Memorial Sloan Kettering radiation oncologist Beryl McCormick

Beryl McCormick, MD, FACR

Radiation Oncologist

My Role at MSK

Areas of Expertise

My Specialties

  • Breast Cancer

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About Me

What I Do at MSK
  • Attending Radiation Oncologist
Get To Know Me

I am a radiation oncologist and senior member of the External Beam Radiotherapy Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering in Manhattan. I work as part of a team of specialists from different areas to treat people with breast cancer. We care for about 350 patients each year.

With the exception of 18 months in the early 1980s — when I worked at Albert Einstein Hospital to gain experience with breast conservation techniques — I have been at MSK since 1974, when I was a resident.

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My interest in medicine started at a young age. As a child, I was often sick with infections, and our family doctor would make a house call and put me on antibiotics. I usually felt better very soon and came to respect the healing powers of medicine. In medical school, I did research on childhood leukemia and first learned about radiation as a treatment for cancer. The field is appealing to me because I love math and physics.

Patients arrive in my office with a wide range of knowledge, worries, and expectations about breast cancer. “Is it safe to be around babies or children when I am getting breast radiation?” is one of the questions they most commonly ask. The answer is yes — the external beams that we use turn on and off like a light switch. This means that there is no radiation that lingers in the room after treatment, nor any that leaves with people receiving radiation.

Patients also want to know how we can be sure that radiation worked. Some kinds of cancers have what we call “markers” that tell us how well the treatment (be it surgery, radiation, or a system-wide treatment like chemotherapy) worked. Prostate cancer in men is the best example; a simple blood test for prostate specific antigen (a marker for prostate cancer) provides information on the success of the treatment.

Despite much past and ongoing research, we do not yet have such a marker in breast cancer. However, breast imaging after treatment, like a mammogram, can help us understand if the treatment worked. After patients complete treatment, their doctors will give them more information on the types of imaging that can be used to monitor treatment response based on the type and stage of breast cancer.

I try very hard to communicate in a way that connects with everyone who comes to me for care. I work to reassure my patients about the effectiveness of therapy by sharing the excellent evidence we have from thousands of patients who have taken part in cancer clinical trials. I like to be upbeat and welcoming, as I would be with a visitor to my home. I hope patients leave with a better understanding of their condition and treatment plan.

I am currently researching the effectiveness of radiation versus observation in patients with low-risk ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), a type of noninvasive breast cancer. I have also contributed to a novel treatment for certain older women without radiation therapy (RT).

I continue to refine the use of RT in the prone (face-down) position for people with breast cancer. This helps improve long-term cosmetic outcomes and protect vital organs like the heart and lungs. My newest research will explore whether breast radiation after surgery has an impact on patients’ ability to exercise.

In addition to conducting research aimed at improving the ways that we use RT for the treatment of breast cancer, I have advised on best practices for breast cancer treatment and management on a national level. I served for over 20 years on the breast committee for the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines panel. I am a former chair of the Breast Program Committee for the American Society of Clinical Oncology and former Chairman of the Breast Committee for the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group Cooperative Group. I have served on many consensus panels and have written extensively on both breast and eye cancers.

In my spare time, I love needlepoint and knitting, gardening, and traveling with my family.

 

My Role at MSK

A radiation oncologist is a cancer doctor with special training in using radiation therapy (RT) to treat cancer with radiation.

Areas of Expertise

My Specialties

  • Breast Cancer
Education & Honors

Education

  • MD, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey

Residencies

  • Radiation Oncology - Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Awards and Honors

  • Castle Connolly: America’s Top Doctor (2024)
  • Top Doctors New York Metro Area, Castle Connolly (2023)
  • Exceptional Women in Medicine Award, Castle Connolly (2023)
  • Castle Connolly: America's Top Doctors (2023)
  • Castle Connolly: New York Magazine Best Doctors (1996-2018)
  • Insitut Curie “Clinical Honoree” Award (2012)
  • Good Housekeeping “Best Doctors in America” (1989, 1992)

Board Certifications

  • Radiation 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

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. McCormick sees patients at one location.

Office Phone
Location
New York, NY
1275 York Avenue New York NY 10065

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 Radiation Oncology doctors

See all External Beam Radiotherapy Service, Manhattan 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. McCormick’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.

Beryl McCormick discloses the following relationships and financial interests:

No disclosures meeting criteria for time period


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