UAB General Surgery research resident Kelsey Montgomery, M.D., has been selected as a 2024 Melanoma Research Foundation Resident/Fellow Grant awardee.

Through the grant, Montgomery will investigate patient-reported outcomes of high-risk melanoma survivors and the impact of social determinants on their quality of life after surgery.

Montgomery received her medical degree from McGovern Medical School at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. Following her first two years of general surgery residency at UAB, Montgomery is completing a two-year dedicated research experience in the program and is mentored by Division of Surgical Oncology Assistant Professor Kristy Broman, M.D., MPH. Montgomery's main areas of study include evaluating how health system integration has affected the delivery of surgical cancer care, and identifying barriers to melanoma nodal surveillance in real-world populations.

Montgomery is currently funded by the UAB Health Services, Outcomes, and Effectiveness Research (HSOER) T32 fellowship program, which supports research to improve healthcare outcomes and equity and is funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

Montgomery received a Conquer Cancer Merit Award for work presented at the ASCO Quality Care Symposium last October, and was selected for the Surgical Outcomes Club Zinner Health Services Research Fellowship earlier this year.

"We are truly proud of the accomplishments our residents have achieved. This grant will allow Dr. Montgomery to advance in her research and career as a surgeon-scientist and identify opportunities to improve melanoma survivorship care", says UAB General Surgery Program Director Britney Corey, M.D., MCAM.