In a list compiled by AZ Business magazine, Tania Cortas, M.D., C.P.E., a medical oncologist and hematologist at City of Hope® Cancer Center Phoenix, was named one of the 100 best doctors in the state for 2025. It’s not the first time she’s been recognized by local media for excellence in cancer care: Phoenix Magazine has included Dr. Cortas in its “Top Doctors” list four times in the past.
Chosen in conjunction and consultation with medical industry leaders and the state’s top health care organizations, and based on professional ratings, the “100 Best Doctors” list represents the most skilled, innovative and influential doctors in Arizona. The goal of the compilation is to provide a reliable resource to identify experienced, reputable professionals and help improve patient outcomes and satisfaction.
Triple board-certified in internal medicine, hematology and clinical oncology, Dr. Cortas joined City of Hope in 2023, primarily serving patients at the City of Hope Cancer Care Tatum Ridge location. She has a wide range of experience in treating patients with all types of malignancies, with specific expertise in breast, thoracic and gastrointestinal cancers, as well as both benign and malignant hematologic conditions.
As a clinician, Dr. Cortas leverages the tools of precision medicine whenever possible to tailor each patient’s care plan to his or her tumor’s specific genetic profile. This helps match patients to treatments known to be effective based on those genetic markers. Tapping into City of Hope’s groundbreaking research efforts, Dr. Cortas aims to offer her patients leading-edge protocols and identify potential clinical trials that suit their specific needs. As a physician-scientist, she has served as principal investigator of multiple studies advancing protocols for addressing breast cancer, lung cancer and the side effects of treatment.
Dr. Cortas is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for individuals affected by cancer by collaborating with a multidisciplinary team of supportive care experts. She has a profound commitment to guiding patients from the moment of diagnosis through their survivorship journey. Additionally, she recognizes the importance of providing support to family members and caregivers.
“Making a difference in someone’s life is special,” Dr. Cortas told AZ Business magazine. “It’s essential to extend the type of compassion that makes the cancer journey more bearable for each patient and family, while customizing care to the unique qualities of each person and each cancer.”
Prior to joining City of Hope, Dr. Cortas served the Phoenix area as a medical oncologist and a staff physician at an area oncology group. She’s also been an attending physician in hematology and oncology at the Cleveland Veterans Affairs Medical Center and at Case Western University, where she was director of the multidisciplinary lung cancer program and the inpatient oncology unit. Dr. Cortas earned her medical degree from the American University of Beirut in Lebanon before completing an internal medicine residency and a fellowship in hematology and oncology at the University Hospitals of Cleveland and Case Western Reserve University. During her fellowship, she was part of a research team investigating lung cancer’s molecular mechanisms.
Active in the clinical community, Dr. Cortas is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American Society of Hematology and the American Association for Physician Leadership.
“I love practicing oncology,” says Dr. Cortas, who is fluent in English, French and Arabic. “I love how you’re always learning. I love the human connection and helping people through their toughest journeys. It is a privilege and honor for me to touch someone’s life and be able to make a difference for him or her. “
City of Hope brings greater access to leading-edge care, groundbreaking clinical trials and multidisciplinary experts focused on treating cancer at convenient locations in Goodyear, Gilbert, North Phoenix and Tatum Ridge. Through our collaboration with the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), also part of City Hope and located in Phoenix, we’re accelerating the speed that research reaches patients, moving scientific discoveries from the lab to patients’ bedsides with the lifesaving speed that Arizonans deserve.
Collaborate with Dr. Cortas
Dr. Cortas looks forward to continuing to collaborate with colleagues and academics to bring City of Hope’s patient-centered approach and leading-edge personalized care to more Arizona patients diagnosed with oncological malignancies. Dr. Cortas welcomes collaboration opportunities with other physicians through referrals and continues to be interested in emerging lines of research to help improve patient outcomes, advance treatment methodologies and address complex cases of breast, thoracic, hematologic, and general oncologic malignancies.