, Patil VM, Noronha V, Ramaswamy A, Gupta S, Bhattacharjee A, Bonda A, Chandrakanth MV, Ostwal V, Khattry N, Banavali S, Prabhash K. EMERALD: Emergency visit audit of patients treated under medical oncology in a tertiary cancer center: Logical steps to decrease the burden. South Asian J Cancer. 2017 Oct-Dec;6(4):186-189.


• Joshi A, Patil VM, Noronha V, Bhattacharjee A, Menon N, Kumar A, Jain P, Mukadam S, Shrinivas A, Punia A, Abhyankar A, Agarwal A, Khaddar S, Rajpurohit A, Kumar KAP, Ravind R, Das K, Talreja V, Dhumal S, Prabhash K. Diclofenac versus tramadol for mucositis related pain in head and neck cancer patients undergoing concurrent chemoradiation-a phase 3 study. Ecancermedicalscience. 2021 Nov 18;15:1318.


• Joshi A, Kalra D, Simha V, Menon N, Noronha V, Bakshi G, Prakash G, Pal M, Murthy V, Menon S, Sable N, Agrawal A, Rane P, Prabhash K. Second-line therapy in testicular germ cell tumours: results from a tertiary cancer care centre in India. Ecancermedicalscience. 2022 Jun 13;16:1408.


• Chronic Graft versus Host Disease in Acute Leukemia patients undergoing Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant: Analysis of risk factors, pattern and long-term outcome. Indian Journal of Hematology and Blood transfusion. 2015 Jan 20. DOI: 10.1007/s12288-015-0506-5


• Punatar S, Kalantri SA, Chichra A, Agrawal AK, Nayak L, Bonda A, Gokarn A, Bagal B, Mathew L, Kannan S, Khattry N. Pre-transplant use of tyrosine kinase inhibitors and transplant associated thrombotic microangiopathy - a single centre analysis of incidence, risk factors and outcomes. Bone Marrow Transplant. 2021 Jan 29. doi: 10.1038/s41409-021-01213-0. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 33514924.


• Punatar S, Mohite A, Gokarn A, Nayak L, Bonda A, Shanmugam K, Vijaysekharan K, Khattry N. Leflunomide for chronic musculoskeletal graft versus host disease following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant. Bone Marrow Transplant. 2020 Feb;55(2):467-469. doi: 10.1038/s41409-019-0545-x. Epub 2019 May 14. PMID: 31089281


• Punatar S, Katti K, Rajamanickam D, Patil P, Dhakan C, Bagal B, Gokarn A, Bonda A, Nayak L, Gurjar M, Kannan S, Chiplunkar S, Gota V, Khattry N. Role of Curcumin in Reducing Toxicities Associated With Mucosal Injury Following Melphalan-Based Conditioning in Autologous Transplant Setting. Cell Transplant. 2022 Jan-Dec;31:9636897221086969. doi: 10.1177/09636897221086969. PMID: 35435039; PMCID: PMC9019322


• Punatar S, Murugaiyan V, Kumbhalwar K, Gokarn A, Chichra A, Mirgh S, Nayak L, Bonda A, Jindal N, Shirure V, Bagal B, Mathew L, Kannan S, Saikia T, Khattry N. Comparison of Outcomes of Donor Lymphocyte Infusions With or Without Lenalidomide in Patients with Hematological Malignancies Post Allogeneic HSCT. Indian J Hematol Blood Transfus. 2023 Jan;39(1):40-49. doi: 10.1007/s12288-022-01545-x. Epub 2022 Jul 22. PMID: 36699432; PMCID: PMC9868208.


• Gokarn A, Reddy L, Hiregoudar S, Poojary M, Parab S, Punatar S, Chichra A, Mirgh S, Jindal N, Nayak L, Garg K. A comparison of mobilization regimens used in Hodgkin lymphoma and factors that influence peripheral blood stem cell mobilization. Cytotherapy. 2025 Jan 23.


• Gokarn A, Toshniwal A, Pathak A, Arora S, Bonda A, Punatar S, Nayak L, Dwivedi P, Bhat V, Biswas S, Kelkar R. Use of leflunomide for treatment of cytomegalovirus infection in recipients of allogeneic stem cell transplant. Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation. 2019 Sep 1;25(9):1832-6.


• Gokarn A, Tembhare PR, Syed H, Sanyal I, Kumar R, Parab S, Khanka T, Punatar S, Kedia S, Ghogale SG, Deshpande N. Long-term cryopreservation of peripheral blood stem cell harvest using low concentration (4.35%) dimethyl sulfoxide with methyl cellulose and uncontrolled rate freezing at-80° C: an effective option in resource-limited settings. Transplantation and Cellular Therapy. 2023 Dec 1;29(12):777-e1.


• Tembhare PR, Sriram H, Chatterjee G, Khanka T, Gokarn A, Mirgh S, Rajendra A, Chaturvedi A, Ghogale SG, Deshpande N, Girase K. Comprehensive immune cell profiling depicts an early immune response associated with severe coronavirus disease 2019 in cancer patients. Immunology and Cell Biology. 2022 Jan;100(1):61-73.


• Gokarn AG, Shet T. Immunodeficiency-Associated Lymphoproliferative Disorders. InTata Memorial Centre Textbook of Oncology 2024 Aug 30 (pp. 307-317). Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore.


• Chichra A, Nayak L, Kothari R, Kalantri S, Bonda A, Gokarn A, Punatar S, Mirgh S, Jindal N, Bagal B, Kannan S, Mathew L, Khattry N. Fludarabine melphalan versus fludarabine treosulfan for reduced intensity conditioning regimen in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation: a retrospective analysis. Int J Hematol. 2024 Jan;119(1):71-79.


• Narula G, Keerthivasagam S, Jain H, Punatar S, Chichra A, Dhamne C, Tembhare P, Subramanian PG, Patkar N, Poojary M, Gokarn A, Mirgh S, Jindal N, Nisar A, Pandit D, Pandit K, Dwivedi A, Karulkar A, Jaiswal AK, Khan A, Shah S, Rafiq A, Basu M, Pendhari J, Asija S, Chowdury A, Banik A, Moulik NR, Srinivasan S, Bhosle S, Hiregoudar S, Ojha S, Nayak L, Thorat J, Bagal B, Sengar M, Khattry N, Banavali S, Highfill S, Shah NN, Purwar R. Novel humanized CD19-CAR-T (Now talicabtagene autoleucel, Tali-cel™) cells in relapsed/ refractory pediatric B-acute lymphoblastic leukemia- an open-label single-arm phase-I/Ib study. Blood Cancer J. 2025 Apr 24;15(1):75.


• Gupta SK, Gohil D, Momin MB, Yadav S, Chichra A, Punatar S, Gokarn A, Mirgh S, Jindal N, Nayak L, Hingorani L, Khattry N, Gota V. Withania Somnifera Extract Mitigates Experimental Acute Graft versus Host Disease Without Abrogating Graft Versus Leukemia Effect. Cell Transplant. 2024 Jan-Dec;33:9636897241226573


• Jindal N, Saroha M, Mirgh S, Chichra A, Nayak L, Bonda A, Gokarn A, Punatar S, Bagal B, Chavan P, Mathew LJ, Kannan S, Khattry N. Relevance of vitamin D in patients undergoing HLA matched allogeneic stem cell transplant for acute leukemia. Transpl Immunol. 2023 Aug 28;81:101925


• Punatar S, Kalantri SA, Chichra A, Agrawal AK, Nayak L, Bonda A, Gokarn A, Bagal B, Mathew L, Kannan S, Khattry N. Pre-transplant use of tyrosine kinase inhibitors and transplant associated thrombotic microangiopathy - a single centreanalysis of incidence, risk factors and outcomes. Bone Marrow Transplant. 2021 Jan 29.


• Mirgh S, Yanamandra U, Vishvanathan GK, et al. Clinical Perspectives on Amyloidosis in India: A Systematic Literature Review. Clin Lymphoma Myeloma Leuk. Published online May 23, 2025


• Mirgh S, Bagal B, Punatar S, et al. Moving Beyond G-CSF Mobilization-Learning From a 15-Year Experience of Different Stem Cell Mobilization Regimens in Multiple Myeloma. Cancer Med. 2025;14(14):e71068.


• Mirgh SP, Gokarn A, Rajendra A, et al. Clinical characteristics, laboratory parameters and outcomes of COVID-19 in cancer and non-cancer patients from a tertiary Cancer Centre in India [published online ahead of print, 2021 Nov 16]. Cancer Med. 2021;10.1002/cam4.4379


• Mirgh S, Sharma A, Shaikh MRMA, et al. Hypomethylating agents+venetoclax induction therapy in acute myeloid leukemia unfit for intensive chemotherapy - novel avenues for lesser venetoclax duration and patients with baseline infections from a developing country. Am J Blood Res. 2021;11(3):290-302. Published 2021 Jun 15


• Mirgh S, Ahmed R, Agrawal N, et al. Will Daratumumab be the next game changer in early thymic precursor-acute lymphoblastic leukaemia?. Br J Haematol. 2019;187(2):e33-e35.


• Br J Haematol. 2025 – Low-dose nivolumab + bendamustine in children with relapsed/refractory Hodgkin lymphoma


• Pediatr Blood Cancer. 2024 – Cost-effectiveness of treating childhood acute myeloid leukemia in North India


• Ann Hematol. 2023 – Prognostic impact of IKZF1 deletion in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (systematic review & meta-analysis)


• Indian J Pediatr. 2023 – Treatment of pediatric acute promyelocytic leukemia with retinoic acid and arsenic trioxide


• Pediatr Blood Cancer. 2020 – Rituximab-associated toxicities in children with Burkitt lymphoma


• iRetroBC-HER2L Study A Multicenter, Retrospective, Noninterventional Study to Determine the Prevalence of HER2-low, Clinical Characteristics, Treatment Patterns, and Associated Outcomes in Patients Previously Identified With HER2-negative Locally-advanced or Metastatic Breast Cancer Who Progressed on Systemic Anticancer Therapy- analysis done awaiting publication


• Retrospective Assessment of Pertuzumab Therapy in Real-World Settings for the Management of HER2-Positive Breast Cancer: Clinical Characteristics and Treatment Outcomes. - awaiting publication


• A Phase 1, Open Label, Dose Escalation, Dose Expansion, Multicenter, First in Human (FIH) Study Evaluating the Safety, Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics of Oral AUR107 in Patients with Relapsed Advanced Malignancies (SHAKTI-1)ICMR funded IEC approved-ongoing


• Randomized, multi-centric trial using Oral Metronomic Maintenance Therapy (OMMT) in newly diagnosed, locally advanced and/or node positive, non-metastatic triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) patients after the completion of standard therapy along with an exploratory study to assess if circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) and/orcirculating tumor cells (CTCs) can be used as a biomarker to predict the probability of recurrence IEC Approved funds-received TATA Trust grant


• Comparison between static and perfusion-based microfluidic devices for the development of spheroid-based model of breast cancer using primary cells. BIRAC Funded in collaboration with Institute of chemical technology


• Noronha V, Dhanawat A, Patil VM, Menon N, Singh AK, Chaturvedi P, et al. Long-term outcomes of neo-adjuvant chemotherapy on borderline resectable oral cavity cancers: Real-world data of 3266 patients and implications for clinical practice. Oral Oncol. 2024 Jan;148:106633.


• Dhanawat A, Trikha M, Vora M, Gujarathi H, Ostwal V, Bhargava P et al. The use of immune checkpoint inhibitors in advanced gastric/gastroesophageal adenocarcinomas – real-world evidence and the use of alternative dosing. Ecancer. 2024;18:1741.


• Dhanawat A, Noronha V, Ramaswamy A, Gattani S, Castelino R, Dhekale R, Mahajan S, Patil VM, Menon N, Daptardar A, Gota V, Banavali S, Badwe R, Prabhash K. The prevalence of cognitive impairment in older Indian persons with cancer and brain metastases. Ecancer. 2022;16:1372.


• Trikha M, Sarkar L, Dhanawat A, Syed N, Gujarathi H, Vora M et al. Performance of Low-Dose Immunotherapy and Standard-Dose Immunotherapy in Microsatellite Instability-High Metastatic Colorectal Cancer: Real-World Data (CLouD-High Study). JCO Glob Oncol. 2024;10:e2400141


• Syed N, Ramaswamy A, Dhanawat A, Joarder R, Choudhary J, Patel D et al. High-Grade Gastrointestinal Neuroendocrine Carcinomas: Multidisciplinary Approach Can Improve Survival Outcomes. South Asian J Cancer. 2024.patients undergoing concurrent chemoradiation-a phase 3 study. Ecancermedicalscience. 2021 Nov 18;15:1318.