Laura Van Metre Baum, MD, MPH

Laura Van Metre Baum, MD, specializes in medical oncology, focusing on gastrointestinal cancers and palliative care. She sees patients at the Center for Gastrointestinal Cancers at Smilow Cancer Hospital and Yale Cancer Center, as well as the Smilow Cancer Hospital Palliative Care Program.

As an assistant professor of medicine at Yale School of Medicine, Dr. Baum's research explores gastrointestinal cancers, palliative care, and health services, particularly focusing on cancer supportive care, opioid use in cancer, and psychosocial outcomes in young adults with cancer.

"Cancer is a difficult journey for patients and families,” Dr. Baum says. “I want patients and caregivers to pause and remember that it's hard, we know that, and you're doing your best, and it's good enough."

Dr. Baum completed her medical training at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and earned her master of public health from Vanderbilt University. She completed her residency at New York University Langone Medical Center, and pursued fellowships in hematology/oncology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and hospice and palliative medicine at The Mount Sinai Hospital.