At the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, we use provider teams consisting of a physician and an advanced practice provider (APP) to deliver the very best in oncology care.  Our advanced practice providers are nurse practitioners and physician assistants who are specialists in oncology.  Our APPs partner with patients to help better control symptoms, prevent complications and coordinate the state-of-the-art treatments so that you can best manage your life after diagnosis.

Nelli Zafman, C.R.N.P.

Nelli Zafman is a board certified adult nurse practitioner with the American Nurses Credentialing Center and has been with Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center since 2008.
She provides support, education, and medical care to patients undergoing therapy for cancer. 
She received her bachelor of science in nursing degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing in 1995. 
She worked as an intensive care nurse for several years until she obtained her Master of Science in Nursing degree as well Nurse Practitioner certification from Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing in 2004. 
As a nurse practitioner she found her new passion in providing care for oncology patients. 
She obtained Advanced Oncology Nurse Practitioner Certification from Oncology Nursing Certification Corporation. 
She became a part of medical oncology group at Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center in February 2008.

Carol D. Riley, R.N., M.S.N., C.R.N.P.

Carol Riley received her bachelor of science in nursing from Towson State University in 1987 and then began working in the Oncology Center at Johns Hopkins on a solid tumor/bone marrow transplant unit.
After eight years as a senior clinical nurse, she pursued her graduate degree at Johns Hopkins University and graduated in 1998.  She her Nurse Practitioner certification from the American Nurses Credentialing Center.
She joined the Breast and Gynecological Malignancy Program group in October of 1998 where she provides support, education, and medical care to patients undergoing cancer therapy.

Carly McTeague, C.R.N.P.

Carly McTeague joined the Johns Hopkins Oncology team at Green Spring Station in 2019. She has worked with adult oncology patients since graduating with her master's degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing in 2015.
She is board-certified in adult and geriatric primary care through the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners.
She is committed to providing comprehensive and compassionate care during all stages of cancer from newly diagnosed, active treatment, surveillance, recurrent disease, palliative care, and survivorship.
Prior to becoming nurse practitioner, Carly worked in inpatient and outpatient oncology and spent time as a travel nurse. She received her bachelor's of science in nursing in 2009 from the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing.

Katie Papathakis, C.R.N.P.

Katie Papathakis is a senior nurse practitioner with the Breast and Gynecological Medical Oncology Program at Johns Hopkins Hospital, joining the group in 2016.
She is committed to providing quality and compassionate care during all stages of the cancer journey.
She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from the University of Delaware in 2000 and began her nursing career on the hematology oncology inpatient unit at Johns Hopkins Hospital.  She then worked in the oncology community setting while completing a Master of Science degree from University of Maryland.
She became certified as an Adult Nurse Practitioner with an Oncology focus in 2005 and is credentialed with the American Nurses Credentialing Center.

Judy Hetherington, C.R.N.P.

Judy Hetherington is an experienced nurse practitioner in the Johns Hopkins Radiation Oncology Department since 2010.
She received the bachelor of science degree in nursing at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and master of science in nursing at Johns Hopkins University in 2000.
She has worked in multiple inpatient and outpatient oncology centers. In Radiation Oncology, she focuses on patients who have completed treatment and monitors of side effects and other oncologic needs.

Patricia Njoku, M.S.N., C.R.N.P.

Patricia Njoku is a certified adult nurse practitioner with the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners and has been with Johns Hopkins Hospital since 1989. She provides comprehensive, compassionate medical care for all patients and families from adolescents to the elderly.
Patricia received her master's degree in nursing with honors from Johns Hopkins University in 2011. She has been in nursing since 1980, primarily in gynecology/oncology, and joined the Surgical Oncology Breast group in 2013. Patricia’s interests include immigrant health, reproductive and breast health, promoting disease prevention and healthy living. In addition to her administrative and leadership skills, she cares for postoperative breast cancer patients and provides high-risk cancer screening and post-breast cancer treatment management as well as counseling, consulting and education.

Patricia is a member of:

• Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society
• The American Association of Nurse Practitioners
• The American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology

Ta-Ya Lee, DNP, DAOM, PhD, CRNP-Adult/PMHNP, Dipl.OM, LAc

Ta-Ya Lee is a board certified Adult nurse practitioner since 1997 and Psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner with American Nurse Credentialing Center in 2022.  She is an acupuncturist and Chinese herbal medicine practitioner, board certified for Acupuncture, Chinese medicine, and Oriental medicine by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine since 2000.  She is also earned the Diploma in Clinical Homeopathy of the Center for Education and Development of Homeopathy in 2019.
Ta-Ya completed the Integrative Oncology Fellowship at University of Michigan in 2022, and recipient of the Bravewell Fellowship in Integrative Medicine in 2008. She served as an oncology research nurse for the School of Nursing in the mid-1990s and earned Johns Hopkins Doctoral Nursing Practice degree in 2011.
Ta-Ya joined the Kimmel Cancer Center in February 2023, providing integrative medicine consultation to patients through the Under Armor Breast Health Innovation Center in the Skip Viragh Outpatient Cancer Building.