Access to high-quality cancer care should not depend on where a patient lives, but distance remains a major barrier for many, particularly in radiation oncology where treatment often requires daily visits over several weeks. Tennessee Oncology has made expanding local access a core priority, naming John G. Phillips, MD, MPH, executive vice president of radiation oncology centers to lead the effort.
Phillips and Tennessee Oncology are pursuing a multiyear plan to expand comprehensive cancer centers in smaller communities, strengthen hospital partnerships, and bring advanced therapies closer to patients. “Many of the communities we serve have historically had limited access to radiation oncology,” Phillips said. “In many of these towns, we’re the only oncology provider—not because we’re pushing others out but because Tennessee Oncology is willing to invest in smaller communities to bring care within a reasonable distance for patients.”
Historically a partner to hospitals in delivering radiation services, Tennessee Oncology has shifted toward directly owning and operating radiation programs as part of broader cancer centers. Phillips said that transition is key to improving access, quality and consistency of care. “Just a few years ago, we didn’t own any radiation oncology facilities,” he said. “Now we own three centers, with plans for further expansion. We have about 30 radiation oncologists on staff, with five additional hires coming over the next year.”
In his new role, Phillips oversees radiation oncology operations across the network, including clinical development, quality and safety initiatives, research integration, and radiopharmaceutical growth. His long-term vision is to establish comprehensive cancer centers that act as anchors for multidisciplinary care and strengthen local health systems. “When you bring a comprehensive cancer center into a smaller community, it changes the health care landscape,” he said. “Other specialists feel more comfortable practicing there, hospitals become stronger partners, and patients no longer have to choose between convenience and quality.”
Phillips’ interest in oncology began with personal family experiences and solidified during training. With an undergraduate background in applied computer science, he was drawn to the field’s technological aspects and the continuity of care radiation oncology provides. “You’re not just treating a disease,” he said. “You’re walking alongside patients during some of the hardest weeks of their lives.”
Phillips completed his residency at Harvard Medical School, earned a master of public health from Harvard, and served as an attending physician at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, focusing on genitourinary and central nervous system tumors. He led AI-driven research at Harvard’s Computational Neuroscience Outcome Center, applying machine learning and neural networks to predict radiosurgery outcomes for patients with brain metastases, work he says helped pave the way for personalized approaches now emerging in oncology.
A major focus of Phillips’ clinical and strategic leadership is theranostics, which combines advanced molecular imaging with targeted radioligand therapy to visualize and treat cancer with high precision. Phillips was senior author on the American Society for Radiation Oncology white paper on quality and safety considerations for radiopharmaceutical therapy, which outlines infrastructure, staffing, training, and multidisciplinary coordination needed to expand these treatments safely beyond academic centers.
“There’s a real national access issue coming with radiopharmaceuticals,” Phillips said. He highlighted PSMA-PET imaging and PSMA-targeted therapy such as lutetium Lu 177 vipivotide tetraxetan (Pluvicto) in prostate cancer as examples of how theranostics is reshaping staging and treatment, and said Tennessee Oncology aims to make both advanced imaging and radioligand therapy available in smaller communities.
Phillips said the organization’s mission is to eliminate geography as a barrier to cancer care, including bringing clinical trial access and comprehensive services to historically underserved areas. Tennessee Oncology is currently building a comprehensive cancer center in Tullahoma, designed to provide care comparable to metropolitan centers without requiring long-distance travel.
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