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Gary Francis, MD

UT Health San Antonio
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Overview

Practice Locations

Insurance

About

Articles & Publications
Specialty
Pediatric Endocrinology
Board Affiliation/Certification
American Board of Pediatric Endocrinology
American Board of Pediatrics
Education
University of Florida College of Medicine, 1974
Residency
University of Florida College of Medicine, 1977
Fellowships
University of Oklahoma, 1979
University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, 1979
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 1980
Languages
English
Gender
Male

University Hospital

4502 Medical Drive
San Antonio,TX 78229
210-358-4000
Location Details
Insurance Accepted
6 Degrees - Transplant
90 Degree Benefits - Commercial
Aetna - Commercial/Exchange (IFP)
Aetna - PPO/EPO/HMO/MC Advantage
Aetna - Smart Care EPO
Aetna - Transplant ONLY
Aetna Better Health - Medicaid-CHIP
Aetna Better Health - Medicaid-STAR
Allegiance - Universal Benefits Consortium
Allwell - Medicare Advantage
Ancira Enterprises - Direct Employer
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas - Exchange (BlueAdvantage)
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas - HMO/PPO
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas - HPN/EPO (Narrow Network)
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas - Medicaid-STAR
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas - Medicare Advantage HMO
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas - Medicare Advantage PPO
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas - Narrow HMO (Blue Essentials)
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas - Narrow HMO (Blue Premier)
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas - Traditional
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas - Transplant Programs
Care Improvement Plus - Medicare Advantage-SNP
Cenpatico - Medicaid-CHIP
Cenpatico - Medicaid-STAR
Cenpatico - Medicaid-STAR Health (Foster Care)
Cenpatico - Medicare Advantage
CHAMPVA - Governmental
Cigna (USSA Client) - Direct Employer & Dependents Only
Cigna - United Benefits Consortium
Cigna HealthSpring - Medicare Advantage - WellMed
Community First Health Plans - HMO/Exchange (EPO)
Community First Health Plans - Medicaid-CHIP
Community First Health Plans - Medicaid-CHIP Perinate
Community First Health Plans - Medicaid-STAR
Community First Health Plans - Medicaid-STAR Kids
Community First Health Plans - Medicare Advantage HMO
Coventry - HMO/PPO
Coventry - Work Comp / Auto
Curative - Commercial
Driscoll Health Plan - Medicaid-All
EBSO - TPA
El Paso First - Medicaid-CHIP
El Paso First - Medicaid-STAR
Entrust - TPA
First Health - Commercial PPO
FirstCare (Part of Scott & White Health Plans) - Medicaid-STAR
Gonzaba Medical Group - Transplant ONLY
Healthsmart - Accel
Healthsmart - Commercial PPO
Healthsmart - HPO/POS
Humana - Commercial Behavioral Health
Humana - Exchange (HMOx)
Humana - HMO/PPO/Behavioral Health
Humana - Medicare Advantage Behavioral Health
Humana - Medicare Advantage HMO (Gold)
Humana - Medicare Advantage PPO
Humana - National Transplant ONLY Network
Humana Military - TRICARE
Imperial Health Plan - Medicare Advantage
Independent Medical Systems (IMS) - PPO
Injury Management Organization - Workers Compensation
Interlink - Transplant
LifeTrac - Transplant
Magellan - Commercial and Medicaid Behavioral Health
Medicaid (Traditional) - Medicaid
Medicare (Traditional) - Medicare
Molina - Commercial Exchange
Molina - Medicaid-CHIP
Molina - Medicaid-CHIP Perinate
Molina - Medicaid-STAR
Molina - Medicare Advantage
Molina - Medicare-Medicaid Duals
MultiPlan - Work Comp
MultiPlan - Wrap Network
OptumHealth - Transplant ONLY
Oscar - Commercial Exchange
Point Comfort Underwriters (PCU) - Refugee Medical Assistance
Point Comfort Underwriters (PCU) - Unaccompanied Children
Prime Health Services - Commercial PPO
Prime Health Services - Medicare Advantage
Private Healthcare Systems (PHCS) - Commercial PPO
ProCare Advantage - Medicare Advantage I-SNP
Provider Network of America (PNOA) - Commercial
Provider Partners Health Plan (PPHP) - Medicare Advantage I-SNP
Scott & White Health Plan - HMO/PPO/Medicare Advantage
Superior HealthPlan - Medicaid-CHIP
Superior HealthPlan - Medicaid-CHIP Perinate
Superior HealthPlan - Medicaid-STAR
Superior HealthPlan - Medicaid-STAR Health (Foster Care)
Superior HealthPlan - Medicaid-STAR Kids
Superior HealthPlan - Medicaid-STAR PLUS
Superior HealthPlan - Medicare Advantage (Allwell)
Superior HealthPlan - Medicare-Medicaid Duals (Allwell)
Surest (UnitedHealthcare) - Commercial
Texas Independence Health Plan - Medicare Advantage I-SNP
Three Rivers Provider Network - PPO
Tokio Marine - Transplant
TriWest (via BCBSTX) - VA CCN Program
UnitedHealthcare - Medicaid-STAR
UnitedHealthcare - Medicaid-STAR Kids
UnitedHealthcare - Medicaid-STAR PLUS
UnitedHealthcare - Medicare Advantage
UnitedHealthcare - PPO
Universal Benefits Consortium - Brokerage Firm (School Districts)
University of Incarnate Word (Gilsbar) - Direct Employer
Velocity National Provider Network - Commercial PPO
Velocity National Provider Network - Wrap Network
Veterans Administration - Governmental
WellCare - Medicare Advantage
WellMed - Medicare Advantage
WellPoint (Gonzaba) - Medicare Advantage (TRANSPLANTS ONLY)
WellPoint - Medicaid-CHIP
WellPoint - Medicaid-CHIP Perinate
WellPoint - Medicaid-STAR
WellPoint - Medicaid-STAR Kids
WellPoint - Medicaid-STAR PLUS
WellPoint - Medicare Advantage
WellPoint - Medicare-Medicaid Duals
Please contact your health insurance company to confirm provider participation. For billing and insurance questions, please call our Billing Department at 210-358-3260.
Professor of Pediatrics
My research activities focus on thyroid neoplasia and thyroid cancer in children. I previously served on the American Thyroid Association Treatment Guidelines Committee for Medullary Thyroid Cancer. I recently led a task force commissioned by the American Thyroid Association (ATA) to develop a set of guidelines for evaluating and treating children with thyroid nodules and cancer. The recently issued guidelines are the first and only set of recommendations that provide best practice standards for diagnosing and treating thyroid cancer in children ages 18 and younger. I also serve as Chair of the Data Safety Monitoring Board for closed-loop insulin trials at the University of Virginia Center for Diabetes Technology.
Research Interests:
  • Thyroid cancer in children, thyroid neoplasia and any thyroid diseases in children

Abstracts

  1. Allen N; Desai N; Song C; Yu J; Prasad U; Francis GL. Clinical features may help to identify children and adolescents with greatest risk for thyroid nodules. J Endocrinol Invest 2020 Jul; 43(7):925-934. Doi: 10.1007 s40618-019-01176.6 Epub 2020 Jan 11. PMID: 31927747.
  2. Catherine Kerr MD, Gary Francis MD Ph.D. Thyroid Nodules in Children and Adolescents. Journal of Radiology and Imaging Science. J Radiol & Imaging Sci. 2020;1(1):1-5.
  3. Niran R. Wjiesooriya1, M.D., Caroline Carrico2, Ph.D., Gary Francis1, M.D. Ph.D., Chris Gennings3, Ph.D., Edmond P. Wickham III1 2, M.D. MPH. Association between Urinary Phthalate Levels and Body Mass Index Z-scores in US Children. Submitted to Obesity, May 2016.
  4. Andrew J Bauer and Gary L Francis. Management of Thyroid Nodules in Children. Curr Opin Pediatr. 2016 Aug;28(4):536-44 Apr 30. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 27139001.

Book Chapters

  1. Bauer AJ, Waguespack S, Grover A and Francis G. Thyroid Neoplasia. In Radovick and Misra Pediatric Endocrinology: A Practical Guide 3rd Ed. Springer Science. Chapter 19. Submitted 2016.
  2. Bauer AJ and Francis GL. Chapter 4: Molecular Aspects of Thyroid Cancer in Children. Thyroid Cancer: A Clinical Guide, 3rd Edition. Ed. Leonard Wartofsky, M.D., and Douglas VanNostrand, M.D., 2015.
  3. Waguespack S and Francis GL. Chapter 44: Radioactive Iodine Therapy of Thyroid Cancer in Children. Thyroid Cancer: A Clinical Guide, 3rd Edition, Ed. Leonard Wartofsky, M.D., and Douglas VanNostrand, M.D. 2015.

Other Publications

  1. Francis GL. Inadvertent Parathyroid Gland Removal During Thyroid Surgery in Children. A review of: Ziai H, Dixon P, Berman G, Campisi P, Wasserman JD. 2002 Incidental Parathyroidectomy Among Pediatric Patients Undergoing Thyroid Surgery. Laryngoscope. 2022 Nov;132(11):2262-2269. doi: 10.1002/lary.30056. Epub 2022 Feb 22. PMID: 35191038 Clinical Thyroidology February 2023. Francis GL. Macro–Thyrotropin and Other Disorders in the Differential Diagnosis of Congenital Hypothyroidism. Clinical Thyroidology 2023 Feb; 132(11) 142–146. Published Online:11 April 2023.
  2. Francis, G. L. (2023). Macro–Thyrotropin and Other Disorders in the Differential Diagnosis of Congenital Hypothyroidism. Clinical Thyroidology, 35(4), 142-146.
  3. Francis, G. L. (2023). Thyroid Function Abnormalities in Childhood Cancer Survivors. Clinical Thyroidology, 35(6), 224-228.
  4. Catherine E. Kerr, MD1; Jorge Velez, MD2; Jay Ferrell, MD3; Mio Kitano, MD4; Dr. Wouter Koek, PhD5; Patricia Dahia, MD, PhD6; and Gary Francis, MD, PhD1. Thyroid Nodules of Indeterminate Cytology in Hispanic/Latinx Patients. Head and Neck, 2022 Aug;44(8):1842-1848. PMID: 35583054.
  5. Luisa Rodriguez, MD, MS1, Catherine Dinauer, MD2, Gary Francis, MD, PhD3. Treatment of Hypothyroidism in Infants, Children and Adolescents. Trends in Endocrinology and Metabolism, VOLUME 33, ISSUE 7, P522-532, JULY 01, 2022.
  6. Francis, GL. Review of: Bardugo A, Derazne E, Zucker I, Bendor C, Puris G, Lutski M, Pinhas-Hamiel O, Cukierman-Yaffe T, MosenzonO\ O, Schechter M, Tzur D, Afek A, Tirosh A, Gerstein H, Raz I, and Twig G 2021. Adolescent Thyroid Disorders and Risk for Type 2 Diabetes in Young Adult. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 106:e3426-e3435 Adolescent Thyroid Disease and Risk for Adult Type 2 Diabetes. Clinical Thyroidology 34 (1) 6-9, 2022.
  7. Francis GL. Screening for Neonatal Hyperthyroidism. A review of: Banigé M, Kariyawasam D, Gauthereau V, Luton D, Polak M 2022 Neonatal Screening for Hyperthyroidism Proof of Concept. J Clin Endocrinol Metab Mar 24;107(4):e1374-e1381. doi: 10.1210/clinem/dgab890. Clinical Thyroidology 34:282-285, 2022.
  8. Francis GL. Maternal Thyroid Autoimmunity Affects the Emotional and Behavioral Development of the Offspring. A Review of: Teng Y, Li P, Yang M, Han Y, Yan S, Xu Y, Tao F, Huang K 2022 Sex-specific effect of thyroid peroxidase antibody and thyroglobulin antibody exposure during pregnancy on preschoolers’ emotional and behavioral development: A birth cohort study. Thyroid 32:1229–1242. PMID: 35920111. Clinical Thyroidology 34(12):521-525, 2022.
  9. Francis GL. Trends in Lobectomy for Pediatric Thyroid Cancer. A review of: Eli Stein BS, Mehul V. Raval MD, MS, Inbal Hazkani MD, Audra Reiter MD, MPH, Jami L. Josefson MD, Jill H. Samis MD, and Jeffrey C. Rastatter MD, MS. The 2015 American Thyroid Association guidelines and trends in hemithyroidectomy utilization for pediatric thyroid cancer. Head & Neck. 2022;44:1833–1841. Clinical Thyroidology 34(8) 347-350, 2022.
  10. Francis, GL. The Future of Molecular Profiling for the Treatment of Pediatric Thyroid Cancer. Review of: NTRK and RET fusion–directed therapy in pediatric thyroid cancer yields a tumor response and radioiodine uptake. J Clin Invest. 131(18):e144847  https://doi.org/10.1172/JCI144847. Clinical Thyroidology, 34(4)2022:157-160.
  11. Francis GL. Trends in Pediatric and Adult Iodine Status in the United States. Review of: Zhang K, Cheng J, Yu J, Chen Y, Shi X, Zhu C, Lu Y, Wang N, Han B 2022. Trends in iodine status among U.S. children and adults: A cross-sectional analysis of National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data from 2001–2004 to 2017–2020. Thyroid 32:962–971. PMID: 35822552. Clinical Thyroidology 34(11) 2022  .
  12. Francis, GL. What's the Likelihood of Post-Lobectomy Hypothyroidism in Children? Clinical Thyroidology 34(3) 100-102, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1089/ct.2022;34.100-102.
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