Monika Leigh Burness, MD

Monika Burness, MD is Section Head for Breast Oncology and Co-Director of the Weiser Family Center for Breast Cancer at the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center. She is a medical oncologist who cares for patients with all stages of breast cancer, from early diagnosis through advanced disease.

Dr. Burness is committed to providing thoughtful, personalized care that addresses both cancer treatment and quality of life. She has particular expertise in fertility preservation and in approaches to reduce chemotherapy-related hair loss, and she is actively involved in research aimed at improving these aspects of care for patients.

Her translational research, which includes both laboratory studies and clinical trials, focuses on understanding and targeting cancer stem cells in breast cancer, with the goal of developing more effective and durable treatments..

Breast cancer, including treatment of individuals with early stage and metastatic breast cancer
Fertility preservation in breast cancer patients
Prevention of chemotherapy-induced alopecia (hair loss from chemo)

University of Michigan Health participates with most health insurance plans.

Dr. Burness' research program focuses on breast cancer stem cell therapeutics, with an emphasis on identifying novel strategies to target cancer stem cells in order to enhance the effectiveness of existing treatments and overcome therapeutic resistance. In her laboratory and through interdisciplinary collaborations, Dr. Burness has also developed and applied methods to isolate and characterize circulating tumor cells, with particular attention to stemness-related features and their role in disease progression.