Dr. Adam Holtzman is a board-certified radiation oncologist at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida, where he specializes in caring for patients with complex head and neck cancers, skin cancers of the head and neck, and skull base tumors. Based in Northeast Florida, he cares for patients from across the Southeastern United States, throughout the country, and internationally, many of whom come to Mayo Clinic because their tumors are rare, difficult to treat, or located close to critical structures involved in speaking, swallowing, vision, hearing, breathing, and facial function.
In the clinic, Dr. Holtzman uses advanced radiation therapy techniques, including intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT), volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT), stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), and proton therapy. These tools allow him to shape treatment carefully around each patient's tumor, with the goal of controlling cancer while reducing radiation exposure to nearby healthy tissues whenever possible.
His clinical expertise includes proton therapy for head and neck cancers and skull base tumors, including chordoma, chondrosarcoma, salivary gland cancers, sinonasal tumors, oropharyngeal cancers, HPV-associated head and neck cancers, and skin cancers with perineural spread. His research has contributed to some of the largest reported proton therapy experiences for skull base tumors, and he is listed by the Chordoma Foundation among select international experts for patients seeking specialized care.
Dr. Holtzman is an Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science. He serves on Mayo Clinic's enterprise Head and Neck Disease Group Executive Committee, co-chairs a Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center Protocol Review and Monitoring Committee, and serves as Vice President of the Particle Therapy Cooperative Group – North America. In 2026, the University of Florida named him one of its 40 Gators Under 40, recognizing outstanding young alumni for professional achievement, service, leadership, and commitment to the university's mission.
He also leads and contributes to clinical trials in head and neck cancer and particle therapy, with a focus on questions that come directly from the patients he sees in clinic. His research interests include proton therapy, carbon ion therapy, HPV-associated cancers, treatment de-escalation for patients who may safely receive less radiation, artificial intelligence-guided radiation planning, and improved approaches for rare tumors. He is also part of Mayo Clinic's multidisciplinary work preparing to bring carbon ion therapy to Jacksonville, an advanced form of particle therapy expected to expand options for some of the most challenging cancers.
For Dr. Holtzman, exceptional cancer care begins with listening. He believes that no two patients, even two people with the same diagnosis, should automatically receive the same plan. He takes time to understand each patient's diagnosis, goals, concerns, family, and daily life before recommending treatment. His approach is grounded in science but shaped around the person in front of him.
"Every patient deserves care that is precise, evidence-based, and deeply personal" says Dr.Holtzman. "My job is to bring the most appropriate technology and the best available evidence to the person in front of me and then make sure the plan we choose fits their life, not just their scan."
Outside of medicine, Dr. Holtzman is a devoted father of three, a former national scholastic chess champion, and an avid marathon runner. He brings the same focus, patience, and long-game thinking from those parts of his life into the exam room and into every treatment plan he designs.