Salman Fazal, MD, a hematologist and stem cell transplant and cellular therapy expert at UPMC Hillman Cancer Center in Harrisburg, has been named a 2026 Castle Connolly Top Doctor, marking his third consecutive year receiving this prestigious designation. Only 7 percent of the nation’s licensed physicians are chosen annually as Castle Connolly Top Doctors for their specialties in their regions, according to the physician-led research team at Castle Connolly.
With more than 16 years of experience, Dr. Fazal provides advanced cancer care, cutting-edge therapies, and comprehensive clinical research at UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, an NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center affiliated with the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. He evaluates and treats a variety of complex malignant hematologic conditions, including myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), acute myeloid leukemia (AML), myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs), B- and T-cell lymphomas, and multiple myeloma, with a specific emphasis on high-risk, relapsed, and refractory disease.
Dr. Fazal specializes in advanced therapies such as hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, cellular therapies, bispecific antibodies, and innovative targeted treatments, giving patients options when conventional therapy falls short. He leads the bispecific therapy program in Central Pennsylvania, a role that underscores his commitment to bringing novel treatments to his patients.
His career includes nearly a decade as Director of the Cell Transplantation Program in the Division of Hematology and Cellular Therapy at Allegheny Health Network, where he provided clinical, operational, and strategic leadership for allogeneic transplant and cellular therapy programs, including CAR-T and emerging immune effector therapies. Earlier in his career, he took over that transplant program when survival rates were below par and led its turnaround. He has performed nearly 200 allogeneic transplants, with program-level survival meeting expected benchmarks, and built a dedicated long-term follow-up clinic for transplant patients with access to graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) clinical trials. He also led the oversight behind successful FACT accreditation inspections over nine years.
Dr. Fazal’s philosophy of care is rooted in compassion. “I’ve trained in different systems, but the most important lesson wasn’t medical; it was human,” he stated. “Expertise matters, but compassion is what truly defines care — and it shapes how I practice every day.” This patient-centered approach is reflected in his practice’s versatile consultation options, allowing patients to schedule both in-person office appointments and virtual telemedicine video visits to enhance accessibility.
Dr. Fazal earned his medical degree from King Edward Medical College in Pakistan. He completed his internal medicine residency at Rosalind Franklin University/Chicago Medical School and Griffin Hospital, a Yale School of Medicine affiliate, before completing his fellowship training in hematology and oncology at Allegheny General Hospital, where he served as Chief Fellow. He is board-certified in Internal Medicine, Hematology, and Medical Oncology.
A dedicated educator, Dr. Fazal was named Teaching Faculty of the Year (2018–2019) by the Hematology Oncology Fellowship at Allegheny Health Network, and has served as an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Temple University and Drexel University. He has been a principal investigator on numerous phase II and phase III clinical trials and was honored as an “MPN Hero” in 2025. He serves as a medical advisor and board member for the Western Pennsylvania/West Virginia Chapter of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. His research on transplantation outcomes, graft-versus-host disease, and hematologic malignancies has been published in leading medical journals, including The New England Journal of Medicine, The Lancet, Blood, and the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
Castle Connolly Top Doctors are nominated by peer physicians and selected by the physician-led research team based on criteria including medical education, training, hospital appointments, and disciplinary histories. Doctors do not and cannot pay to be selected. This recognition highlights Dr. Fazal’s ongoing contributions to advancing cancer care and improving patient outcomes in the region.
