Stephanie Cheng, MD
- Integrative Palliative Care Physician, Osher Center for Integrative Health
- Affiliated Faculty, Osher Center for Integrative Health
- Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine, Department of Medicine, Division of Palliative Medicine
Group Medical Visits
Experience
Stephanie Cheng, MD is a palliative care physician with a longstanding commitment to integrative medicine. She currently works at the UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, providing supportive care for patients with cancer, as well as the Osher Center where she facilitates group medical visits. Dr. Cheng has a special interest in holistic management of symptoms and improving quality of life through integrative approaches.
Dr. Cheng co-created innovative group medical visits that pair psycho-oncology and integrative palliative care for patients with advanced cancer. As a nature and forest therapy guide, she also pioneered a virtual nature therapy group medical visit program. She also offers a group on self-compassion and will be offering future group visits on qigong and narrative medicine.
Dr. Cheng has a longstanding meditation practice and has completed trainings in chaplaincy (through the Sati Center for Buddhist Studies), mind-body medicine (through the Center for Mind Body Medicine), Awakening Joy (with meditation teacher James Baraz), and self-compassion (through the Center for Mindful Self-Compassion). She also completed a two-year program focused on illness, aging, death, and compassionate action from a contemplative perspective through Spirit Rock Insight Meditation Center and the Metta Institute.
Dr. Cheng has a background in anthropology, earned her medical degree at Oregon Health & Science University, then completed a family medicine residency at Contra Costa Regional Medical Center, followed by a fellowship in hospice and palliative medicine, with an integrative medicine focus, at George Washington University. She is passionate about planetary health and serves as a faculty affiliate at the University of California Center for Climate, Health, and Equity. She also serves as the Vice Chair of the Nature & Health Special Interest Group of the Academic Consortium for Integrative Medicine and Health.
Education and Training
- Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellowship, George Washington University
- Family Medicine Residency, UCSF-affiliated Contra Costa Regional Medical Center
- MD, Oregon Health and Science University
- BA, University of Notre Dame
Personal Statement and Approach
I am passionate about integrative medicine and palliative care because of the strong emphasis on truly person-centered care that honors each individual’s dignity and unique journey. I care deeply about my patients and endeavor to maximize quality of life and wellbeing of mind, body, and spirit.
Publications
