Michael R. Sargen, M.D.
NCI Shady Grove | Room 6E542
Biography
Michael Sargen, M.D., joined the Clinical Genetics Branch (CGB) of DCEG as a clinical fellow in 2018. He received his M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 2013, and completed a residency in dermatology at Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, and a fellowship in dermatopathology at Stanford University, California. Since joining DCEG, Dr. Sargen has served as the lead physician of the melanoma family study at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), performing skin cancer screening exams and diagnostic biopsies for study participants. In addition to his clinical responsibilities, Dr. Sargen has led multiple research projects characterizing the clinical and histologic phenotype of melanoma-prone families, including the first study to report the novel association between germline pathogenic variants of Protection of Telomeres 1 (POT1) gene and melanomas with Spitzoid morphology. Dr. Sargen was promoted to assistant clinical investigator in 2021.
Research Interests
Dr. Sargen’s research combines genomic and epidemiologic methodologies to understand the etiology of cancer. He seeks to:
- Identify genetic and environmental risk factors for skin cancer
- Characterize the clinical and histologic phenotype of melanoma susceptibility syndromes
- Evaluate the effect of whole-body screening and chemoprevention on melanoma thickness and survival for members of melanoma-prone families
- Identify diagnostic, therapeutic, and prognostic biomarkers for melanoma, sebaceous carcinoma, and other skin cancers
- Identify novel inherited gene variants that contribute to the development of atypical spitzoid tumors in children, adolescents, and young adults.