Michelle Afkhami

Michelle Afkhami, M.D. is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Pathology at City of Hope, where she serves as Division Chief of Molecular Pathology & Therapy Biomarkers and CLIA Director for their Clinical Molecular Genomics Laboratories. She also chairs the multidisciplinary Genomic Tumor Board since 2015.

• Education: M.D. from Qom University of Medical Sciences (2004); Residencies in General Surgery (USC, Huntington Memorial Hospital) and Anatomic/Clinical Pathology (USC); Fellowships in Hematopathology (USC) and Molecular Genomics Pathology (UPMC)

Her work focuses on molecular pathways in malignancies, particularly hematopoietic cancers like leukemia/lymphoma and solid tumors including melanoma, lung, head/neck, and thyroid cancers. She has developed the HopeSeq Comprehensive Assays for molecular diagnostics, serving >200,000 COH patients since 2015.

She holds board certifications in Clinical Informatics (2025), Hematopathology (2013), and Anatomic/Clinical Pathology (2012). Professional memberships include the Association of Molecular Pathology, American Society of Hematology, and College of American Pathologists.