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Memorial Sloan Kettering surgeon Brian Untch

Brian R. Untch, MD, FACS

Surgeon

Areas of Expertise

Conditions I Treat

  • Thyroid cancer and conditions
  • Adrenal tumors

My Specialties

  • Minimally invasive surgery
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Dr. Untch's Office Information
Languages: English
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Get to Know Me

I am a board-certified surgeon who specializes in caring for people with endocrine tumors and sarcoma, including gastrointestinal stromal tumors. These include diseases of the parathyroid, thyroid, adrenal glands, and the gastrointestinal tract.

Because these conditions are often complex, I work closely with colleagues in endocrinology, medical oncology, radiology, gastroenterology, and pathology to deliver state-of-the-art multidisciplinary care. Our team of physicians and nurses works tirelessly to deliver the best possible medical, surgical, and follow-up care. Sometimes multiple treatments can exist for these conditions. It’s critical that patients have an in-depth understanding of their options. If surgery is necessary, our team will answer questions and explain what patients might anticipate leading up to and after surgery.

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Recovery after surgery can be difficult, which is why I I use minimally invasive surgical approaches whenever possible. With these techniques, patients have less pain and can recover faster than they otherwise would. Sometimes minimally invasive approaches cannot be used. In these instances, I work closely with my anesthesia colleagues to provide the most comfortable experience possible.

My research, which is part of the Human Oncology and Pathogensis Program, focuses on mechanisms of thyroid and gastrointestinal tumor progression and responses to therapy. Using genetically accurate models of cancer, we explore why certain tumors are more aggressive than others and how best to treat these with various interventions. For this work, I have been awarded multiple grants including those from the American Surgical Association, the American Thyroid Association, the American Association of Endocrine Surgeons, and the North American Neuroendocrine Tumor Society.I have also lectured on endocrine and gastrointestinal surgery topics all over the country and have published numerous articles on how best to care for patients.

Improving the quality of care patients receive is my top priority. After getting a diagnosis, patients can have a lot of anxiety about next steps. My role is to help patients through this and get them the best possible treatment.

What I Do at MSK

A surgeon is a doctor with special training in many kinds of surgery.

  • Assistant Attending Surgeon
Areas of Expertise

Conditions I Treat

  • Thyroid cancer and conditions
  • Adrenal tumors

My Specialties

  • Minimally invasive surgery
Education & Honors

Education

  • MD, Stritch School of Medicine

Residencies

  • General Surgery - Duke University

Fellowships

  • Surgical Oncology - Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Board Certifications

  • Surgery

Awards and Honors

  • Castle Connolly: America’s Top Doctor (2025)
  • Castle Connolly: America’s Top Doctor (2024)
  • Top Doctors New York Metro Area, Castle Connolly (2023)
  • Castle Connolly: America's Top Doctors (2023)

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

See updates

Anthem BCBS Health Plus

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

See updates

Horizon Medicare Advantage

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, HMO

Healthfirst Medicare Advantage

In Network Coverage Type
HMO, PPO

Blue Cross Blue Shield Federal Employee Program

In Network Coverage Type
HMO, PPO

See updates

Blue Cross Blue Shield states outside of NY/NJ

In Network Coverage Type
HMO, EPO PPO, POS

See updates

Carrum Health

In Network Coverage Type
Supplemental

Cigna

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, HMO

Connecticare

In Network Coverage Type
POS, EPO, HMO

First Health

In Network Coverage Type
PPO

Straight NY Medicaid

In Network Coverage Type
State Government

Straight NJ Medicaid

In Network Coverage Type
State Government

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

See updates

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

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

Healthsmart

In Network Coverage Type
PPO EPO

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield New Jersey (HMO)

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

See updates

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield New Jersey (PPO)

In Network Coverage Type
PPO

See updates

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

In Network Coverage Type
EPO

See updates

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

In Network Coverage Type
EPO

See updates

Husky CT Medicaid

In Network Coverage Type
State Government

Magnacare

In Network Coverage Type
PPO, POS, EPO

Medicare Part A&B (traditional Medicare)

In Network Coverage Type
Federal Government

Metroplus

In Network Coverage Type
HMO

City Employee Health Plans (Gold and Gold Care)

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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Current Patients
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Contact and Location

Dr. Untch sees patients at four locations.

Office Phone
Location
New York, NY
Commack, NY
Middletown, NJ
Rockefeller Outpatient Pavilion
160 East 53rd Street New York NY 10022
Get Directions
Memorial Sloan Kettering Commack Nonna’s Garden Foundation Center
650 Commack Road Commack NY 11725
Get Directions
David H. Koch Center for Cancer Care at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
530 East 74th Street New York NY 10021
Get Directions
Memorial Sloan Kettering Monmouth
480 Red Hill Road Middletown NJ 07748
Get Directions

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.

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Clinical Trials

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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

View Dr. Untch's Research

Publications on PubMed

Visit PubMed for a full listing of Dr. Untch’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.

Brian R. Untch discloses the following relationships and financial interests:

  • Kura Oncology
    Intellectual Property Rights

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