Our Team

Vikas P. Sukhatme, MD, ScD

Morningside Center Director and Co-founder

Dr. Sukhatme has made outstanding contributions in basic science, translational studies, and clinical research. He has over 200 scientific publications that have been cited more than 40,000 times.

His longstanding interest in cancer currently centers around tumor metabolism, tumor immunology, and outside-of-the-box approaches for treating advanced disease and preventing cancer recurrence.

Former dean of Emory School of Medicine and the Robert W. Woodruff Professor of Medicine, Dr. Sukhatme co-founded GlobalCures, Inc., a nonprofit medical research foundation.

Vidula Sukhatme, MS

Morningside Center Co-founder

Mrs. Sukhatme, CEO of GlobalCures, Inc., is a co-founder of the Morningside Center for Innovative and Affordable Medicine. She has 20 years of experience in information systems in health care environments. She holds two master of science degrees: one in mathematics from Northeastern University and a second in epidemiology from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Michael Lowe, MD, MA

Clinical Director

Dr. Lowe is an Associate Professor in the Division of Surgical Oncology of the Department of Surgery at Emory University School of Medicine. A board certified surgical oncologist, Dr. Lowe's primary focus is in cutaneous oncology and specializes in the treatment of cutaneous malignancies including melanoma, basal cell carcinoma and Merkel cell carcinoma. He joined Emory after completing a fellowship in Complex General Surgical Oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, NY.

Dr. Lowe holds memberships with American Society of Clinical Oncology, Association of Academic Surgery, Society of Surgical Oncology and American College of Surgeons.

David A. Frank, MD, PhD, FACP

Advisor

Dr. Frank is the director of the Division of Hematology and a professor in Emory University School of Medicine's Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology. He also serves as director of the Winship Innovation Initiative and as an advisor to the Morningside Center for Innovative and Affordable Medicine within the Woodruff Health Sciences Center. Board certified in medical oncology, he cares for patients with hematologic malignancies, specializing in leukemia. He is actively involved in training the next generation of clinical oncologists and cancer scientists.

Dr. Frank is a member of the Discovery and Developmental Therapeutics Research Program at Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University. He is a Fellow of American College of Physicians. He holds professional memberships with American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Association of Cancer Research, American Society of Hematology, American Society of Clinical Oncology, and American Society for Microbiology. He serves as chair for the Medical Sciences Section of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Prior to joining Emory, Dr. Frank was the chief quality officer for Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center, having previously served as chair of Quality Improvement for Medical Oncology, chair of the Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee, and medical director of patient safety.

Lisa M Carlson, MPH, MCHES

Executive Administrator for Research Administration

Lisa M. Carlson, MPH, MCHES is executive administrator, research administration, at Emory University School of Medicine, directing research initiatives across the School's core missions, and working at the intersection of health sciences, research administration, and practice. She has served more than 20 years at Emory in the School of Medicine and the Rollins School of Public Health. Carlson teaches in the Rollins Executive MPH program and was the recipient of the 2015 Outstanding Teaching and Mentoring Adjunct Faculty Award and the 2021 Rollins Distinguished Achievement Award. She is past president of the American Public Health Association (APHA), past chair of APHA's Executive Board, and a past president and honorary lifetime member of the Georgia Public Health Association.

Krista Charen, MPH

Associate Director of Research Projects and Operations

Krista Charen, MPH is Associate Director, Research Programs and Operations, at Emory School of Medicine. She has over 19 years of experience in facilitating and conducting clinical research at Emory University. She received her Masters of Public Health from the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University.

Greeshma Kombara, MPH

Research Program Associate

Greeshma Kombara, MPH is Research Program Associate at Emory School of Medicine. She is a Master of Public Health graduate from the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University. Previously, she was working as Dentist in India before moving to the United States in 2019.

Selvi S. Ramalingam, MS

Morningside Center Consultant

Selvi S Ramalingam is a biomedical consultant with master's in molecular biology and business administration. She has over eight years of experience in the field of bioinformatics, and has had the opportunity to serve in India and the United States. She has been working as a consultant at Morningside center for Innovative and Affordable Medicine since 2019. Her interest lies in bridging the gap between research and clinical applications. She aspires to leverage her unique background in bioinformatics, technology and business to generate innovative data driven insights that could transform patient care and outcomes.  She also serves as a scientific advisor for GlobalCures.