Karen Y. Choi, MD, FACS - Penn State Cancer Institute
Karen Y. Choi, MD, FACS

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- Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
- General otolaryngology
- Head and neck cancer
- Head and neck malignancies
- Head and neck oncology and surgery
- Head and neck surgery
- Head and neck surgical oncology
- High-risk cutaneous malignancies
- Oral cancer
- Salivary gland disorders
- Salivary gland surgery
- Sialendoscopy
- Throat cancer
- Transoral robotic surgery
Dr. Karen Y. Choi is a head and neck surgical oncologist in the department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery. She earned her Bachelor of Art degree in neuroscience from Wellesley College in Wellesley, MA and her medical degree from the State University of New York at Buffalo in Buffalo, NY. She pursued a Master’s of Science in Teaching from Pace University in New York, NY while teaching as a public middle school teacher in Brooklyn, NY as a corps member for Teach for America. After medical school, she completed her otolaryngology residency training at Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx, NY and went on to pursue a head and neck surgical oncology fellowship at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX.
As a fellowship-trained head and neck surgical oncologist, Dr. Choi’s clinical practice focuses on the diagnosis and surgical management of the breadth of head and neck neoplasms, including mucosal malignancies of the upper aerodigestive tract, salivary gland neoplasms and high-risk cutaneous malignancies of the head and neck. Her practice includes integrating cutting edge surgical innovations such as minimally invasive approaches with transoral robotic surgery and transoral laser microsurgery, as well as sentinel lymph node biopsy for early stage oral cavity cancers. Dr. Choi is active with the American Head and Neck Society, serving on section leadership for the cutaneous malignancy section, as well as several other committees both locally, regionally, and nationally.
- Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery
- Dean’s Award for Excellence in Teaching - 2021
- Head and Neck Cancer
- Melanoma and Skin Cancer