Alan L. Ho, MD, PhD

Alan L. Ho, MD, PhD

Head and Neck Medical Oncologist & Cellular Therapist

My Role at MSK

Areas of Expertise

My Specialties

  • Head & Neck Cancers
  • Mouth Cancer
  • Salivary Gland Cancer
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About Me

What I Do at MSK
  • Chief, Head and Neck Oncology Service
  • Associate Attending Physician
Get To Know Me

I am a medical oncologist who specializes in the treatment of head and neck cancers, including head and neck squamous cell carcinomasalivary gland cancerthyroid cancer, and skin cancers other than melanoma. I see patients at the David H. Koch Center for Cancer Care at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK).

As a medical oncologist, I am drawn to the mission of serving others and caring for people during a vulnerable time in their life. I have dedicated my career to not only treating these diseases but also understanding their underlying biology with the overall goal of discovering and developing new, effective treatments that will improve outcomes for my patients.

I also serve as Chief of the Head and Neck Oncology Service within the Division of Solid Tumor Oncology in the Department of Medicine at MSK. My goal is to lead our team in delivering world-class care for people with head and neck cancers. Our objective is to treat our patients with the most innovative approaches and deliver cancer care that is focused on the patient and their individual needs.

We strive to offer as many treatment options as possible to patients, provide world-class expertise for managing the cancer diagnosis, and give them the information they need to feel comfortable and confident about their care and treatment plan.

At MSK, we want to ensure our research programs have the depth and breadth to focus on therapeutic breakthroughs for patients who have been diagnosed with both common and rare types of cancers. Our service has led the discovery of many targeted therapies for these cancers. We have internationally recognized research programs for developing personalized medicine approaches for all the cancers we treat. Our goal is to leave no patient behind.

My Role at MSK

A head and neck medical oncologist is a cancer doctor who specializes in head and neck cancers. This includes cancers of the larynx, lips, mouth, nose, salivary glands, and throat.

A cellular therapy specialist is a doctor with special training in using cell therapies to treat health conditions such as cancer. Therapies can include chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy.

Areas of Expertise

My Specialties

  • Head & Neck Cancers
  • Mouth Cancer
  • Salivary Gland Cancer
  • Thyroid Cancer
  • Throat Cancer
Education & Honors

Education

  • MD, Washington University

Residencies

  • Internal Medicine, NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center

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 and NYC retirees only)

In Network Coverage Type
PPO

Anthem BCBS and other BCBS licensee plans

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, EPO, HMO

Anthem BCBS Health Plus

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

Anthem Blue Cross Medicare Advantage

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, HMO, DSN

Blue Cross Blue Shield Federal Employee Program

In Network Coverage Type
HMO, PPO

Blue Cross Blue Shield states outside of NY/NJ

In Network Coverage Type
HMO, EPO PPO, POS

Carrum Health

In Network Coverage Type
Supplemental

Cigna

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, HMO

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 (Medicare Choice PPO Network and VIP Prime Network Only)

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, HMO

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

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. Ho sees patients at one location.

Office Phone
Location
New York, NY

Looking to see a doctor at a different location? See all MSK locations.

Clinical Trials

Read more
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

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.

Alan L. Ho discloses the following relationships and financial interests:

  • Affyimmune Therapeutics, Inc.
    Professional Services and Activities
  • Coherus BioSciences, Inc.
    Professional Services and Activities
  • Eisai
    Professional Services and Activities
  • Exelixis
    Professional Services and Activities
  • Kura Oncology
    Professional Services and Activities
  • National Cancer Institute
    Professional Services and Activities
  • Nested Therapeutics
    Professional Services and Activities
  • Northwestern University
    Professional Services and Activities
  • Physicians' Education Resource
    Professional Services and Activities
  • Rgenta Therapeutics 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 a complement to other publicly reported data and 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, 2023 through disclosure submission in spring 2024). 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