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Memorial Sloan Kettering breast medical oncologist Joshua Drago

Joshua Z. Drago, MD, MS

Breast Oncologist

My Role at MSK

Areas of Expertise

My Specialties

  • Breast Cancer
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Dr. Drago's Office Information
Languages: English

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About Me

What I Do at MSK
  • Assistant Attending Physician
Get To Know Me

I am a medical oncologist with a practice dedicated exclusively to the care of people with breast cancer. In collaboration with an outstanding team of colleagues, I strive to provide the highest level of care to all of my patients.

Being diagnosed with breast cancer can carry a unique set of challenges. My goal is to guide my patients and their families through those challenges with compassion and empathy, drawing upon the most cutting-edge research to offer comprehensive treatment plans that are both safe and maximally effective.   

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My own research focuses on the study of breast cancer therapies that work better and have fewer side effects than traditional options. To this end, I have an interest in novel treatments such as targeted therapy, immunotherapy, and antibody-based therapies. I design clinical trials to investigate the use of these treatments for breast cancer, and work to discover ways to predict which patients are more or less likely to benefit from them. These predictive measures, called biomarkers, are designed to help tailor medical therapies specifically to each patient based on the individual characteristics of their cancer.

Breast cancer treatment can be complicated and overwhelming, but I always aim to explain my recommendations in simple terms and keep the big picture in sight. My practice is built on honesty, communication, and understanding. I cherish the fact that my patients bring a variety of backgrounds and perspectives to clinic, and I never forget that each one has their own particular set of circumstances, values, and preferences. I meet my patients where they are. I view the work that I do as an immense privilege, and I feel deeply grateful to play an active role the battle against cancer.

My Role at MSK

A breast oncologist is a doctor with special training in breast cancer.

Areas of Expertise

My Specialties

  • Breast Cancer
Education & Honors

Education

  • MD, Harvard Medical School
  • MS, Clinical and Translational Cancer Research, The Gerstner Sloan Kettering Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences

Residencies

  • Internal Medicine - Massachusetts General Hospital

Awards and Honors

  • K12 Paul Calabresi Career Development Award for Clinical Oncology
  • ASCO/Conquer Cancer Foundation Young Investigator Award
  • METAvivor Early Career Investigator Award
  • Brian Piccolo Endowed Cancer Research Fellowship Award

Fellowships

  • Medical Oncology - Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Board Certifications

  • Internal Medicine
  • Medical Oncology

Insurance Information

Understanding your insurance options is an important part of managing your cancer care. We have relationships with many common healthcare providers and plans.

Aetna

In Network Coverage Type
HMO, EPO PPO, POS, Transplant

Aetna Medicare Advantage (MTA retirees only)

In Network Coverage Type
PPO

Blue Cross Blue Shield Federal Employee Program

In Network Coverage Type
HMO, PPO

Blue Cross Blue Shield New York

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, EPO, HMO

Blue Cross Blue Shield states outside of NY/NJ

In Network Coverage Type
HMO, EPO PPO, POS

Blue Cross Health Plus

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

Carrum Health

In Network Coverage Type
Supplemental

Cigna

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, HMO

MSK has a tentative agreement with Cigna to continue coverage in 2024.

Connecticare

In Network Coverage Type
POS, EPO, HMO

Emblem

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, EPO, HMO

Offers a qualified health plan from the Health Insurance Marketplace. Call Emblem to learn more.

Emblem Essential

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

Emblem Medicare Advantage

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, HMO

Empire Blue Cross Medicare Advantage

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, HMO, DSN

Empire Essential

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

Empire Plan / NYSHIP (Blue Cross/UnitedHealthcare split plan)

In Network Coverage Type
PPO

Fidelis

In Network Coverage Type
HMO, EPO

Offers a qualified health plan from the Health Insurance Marketplace. Call Fidelis to learn more.

Fidelis Managed Medicaid & HARP

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

Fidelis Medicare Advantage

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

First Health

In Network Coverage Type
PPO

Healthfirst

In Network Coverage Type
EPO, HMO, PPO, POS

Offers a qualified health plan from the Health Insurance Marketplace. Call Healthfirst to learn more.

Healthfirst Managed Medicaid

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

Healthfirst Medicare Advantage

In Network Coverage Type
HMO, PPO

Healthsmart

In Network Coverage Type
PPO EPO

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield New Jersey (HMO)

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield New Jersey (PPO)

In Network Coverage Type
PPO

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield New Jersey Omnia Tier I (EPO)

In Network Coverage Type
EPO

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield New Jersey Omnia Tier II (EPO)

In Network Coverage Type
EPO

Horizon Medicare Advantage

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, HMO

Husky CT Medicaid

In Network Coverage Type
State Government

Magnacare

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, EPO

Straight NJ Medicaid

In Network Coverage Type
State Government

Straight NY Medicaid

In Network Coverage Type
State Government

Medicare Part A&B (traditional Medicare)

In Network Coverage Type
Federal Government

Multiplan/Beech Street/PHCS

In Network Coverage Type
Supplemental

MVP

In Network Coverage Type
PPO/OAP

Non-Participating Plans with Out of Network Benefits

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, EPO, HMO

NYC Medicare Advantage Plus for City Employees

In Network Coverage Type
TBD

Oscar

In Network Coverage Type
HMO/EPO

Oxford

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, EPO

World Trade Center Health Program (WTC)

In Network Coverage Type
State Government

Qualcare

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, HMO

Tricare

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, HMO

UMR

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS

United Healthcare

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, HMO

Don't see your carrier or plan? We can help you understand your coverage.

If you don't have health insurance or are worried that your care may not be fully covered, our financial assistance programs may be able to help.

If you have questions about insurance, call us at 646-497-9176.

Make an Appointment

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New Patients

Scheduling an appointment is easy. Click or call 646-497-9064— we’re available Monday through Friday, to (Eastern time)
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Current Patients

Request an appointment by logging on to MyMSK or calling your doctor’s office. If you aren’t registered for MyMSK, call 646-227-2593 for your Enrollment ID.

Contact and Location

Dr. Drago sees patients at one location.

Office Phone
Location
New York, NY
Evelyn H. Lauder Breast Center
300 East 66th Street Floors 1 - 4 New York NY 10065
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Looking to see a doctor at a different location? See all MSK locations.

Colleagues

Doctors at Memorial Sloan Kettering work as teams, with specialists from all different areas. This allows us to consider all your needs together, and to give you the best possible care.

See all Breast Medicine Service doctors

Clinical Trials

Smiling doctors in the lab
Find a Clinical Trial for You

Memorial Sloan Kettering's doctors and scientists are constantly developing new treatments for cancer. MSK is typically running hundreds of clinical trials at a given time.

You may be able to participate in a clinical trial even if you are new to MSK. Search our online directory to find trial information and see more about who can participate.

Search clinical trials

Research and Publications

Publications on PubMed

Visit PubMed for a full listing of Dr. Drago’s journal articles. Pubmed is an online index of research papers and other articles from the US National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health.

See all on PubMed

Disclosures

Doctors and faculty members often work with pharmaceutical, device, biotechnology, and life sciences companies, and other organizations outside of MSK, to find safe and effective cancer treatments, to improve patient care, and to educate the health care community.

MSK requires doctors and faculty members to report (“disclose”) the relationships and financial interests they have with external entities. As a commitment to transparency with our community, we make that information available to the public.

Joshua Z. Drago discloses the following relationships and financial interests:

  • AmMax Bio, Inc.
    Professional Services and Activities
  • American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO)
    Professional Services and Activities
  • AstraZeneca
    Professional Services and Activities
  • Genagon Therapeutics
    Professional Services and Activities
  • Intellisphere, LLC
    Professional Services and Activities
  • NuProbe
    Professional Services and Activities
  • Virology Education BV
    Professional Services and Activities
  • bioTheranostics, Inc
    Professional Services and Activities

If you’re a patient at MSK and would like more information about your doctor’s external relationships, please talk with your doctor.

The information published here is for a specific annual disclosure period. There may be differences between information on this and other public sites as a result of different reporting periods and/or the various ways relationships and financial interests are categorized by organizations that publish such data.

This page and data include information for a specific MSK annual disclosure period (January 1, 2022 through disclosure submission in spring 2023). This data reflects interests that may or may not still exist. This data is updated annually.

Learn more about MSK’s COI policies here. For questions regarding MSK’s COI-related policies and procedures, email MSK’s Compliance Office at [email protected].


View all disclosures

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