Dr. Rakkar
Dr. Rakkar is originally from Jalandhar, a major city in the state of Punjab in India. He was the top High School Graduate in the State of Punjab in 1981 and was a National Merit Scholar. He was the top Pre-Medical Student in the State of Punjab in 1983. He graduated from the Medical College, Amrilsar, India in 1987 and was named the Best Medical Graduate of the University in 1987. He graduated with Distinction in 11 of 12 subjects and was awarded 12 Gold Medals.
He then completed training in Internal Medicine at the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarb, India graduating at the top of his class.
Dr. Rakkar then moved to the US and completed additional training in Internal Medicine at SUNY Stony Brook in New York.
He then completed a Fellowship in Medical Oncology at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland in 1998. While at the NCI he did original research in Gene Therapy treatment options in Breast Cancer. He also was an associate investigator on a number of ongoing Breast Cancer clinical research protocols at the NCI.
He then practiced Hematology-Oncology in Terre Haute, Indiana from 1998-2001 before coming to Phoenix to join Palo Verde Hematology-Oncology.
He is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Oncology. He is the head of the Clinical Trial Department at Palo Verde Hematology-Oncology and is the Principal Investigator of several clinical trials. He was named Banner Thunderbird Top Doc in 2005
Dr Rakkar was a member of his college field hockey team and volleyball team. He is still very active in sports and enjoys gardening. He has trekked extensively in the Himalayan Mountains of North India.