Pond Remsen Kelemen, MD, MS, is a surgical oncologist focused on breast surgery with over two decades of experience. Dr. Kelemen was interested in medicine from a young age, volunteering at his local hospital and working as an orderly throughout high school and college. He went on to complete an anatomic pathology residency at University of Illinois at Chicago, a general surgery residency at University of Chicago Hospitals, and a surgical oncology fellowship at The John Wayne Cancer Institute in California. His career experience includes 18 years of private practice in Westchester, focusing on breast health and breast cancer risk and treatment. Dr. Kelemen joined Northwell Health Physician Partners Breast Care Center at Northern Westchester Hospital and Physician Partners Breast Surgery at Phelps in 2021. He works as part of a highly skilled, interdisciplinary team, including medical oncologists, radiation oncologists and genetic specialists to develop individualized treatment plans. Patients can promptly receive imaging, biopsy, consultations and treatment—all without leaving their community. When it comes to his patients, Dr. Kelemen prides himself on his communication skills and even taught himself to speak Spanish to better connect with more patients. Passionate about research, Dr. Kelemen has completed studies on the techniques of intraoperative radiation, as well as the use of genotyping in early breast cancer. “Studying the genetic makeup of tumors allows us to get as personalized as possible when it comes to diagnosis and treatment,” says Dr. Kelemen. He has presented at national conferences and is widely published on these topics. Dr. Kelemen is also an associate professor of surgery at Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, where he teaches students the importance of character. “To become a doctor, you learn about subjects like organic chemistry,” he says. “But character should also be considered. What are you going to do at 3 in the morning when you have a problem that’s hard to solve? How are you going to treat that patient at that time? Tenacity and devotion are among the most important things in medicine.”