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24 RCCA Physicians Named to 2025 Castle Connolly ‘Top Doctors’ List for Exceptional Cancer Care
A cancer diagnosis can be frightening. An individual may worry about how, or if, they will get better. The future becomes unclear and the strain and stress of navigating a treatment plan can grow.
Fortunately, some of the nation’s leading oncologists and hematologists practice in New Jersey at Regional Cancer Care Associates (RCCA). Patients at RCCA receive world-class care that is close to home; and our physicians and staff members work together to create a comprehensive course of cancer treatment that addresses the physical as well as the emotional needs of the patient.
Additionally, many of these RCCA specialists are considered “Top Doctors” by their peers. In fact, 24 of RCCA’s New Jersey-based physicians have been included in this year’s Castle Connolly’s prestigious “Top Doctors” list. The directory, published and updated annually, lists doctors who are considered by fellow physicians to be among the best providers available.
“RCCA is delighted that so many of our New Jersey-based cancer specialists have been selected as Castle Connolly ‘Top Doctors,’” said Terrill Jordan, RCCA’s president and chief executive officer. “The RCCA oncologists honored this year epitomize the dedication to providing outstanding cancer care that drives all of our oncology specialists day in and day out, year after year, and we feel extremely proud and privileged to work with them.”
RCCA Physicians Who Made the ‘Top Doctors’ List
RCCA physicians based in New Jersey who were named to Castle Connolly’s 2025 list of Top Doctors include:
- May Abdo-Matkiwsky, DO, serving the Sussex County community
- Kaleem Ahmad, MD, serving the Cape May County community
- Seth H. Berk, MD, serving the Burlington County community
- Noa Biran, MD, serving the Bergen County community
- Maurice J. Cairoli, MD, serving the Burlington County community
- Jumana Chatiwala, MD, serving the Sussex County community
- John A. Conti, MD, serving the Essex County community
- Michele Donato, MD, serving the Bergen County community
- Denis Fitzgerald, MD, serving the Monmouth County community
- Loren Godfrey, MD, serving the Bergen County community
- Andre Goy, MD, serving the Bergen County community
- Harry Harper, MD, serving the Bergen County community
- Mira Hellmann, MD, serving the Bergen County community
- Anthony Ingenito, MD, serving the Bergen County community
- Merieme Klobocista, MD, serving the Bergen County community
- Jamie Koprivnikar, MD, serving the Bergen County community
- James W. Lee, MD, serving the Burlington County community
- Brett Lewis, MD, PhD, serving the Bergen County community
- Mark S. Pascal, MD, serving the Bergen County community
- Andrew Pecora, MD, FACP, CPE, serving the Bergen County community
- Said Saleh, MD, serving the Essex County community
- Ami P. Vaidya, MD, serving the Bergen County community
- Stanley Waintraub, MD, serving the Bergen County community
- Stephen G. Wallace, MD, serving the Burlington County community
How the ‘Top Doctors’ Are Selected
To be included in the list, Castle Connolly, one of the leading health consulting companies in the nation, asks doctors to nominate fellow physicians they feel exemplify dedication to quality care and patient satisfaction. Physicians can only get on the list via nomination — they cannot pay to be included, nor will they be listed based simply on their geographic location.
Following their nomination, physician-led research teams go through an exhaustive research, review, and screening process to determine whether the physician meets Castle Connolly’s exacting Top Doctors standard. Not every nominee makes the cut, with just 7% of the more than 850,000 United States physicians being named a Top Doctor.
“To be recognized by your peers as a ‘Top Doctor’ is a great testament to a physician’s expertise and experience,” says Iuliana Shapira, MD, chief medical officer for RCCA. “I congratulate my RCCA colleagues who have received this well-deserved honor.”
Among the criteria Castle Connolly uses to review prospective Top Doctors are interpersonal skills, such as the ability to listen, communicate, empathize with the patient, and gain the patient’s confidence. Strong interpersonal skills and a strong sense of empathy are crucial to cancer care, according to the National Cancer Institute and American Society of Clinical Oncology.
These qualities are a crucial part of every RCCA physician’s practice, Dr. Shapira says. In addition to providing expert care and offering the latest cancer therapies, RCCA physicians get to know each patient as an individual, address any questions or concerns the patient and family members may have, and incorporate the patient’s goals, preferences, and quality of life into each treatment plan, Dr. Shapira notes.
“I’m proud that all of our physicians routinely win high marks from our patients and their families,” Dr. Shapira adds. “The selection of so many RCCA cancer specialists as ‘Top Doctors’ and the high patient-satisfaction marks that all of our physicians receive are reflections of that commitment and passion.”
Choose RCCA for Cancer Care in New Jersey
With over 100 oncology physicians practicing at 25 Regional Cancer Care Associates (RCCA) care centers throughout New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, and the Washington, D.C., area, RCCA provides immunotherapy, targeted therapy, cell-based therapy and other cutting-edge treatments and diagnostic modalities, as well as access to clinical trials to roughly 30,000 new cancer patients and 265,000 established patients each year. RCCA care centers also provide infusion services for patients with non-oncology conditions — such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, and others — who are being treated with intravenously administered medications.
To learn more about RCCA or to schedule an appointment, call 844-346-7222 or contact RCCA today.
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