CSSIFM Team
Our Medical Staff
Tara E. Seery, MD
Tara E. Seery is a medical oncologist who specializes in treating cancers of the pancreas, esophagus, colon, rectum, anus, and liver. She has extensive experience in pancreatic cancer, including multiple publications, and is one of the highest enrollers in an early phase pancreatic cancer trial.
Dr. Seery received her M.D. from University College Dublin School of Medicine after receiving her B.S. from Vanderbilt University. Dr. Seery did her residency and fellowship training in hematology/oncology at Caritas St. Elizabeth Medical Center in Boston and completed her fellowship training at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Dr. Seery also served as Associate Professor at UC Irvine in the Division of Hematology Oncology where she received the prestigious C. Ronal Koons, M.D. Humanitarian Award for service and compassion to patients.
Compassion and hope have driven Dr. Seery toward specializing in gastro-intestinal cancers. Although no one in her family is in medicine, she has been passionate about becoming a physician since she was five years old. Dr. Seery states that “joining CSSIFM is exciting because we are offering patients more hope, a better quality of life, and our future is to cure cancer.” Her plan is to help lead the pancreatic cancer studies for CSSIFM.
She enjoys teaching and was recently featured at the Hematology/Oncology Fellowship Annual Lecture Series. Her research experience includes neoadjuvant chemotherapy and intraoperative chemotherapy for resectable pancreatic cancer and Corydalis Yanhusuo for prevention of chemotherapy induced neuropathy. She has been the primary investigator for 20 oncology trials. Dr. Seery has been published numerous times, has many abstracts, and is an invited speaker around the world.
Dr. Seery has lived in Southern California since 2010, enjoys running and spending time with her husband and young daughter.
Chaitali Nangia, MD
Chaitali Nangia is a nationally renowned medical oncologist who provides leadership and active involvement in clinical trials focusing on immune oncology, precision care, biologics, targeted drugs and hormonal agents. With her expertise in the breast, head, and neck cancers she treats, she focuses on survivorship, quality of life, patient reported outcome and symptom management. Her goal is for each patient to have a high quality of life during and after treatment.
Dr. Nangia is published in many areas, including head and neck cancers, breast cancers, thyroid cancers, salivary gland tumors, rare tumors and skin cancers. Most recently, she practiced at UC Irvine where she was the HS Associate Clinical professor in the Division of Hematology Oncology and the Associate Program Director for the hematology oncology fellowship program. Dr. Nangia has received many awards, including Teacher of the Year for UC Irvine’s Hematology Oncology Division for an impressive three times in a row, NCI Clinician Award and Orange County Medical Association Physician of Excellence award.
Katayoun Moini, DPA, MHS, PA-C, RD, CNSC
Professor Moini is a PA at CSSIFM with over 15 years of clinical experience in hematology and oncology and extensive experience in medical education. She is certified through NCCPA and licensed as a PA by the State of California and Connecticut. She is also a registered dietitian with expertise in medical nutrition therapy. Moini holds a Master of Health Science Physician Assistant degree, Bachelor of Science in Clinical Nutrition and is a Registered Dietitian and Certified Nutrition Support Clinician (CNSC). She completed her doctoral degree in 2024 with a focus in immunooncology research. In addition to medically managing patients, she creates and incorporates individualized Medical Nutrition Therapy into patient care, including oncology specific nutrition support guidelines and educational resources.
Moini is the founder and owner of 2MPOWER. Which was created to improve medical care through holistic medical education of both future and current medical providers.
Prof. Moini is the founding former PA Program Director for the Master of Health Science PA Program at Charles R. Drew University (CDU). She successfully obtained Accreditation Provisional status for the program in April 2016 and graduated the program’s inaugural class in 2018 with a resounding overall board pass rate of 100% and lead the students to a 3rd place (out of 104 teams) victory at the National Challenge Bowl competition.
Additional academic experience includes teaching for Yale’s online PA Program, Touro University and Quinnipiac University.
Moini was a member of the U.S. Inline Hockey Team and competed at several World Inline Hockey tournaments. Today she enjoys dirt jumping, downhill mountain biking and skating on the Hermosa Strand with her pit bull, Juice!
CSSIFM Team
Our team includes experienced nurses, a certified dietitian, and a dedicated research group.
Nursing - Karen Fayssoux
RN, Infusion Nurse
Karen has been a registered nurse for over 14 years. She earned her ADN at Los Angeles Harbor College. After graduating, she began her career at a local hospital on a Medical-Surgical Oncology unit. During her years of floor nursing, she was known for making sure her patients received the highest level of care. She received a Daisy award for providing compassionate and quality care to her patients. While working in her local hospital she explored other opportunities and trained to be a Wound Ostomy and Continence nurse. She also worked in an Ambulatory Infusion center and continued to care for Oncology patients. Her interest in nursing did not stop there. She went on to work as an ER nurse. At that time she pursued her Bachelor’s degree at University of Phoenix and obtained a BSN. After years of the ER she decided to come back to Oncology and care for patients in the clinical research setting. While at CSSIFM she has expanded her knowledge and is part of the Apheresis team. She enjoys spending time with friends and her 3 boys.
Nursing - Amanda Nikolenko
BSN, RN, Infusion Nurse
Holding a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Drexel University, Amanda is a highly experienced nursing professional with over a decade of clinical expertise across a wide range of acute care environments including the Adult ICU, Pediatric ICU, Pediatric Cardiac ICU, Neonatal ICU, and Emergency Department. Throughout her career, Amanda is known for her commitment to patient-centered care and patient and family education.
Prior to beginning her nursing career, Amanda earned her Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies in Kinesiology from University of Texas San Antonio, where she also played collegiate softball. After graduating from UTSA, Amanda played professionally in France and Italy.
Outside of her professional work, she enjoys spending time with her fiancée, nephew, gardening, and caring for her chickens, reflecting her appreciation for family and the outdoors.
Pharmacy - Jeanne Le

Pharmacist
Jeanne received her PharmD degree from the University of California, San Francisco and completed her undergraduate degrees in Biomedical Engineering and Business Administration at the Georgia Institute of Technology. She started her career as a pharmacy intern at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital and Kaiser Permanente.
At CSSIFM, she is responsible for oversight of the pharmacy and investigational drugs, where she is excited to contribute to the care of our oncology patients. In her free time, she loves to hike, cook and bake, try new restaurants, and drink matcha.
Pharmacy - Ryan Valencia

Investigational Pharmacist
Ryan received his PharmD degree from Loma Linda University and completed his undergraduate studies at Pacific Union College, earning a degree in Healthcare Management. He completed his PGY1 pharmacy residency at Community Regional Medical Center (CRMC), Fresno. Ryan pursued a PGY2 residency at Rady Children’s Hospital, San Diego, with a focus on general pediatrics and pediatric oncology, furthering his interest in caring for complex pediatric populations.
At CSSIFM, he is responsible for oversight of the pharmacy and investigational drugs, where he is excited to contribute to the care of our oncology patients. In his free time, he loves to try new restaurants, go stand up paddle boarding, explore new coffee shop and attend concerts.
Apheresis - Wendy Beron

RN, Manager, Apheresis
Wendy received her MPH from the University of Southern California. She has 5 years of experience in this field and is responsible for managing the clinical data of ongoing trials and ensuring the quality of the data.
Research - Jaya Mini Gill

Director, Research
Mini’s passion in research started during her undergraduate years at UCLA. She then went onto graduate school and has been in clinical oncology research for over 10 years with a focus on brain tumors, solid tumors, and advanced malignancies. Helping to provide therapies to advance discoveries in research has been her goal. During her time away from work, she enjoys walking, relaxing with some nice music.
Research - Jacqueline Parnin

Clinical Research Specialist, CCRP
Jacqui’s work in oncology research started over 20 years ago and helping to advance medicine has been her passion. In her spare time, you can find her sewing new 16th century dresses to wear at renaissance fair or watching Nascar. While her only son is away attending UCLA, her two mini schnauzers and her mom keep her company at home.
Research - Wendy Mata

Data Coordinator
Wendy received her MPH from the University of Southern California. She is responsible for managing the clinical data of ongoing trials and ensuring the quality of the data.
Finance /Administration - Joanne Luza

Revenue Manager
Joanne has worked in healthcare for her entire career, both on the practice management and revenue management side. She has 15+ years of experience in Oncology billing.
Administration - Sandy Brady

Patient Care Coordinator
Sandy is our Patient Care Coordinator with 10+ years’ experience in the healthcare industry. She is passionate about providing quality care and support for patients and their families.
Patient Care Coordinator - Diana Argueta

Patient Care Coordinator
Diana joins our team with a genuine passion for helping others and a commitment to making every patient feel supported. As a Patient Coordinator, she loves navigating the details of care to ensure a seamless experience for everyone who walks through our doors.
When she’s not in the office, Diana is usually on a high-stakes mission with her son, hunting down the latest additions to his monster truck collection. Whether they are planning a new adventure, exploring a hiking trail, or singing at the top of their lungs in the car, she cherishes every moment of their time together. An avid traveler, she also loves the excitement of discovering a new city whenever she gets the chance.









