About Us

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Dr. Oleg Gligich is a medical oncologist whose path to medicine has always been shaped by two seemingly different passions: science and art. Throughout medical school, residency, and fellowship, he was fascinated not only by the complexity of the human body, but also by its unexpected beauty. That perspective became especially powerful under the microscope. What others might see simply as cells, tissue, and pathology, he often saw as intricate patterns, colors, and forms—images that could be as striking as a painting. Even as those images revealed cancer and disease, they also reflected the extraordinary complexity and beauty of human life.

As Dr. Gligich progressed through his training—from medical school at Ross University, through internal medicine residency at Jacobi Medical Center, and hematology and oncology fellowship at Albert Einstein College of Medicine/Montefiore Medical Center—caring for people with cancer gave that appreciation a deeper purpose. He saw firsthand that fighting cancer requires far more than the right drug or treatment plan. For many patients and families, a cancer diagnosis also brings an enormous financial burden. The cost of medications, transportation, missed work, childcare, and everyday living expenses can become overwhelming at precisely the moment when patients need to focus their energy on getting well. No patient should have to choose between receiving cancer treatment and meeting the basic needs of their family.

That intersection of art, science, and compassion became the inspiration behind the Art Cancer Foundation. As its Medical Director, Dr. Gligich hopes to transform the very images that represent cancer under the microscope into something capable of helping the people fighting it. By turning the hidden beauty of human cells and tissues into art, the Foundation seeks to raise awareness and financial support for patients struggling with the economic consequences of cancer. For Dr. Gligich, the idea is deeply personal and remarkably simple: take something born from a patient's disease, reveal the beauty within it, and transform that beauty into a source of hope and tangible support for someone fighting cancer.