PHILADELPHIA, PA – NRG Oncology (NRG), a National Cancer Institute (NCI) National Clinical Trials Network (NCTN) group focused on improving outcomes for adults with cancer through multi-center clinical research, recently announced changes in leadership across multiple committees.
John Nakayama, MD, was appointed Vice Chair of the NRG Ancillary Projects (AP) Committee effective March 1, 2026. Dr. Nakayama will be filling the open position from Dr. Bridget Koontz’s transition from former Vice Chair to current Chair of the AP Committee. Dr. Nakayama is a gynecologic oncologist and translational researcher. He is the Director of Translational Research for the Division of Gynecologic Oncology at Allegheny Health Network and an associate professor at Drexel University College of Medicine. In his tenure he built a robust program centered on advancing precision oncology through biomarker development, particularly in circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA), homologous recombination deficiency testing, and molecular residual disease. He has led and secured multiple industry-sponsored and institutional grants as principal investigator, while overseeing the gynecologic portion of a large-scale biobanking initiative that has enrolled over 10,000 patients, generating a rich longitudinal dataset linking tumor specimens with serial blood samples. His work has demonstrated early concordance between ctDNA and tumor DNA and continues to drive forward studies on platinum sensitivity and genomic predictors of response. In parallel, Dr. Nakayama pioneered the integration of artificial intelligence and machine learning into gynecologic oncology research, developing predictive models for ovarian cancer recurrence, chemotherapy toxicity, and synthetic data applications. He is currently a co-editor of the Society of Gynecologic Oncology Anti-Neoplastic Handbook, where he helped transition the guide to incorporate targeted therapies and molecularly informed care. Prior to becoming Vice Chair, Dr. Nakayama was a member of the NRG AP Committee and currently serves as a member of the group’s Ovarian Cancer Subcommittee.
Ibrahim Nassour, MD, MSCS, FACS, became Vice Chair of the NRG Surgical Oncology Committee. Dr. Nassour is the Director of Robotic systems and Regional Cancer Therapies as well as the CoC Cancer Liaison Physician at the University of Florida (UF) At UF, he leads funded research initiatives, including a Florida Department of Health–supported project to improve gastric cancer care through patient navigation systems and serves as the local principal investigator on multiple national clinical trials within the NCI NCTN. Dr. Nassour co-chairs the UF Robotics Steering Committee and is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. His career has been recognized with numerous awards for research, clinical excellence, and education, including early distinctions for top national examination performance and multiple honors for scientific presentations and publications. Most recently, Dr. Nassour received the 2025 Outstanding Faculty Award in General Surgery at UF. At NRG, Dr. Nassour serves on the Gastrointestinal Committee and liaisons for the Surgical Oncology Committee. He also is a study champion for several key NRG protocols.
Dr. Nassour will replace Dr. Thomas Julian as his term as Vice Chair recently concluded. NRG Oncology thanks Dr. Julian for his many contributions to this committee.
Scott Okuno, MD, was appointed Vice Chair of the NRG Sarcoma Subcommittee. Dr. Okuno is the Chief Medical Officer of the Sarcoma Alliance for Research through Collaboration (SARC), the Chair of the Mayo Clinic Health System Department of Hematology and Oncology, and a Professor of Oncology in the Department of Oncology at Mayo Clinic. Dr. Okuno is the Co-Founder of the Midwest Sarcoma Trials Partnership and serves as a Co-Chair of the National Leiomyosarcoma Foundation Round Table and Chair of the Audit Committee for the Alliance Cancer Cooperative Group. Dr. Okuno has been deeply involved in cooperative group research through organizations such as NRG, Alliance, and the Children’s Oncology Group, serving as a co–principal investigator on key trials including ARST1321, which evaluated the addition of pazopanib to chemoradiation in soft tissue sarcoma. His research focuses on advancing novel and targeted therapies for sarcoma, addressing critical gaps in treatment for both localized and metastatic disease, and identifying histology-specific approaches to improve outcomes. In addition to leading a high-volume sarcoma clinic that evaluates hundreds of new patients annually, he has played a central role in expanding access to clinical trials across both academic and community settings.
Angeles Alvarez Secord, MD, MHSc, was appointed Chair of the NRG Investigator & Career Development Committee. Dr. Secord is a professor in the Division of Gynecologic Oncology in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Duke University. She also is the Director of Gynecologic Oncology Clinical Trials at Duke Cancer Institute. Dr. Secord sits on multiple Scientific Advisory Boards for NRG’s pharmaceutical partners as well as one of NRG’s legacy groups, the GOG Foundation. Dr. Secord previously served as the NRG Investigator & Career Development Committee Vice Chair prior to being appointed as Committee Chair. Additionally at NRG, Dr. Secord serves as the Chair of the Early Career Mentorship Subcommittee and is a core member of the Uterine Corpus Subcommittee. She also serves as the NRG and the GOG Partners Program Principal Investigator at Duke University. Dr. Secord’s gynecologic oncology career is deeply rooted in leadership and mentorship. In 2019, she founded a multicenter consortium focused on molecularly targeted therapy in endometrial cancer which now includes over 25 sites and 4,000 patients. She previously served as the President of the Society of Gynecologic Oncology and contributed to numerous national initiatives on women’s health research, and advisory roles across industry and academic organizations. She has mentored over 40 trainees and faculty, many of whom have secured competitive funding, reflecting a deep and ongoing commitment to cultivating the next generation of clinical investigators while advancing the science and practice of gynecologic oncology.
Samantha Tam, MD, MPH, FRCSC, became Vice Chair of the NRG Patient-Center Outcomes Research (PCOR) Committee. Dr. Tam is the Vice Chair of Research and Academics as well as the Medical Director of Patient Reported Outcomes in Cancer in the Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery at Henry Ford Health System. She specializes in patient-reported outcome measures, health services research, epidemiology, and implementation science. At Henry Ford, Dr. Tam has grown a system-wide PROMs program implemented in routine cancer care since 2021, generating impactful research on completion, equity, and clinical value of PROMs, supported by both internal and external funding, including PI-led grants and national awards such as the American Head and Neck Society Presidential Award. At NRG, Dr. Tam serves as the Patient-Reported Outcomes Co-Chair for the currently enrolling NRG-HN014 study as well as the Vice Chair of the Head and Neck PRO-Cost Effectiveness Working Group. She is a core member of NRG’s Head and Neck Cancer and Surgical Oncology Committees and previously served as a member of the NRG Patient-Reported Outcomes Committee prior to becoming Vice Chair. Her scholarly contributions include numerous peer-reviewed publications, national presentations, and leadership of multidisciplinary research initiatives focused on improving equitable, patient-centered cancer care.
Christina Wu, MD, was appointed Vice Chair of the NRG Medical Oncology Committee. Dr. Wu is the Associate Chair of Practice in the Division of Hematology/Oncology as well as the Associate Chair of Outpatient Practice in the Department of Medicine at May Clinic, Arizona. She is a medical oncologist and clinical investigator focused on defining novel molecular and immunologic mechanisms that drive gastrointestinal malignancies, with the goal of translating these discoveries into innovative therapeutic strategies. Her research contributions span early-phase biomarker-driven trials, molecular characterization of KRAS-mutant and mismatch repair–deficient colorectal cancers, and the integration of artificial intelligence and liquid biopsy approaches for risk stratification and recurrence prediction, supported by funding from the American Cancer Society, NCCN, and NIH K12 programs. At NRG, Dr. Wu is a core member of the NRG Oncology Gastrointestinal Cancer Committee under both the Colorectal and Non-Colorectal Committees and is also the Chair of the Colon Gastrointestinal Subsite Working Group. She previously served as Medical Oncology Co-Chair on the NRG-GI009 and as the Study Champion for the Alliance A021703 trial. Dr. Wu is a member of the NCI Colon Task Force and is very focused on mentoring junior investigators in cutting-edge studies utilizing circulating tumor DNA to guide treatment decisions.
NRG looks forward to the continued advances of the group’s research through the leadership and guidance of these individuals in their new roles.
For current open NRG committee leadership and member application cycles, please check the NRG website current openings page .
About NRG Oncology
NRG Oncology conducts practice-changing, multi-institutional clinical and translational research to improve the lives of patients with cancer. Founded in 2012, NRG Oncology is a Pennsylvania-based nonprofit corporation that integrates the research of the legacy National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project (NSABP), Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG), and Gynecologic Oncology Group (GOG) programs. The research network seeks to carry out clinical trials with emphases on gender-specific malignancies, including gynecologic, breast, and prostate cancers, and on localized or locally advanced cancers of all types. NRG Oncology’s extensive research organization comprises multidisciplinary investigators, including medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, surgeons, physicists, pathologists, and statisticians, and encompasses more than 1,300 research sites located world-wide with predominance in the United States and Canada. NRG Oncology is supported primarily through grants from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and is one of five research groups in the NCI’s National Clinical Trials Network.