Kara Kelly, MD
Dr. Kara Kelly is the Medical Director of The Integrative Therapies Program for Children with Cancer. She is an Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at Columbia University Medical Center. Dr Kelly is a pediatric oncologist with clinical expertise in the treatment of children with leukemia, lymphoma and histiolytic disorders, and serves as the director of the Pediatric Leukemia/Lymphoma program at the Herbert Irving Child and Adolescent Oncology Center at Columbia University Medical Center/Children's Hospital of New York-Presbyterian. She currently serves as chair of the committee for complementary/alternative medicine at the Children’s Oncology Group, the largest research consortium of pediatric oncology centers in the United States and Canada. Dr. Kelly is a member of the National Cancer Institute’s PDQ Complementary and Alternative Medicine Editorial Board. She is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Society of Integrative Oncology. Dr. Kelly is the principal investigator of many trials investigating the use of complementary and alternative therapies among children with cancer. She has lectured extensively on this subject at many conferences, including the annual meetings of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the International Society of Pediatric Oncology (SIOP).
Elena J. Ladas, MS, RD
Elena J. Ladas has provided guidance on integrative therapies to individuals with cancer for over 12 years. Elena holds several national and international appointments including Chair of the Nutrition Committee of Children's Oncology Group; member of the Committee on Developing Countries, International Society for Paediatric Oncology; and an advisory member to the National Cancer Institute's PDQ editorial boards on Complementary/Alternative Medicine and Supportive Care. Elena has received merit awards from the National Institute of Health, National Cancer Institute for her role on both the supportive care and complementary/alternative medicine PDQ advisory boards. Elena has published numerous articles and has lectured nationally and internationally on the topics of nutrition and integrative medicine. Elena is a registered dietician and is a doctoral candidate in nutrition at Columbia University.
Deborah Hughes Ndao, MPH
Deborah Hughes Ndao is the Program Manager of The Integrative Therapies Program for Children with Cancer. Deborah received her Bachelor of Arts in English with a pre-medical concentration from Barnard College, Columbia University and her Master in Public Health from the Department of Sociomedical Sciences at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. Deborah manages patients’ complementary medicine care during and beyond cancer therapy and provides individual and group counseling and coaching on the application of meditation, aromatherapy, acupressure, and yoga. Deborah is also a certified Reiki Master and yoga instructor for children and is trained in clinical aromatherapy, mindfulness-based stress reduction, insight meditation, and biodynamic and organic farming. Prior to her work at The Integrative Therapies Program, Deborah was a health and wellness educator at Barnard College. Deborah’s research interests lie in health communication, program development and evaluation, health disparities, cancer survivorship, and traditional/ complementary and alternative medicine use.
Christine Grimaldi, PhD
Christine Grimaldi, PhD is the Exercise Physiologist and Yoga and Movement Therapist of the Integrative Therapies Program and is a nationally renowned yoga instructor as seen on The View, ABC News, Fox News, CBS, The Today Show and was NY1’s New Yorker of the Week. Christine is a certified yoga and pilates instructor, has a black belt in martial arts and has worked as an athletic trainer for the PGA tour and the New York Jets. Christine has been the proprietor of seven yoga and Pilates studios located in the Hamptons, New York City and Florida. She has been published and photographed as a celebrity fitness trainer in Yoga Journal, New York Magazine, Fitness Magazine, Vogue, the New York Times, Self Magazine and many more. She has devoted her work both nationally and internationally in developing yoga/movement and mind/body workshops for populations with special needs. Christine designs therapeutic yoga/movement and meditation programs that help with stress reduction, pain management, bereavement, and healing. In the efforts to rebuild the children's strength, endurance, and flexibility post treatment, Christine also develops exercise programs for the children to maintain health and prevent relapse. She has recently developed the nationally recognized program called the Cancer Dancers.
Kathy Taromina, MS, LAc
Ms. Taromina is the Program Director of the Graduate Program in Oriental Medicine where she holds the rank of Assistant Professor. She received her Bachelor degree from New York University and her Master's in Traditional Oriental Medicine from Pacific College, NY. She has completed post-graduate work at Nanchang University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, China. Ms. Taromina previously served as a faculty member and Department Chair of Clinical Practice at Pacific College of Oriental Medicine. Prior to her current position, Ms. Taromina served as a full time faculty member and the Academic Coordinator for the GPOM program. She is a founding partner of Hudson Healing Arts in Hoboken, NJ and maintains a private practice in NYC. She also currently serves as an acupuncturist for the Integrative Therapies Program for Children with Cancer. She is the co-author of various publications and is actively engaged in research activities related to treating pediatric oncology patients with Chinese medicine.
Diane Rooney, MS, LAc, LMT
Diane Rooney is a Licensed Acupuncturist, Licensed Massage Therapist, Nationally Certified Reflexologist, Certified Reiki practitioner and Board Certified Chinese Herbologist. Diane has been practicing, lecturing and teaching in and around New York City for 16 years. In addition to her private practice, she has been affiliated with Beth Israel and Roosevelt Hospitals by working with women who have undergone breast cancer surgery. She has been a faculty member and associate at Laura Norman Reflexology Center. She has also created the reflexology program and has been a faculty member at Swedish Institute. Diane has been a member of the Advisory Board and is currently a faculty member at Tri-State College of Acupuncture where she serves as Dean of Studies and as Project Coordinator for the Riverside Church Community Outreach Program. Diane is currently giving lectures on Traditional Chinese Medicine, participates in acupuncture research, and provides acupuncture, reiki, reflexology and massage for children with cancer and their parents as part of the Integrative Therapies Program.
Michelle Bombacie, MS, LAc, LMT
Michelle is a licensed acupuncturist and massage therapist with a private practice in Manhattan since 2005. She recently joined the faculty at the Tri-State College of Acupuncture, where she received her Masters in science and acupuncture degree. Michelle graduated from the New York College of Healthcare Professions, where she studied and now specializes is an acupressure massage technique called Amma Therapy. She has also studied in Beijing, China at the He Ping Li Hospital and TCM University of Acupuncture and holds memberships in ASNY (Acupuncture Society of New York), AOBTA (American Organization of Bodywork Therapies of Asia) and AMTA (American Massage Therapy Association). In 2008 Michelle was the acupuncturist, as part of a team, who designed and demonstrated a digestive and headache acupressure massage protocol for T spheres inc. and in 2009 provided acupuncture and massage for the Rejuvenate You Wellness Program to the families in the neo-natal unit at NYPresbyterian Hospital. Currently, Michelle is part of the Integrative Therapies team, providing acupuncture, massage, Amma therapy, aromatherapy and reiki for children with cancer and their families.
Sagar Choksi, MS
We’re pleased to welcome Sagar Choksi to our team as our new research assistant. Sagar grew up in Parsippany, New Jersey, and went to his undergraduate at Rutgers where he majored in cell biology and neuroscience in minored in psychology, religion, and South Asian history. He then studied at Georgetown University and received his Masters in physiology with a focus in Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM). Sagar has been a great addition to our department already and has already won the Young Investigator Prize in 2011 from the Society of Integrative Oncology.
Joelle Karlik, AB
We are pleased to welcome Joelle Karlik to the Integrative Therapies team as a Doris Duke Clinical Research Fellow. She has taken this prestigious fellowship in between her third and fourth years of medical school at Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Under the mentorship of Dr. Kara Kelly and Dr. Jennifer Levine, Director of the Center for Survivor Wellness, Joelle has already made headway on a multi-institutional clinical trial exploring the relationship between dietary intake and treatment toxicities in patients diagnosed with ALL. Most importantly, she brings a great energy to the program, and we can expect her to make a significant contribution to the field of integrative oncology.
