John Nicholas Lukens, MD

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Description of Research Expertise

My research focuses on the multidisciplinary management of head and neck cancers, in particular novel strategies to understand and mitigate the toxicities associated with head and neck radiotherapy. Additionally, I am interested in identifying subsets of patients with HPV+ cancer who may benefit from treatment de-intensification, and conversely, those with high-risk disease who may benefit from novel targeted therapy and/or immunotherapy.

Description of Clinical Expertise

My clinical expertise is in the treatment of head and neck cancers and gastrointestinal cancers. Additionally, I have specialized training in brachytherapy, which consists of placing radioactive sources within, or directly adjacent to a tumor, as a means of delivering highly targeted radiation. I have experience in head and neck, prostate, and gastrointestinal brachytherapy, as well as intra-operative radiotherapy. I have a particular clinical interest in the re-treatment of patients who have undergone a prior course of radiation, through the integration of highly targeted techniques such as proton therapy and brachytherapy. I believe strongly in the importance of an interdisciplinary approach, and work closely with my surgical and medical oncology colleagues to optimize patient outcomes.

Selected Publications

• Icht O, Sun A, Wong P, McPartlin A, Muniz TP, Spreafico A, Saibil SD, Lukens JN, Karam SD, De Almeida J, Butler MO, Tsai CJ : Consolidative use of radiotherapy to block oligoprogression in patients with metastatic melanoma on Systemic Therapy (CURB-Melanoma) - a single arm, phase 2 clinical trial Front Oncol. 6(16) Jul 2026
• Chang A, Jacoby D, Lin A, Lukens JN, Deng J, Banas S, Zheng J : Lymphedema therapy in head & neck cancer with carotid stenosis: a systematic review and care pathway. Oral Oncol. 180 Sept 2026
• Kassamali B, Schoenfeld JD, Sethi R, Bakst RL, Barker CA, Bhatt AA, Bradford CR, Bunch PM, Carr DR, Carucci JA, Chandra S, Chen M, Connolly KL, Demer AM, Doonan B, Emerick K, Friedman BJ, Gali LL, Galloway TJ, Geiger JL, Guenette JP, Kelly HR, Khushalani NI, Kohen L, Koyfman S, Kumar SS, Learned KO, Leitenberger JJ, Lilley EJ, Lukens JN, Medina T, Mitra D, Ozog D, Pashtan I, Patel VA, Pham N, Powers MC, Srivastava D, Swiecicki PL, Taylor CS, Witek ME, Wysong A, Zander D, Silk AW, Jambusaria-Pahlajani A, Ruiz ES : Consensus Guidelines for Staging and Surveillance Imaging in Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma JAMA Dermatol. Jul 2026
• Lin SK, Deitermann AM, Hunter ER, Wang SY, Valdes Morales KL, Lubeck M, Miller CJ, Etzkorn JR, Sobanko JF, Higgins HW 2nd, Walker JL, Zhang J, Cannady SB, Rajasekaran K, Brody RM, Kovach SJ 3rd, Chang B, Lin IC, Fischer JP, Lukens JN, Cohen JV, Mitchell TC, Amaravadi RK, Mehta S, Briceño CA, McMurray SL : Mohs-facilitated excision: A case series of a multidisciplinary approach to reduce local recurrence of advanced keratinocyte carcinomas J Am Acad Dermatol. April 2026
• Lukens JN, Riina MD, Weinstein G, MacDuffie E, Ramkissoon A, Baron J, Berger M, Messing I, Gentile M, Maxwell R, Ojerholm E, Swisher-McClure S, Santos AG, Porier K, Basu D, Brody R, Cannady S, Carey R, Chalian A, Newman J, Rajasekaran K, Rassekh C, Shanti R, Cohen RB, Singh A, Sun L, Montone K, Lin A : Long-Term Results of a Phase 2 Clinical Trial of Radiation Volume and Dose Deintensification Following Transoral Robotic Surgery and Neck Dissection for Human Papillomavirus-Associated Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. April 2026
• Messing I, Linkowski L, Riina MD, Berger M, Baron J, Wang X, Kallan M, Hubbeling HG, Lustig RA, Dorsey JF, Kurtz G, Nagda S, Lukens JN, Flowers A, Lee JYK, Amankulor NM, Jackson C, Mohan S, Amaravadi RK, Schuchter LM, Huang AC, Mitchell TC, Alonso-Basanta M, Lebow ES : Outcomes after SRS and ipilimumab plus nivolumab for melanoma brain metastases following prior immune checkpoint inhibitor or targeted therapy Oncologist March 2026
• Cahn BA, Zhang R, Sidwell AM, Adam CM, Tiv J, Murrar R, Koh J, Griffin T, Nadir U, Yi MD, Ahmed A, Ma M, Koza E, Haq M, Shi V, Bale AE, Lewin JM, Christensen SR, Waldman A, Harmon CB, Alt-Holland A, Arkin LM, Morrison JC, Bogart K, Gregory MD, Lohman ME, Rossi A, Marghoob AA, Goldberg L, Jiang SB, Giordano CN, Choi JN, Teng JMC, Mittal BB, Vidimos AT, Leffell DJ, Xu YG, Haber R, Storrs PA, Tsoukas M, Samie FH, Bickers DR, Nehal KS, Mosterd K, Billingsley EM, Epstein EH Jr, Elston D; Gorlin Syndrome Work Group; Alam M : Clinical practice guidelines for the management of basal cell carcinoma in Gorlin syndrome J Am Acad Dermatol. Feb 2026
• Frank SJ, Busse PM, Lee JJ, Rosenthal DI, Hernandez M, Swanson DM, Garden AS, Gunn GB, Patel SH, Snider JW, Ma DJ, Molitoris JK, Lee NY, Parvathaneni U, McDonald MW, Kalman NS, Lin A, Mohammed N, Henson C, Hyde C, Bajaj GK, Katz SR, Dagan R, Morrison WH, Reddy JP, Fuller CD, Shah SJ, Phan J, Chronowski GM, Mayo L, Sturgis EM, Ferrarotto R, Zhu XR, Zhang X, Wang L, Hutcheson KA, El-Naggar AK, Moreno AC, Lee A, Spiotto MT, Gross ND, Lai SY, Liao JJ, Paly J, Liao Z, Foote RL : Proton versus photon radiotherapy for patients with oropharyngeal cancer in the USA: a multicentre, randomised, open-label, non-inferiority phase 3 trial Lancet Jan 2026
• Deng J, Lukens JN, Murphy BA, McMenamin E, Rajasekaran K, Quinn RJ, Cohn JC, Schlessinger W, Andersen LP, Spinelli BA, Lin A : Photobiomodulation in Treatment of Head and Neck Cancer-Related Chronic Lymphedema: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial Integr Cancer Ther. 2026
• Trifoi MD, Morales KV, Frankel D, Lin SK, Deitermann AM, Haynes D, Lubeck M, Etzkorn JR, Sobanko JF, Giordano CN, Walker JL, Zhang J, Lewis DJ, Higgins HW 2nd, Miura JT, Karakousis GC, Rajasekaran K, Cannady SB, Brody RM, Mitchell TC, Amaravadi RK, Lukens JN, Miller CJ. : Compliance with guidelines and timeliness of sentinel lymph node biopsy for Merkel cell carcinoma treated with Mohs micrographic surgery versus conventional excision at a tertiary academic center. J Am Acad Dermatol. Oct 2025