Dr. Melissa H. Coleman obtained her undergraduate degree in Biology at Harvard College and her medical degree at Weill Cornell Medical College. Dr. Coleman began her General Surgery Residency at Duke University Medical Center where she completed her intern and second year. From 2009 – 2011 she was a research fellow in the Thoracic Surgery Oncology Laboratory at Brigham and Women's Hospital under the direction of Dr. Raphael Bueno, Chief of the Division of Thoracic Surgery. Her research focused on the identification of estrogen-regulated genes associated with malignant pleural mesothelioma outcomes. Dr. Coleman then completed her General Surgery Residency followed by a Surgical Critical Care and Clinical Nutrition Fellowship at Brigham and Women's Hospital. She subsequently completed a fellowship in Thoracic Surgery at UCSF. Dr. Coleman was awarded the UCSF Exceptional Physician Award in her final year as a Thoracic Surgery Fellow.

After graduation, Dr. Coleman joined the faculty at UCSF. Her clinical practice includes general thoracic surgery with a focus on thoracic oncology, robotic thoracic surgery, and surgical management of hyperhidrosis. In addition to her role as a Thoracic Surgeon, she practices critical care medicine and has a focus on medical education.

In 2021, Dr. Coleman was named a John A. Watson Faculty Scholar, an honor that confers a grant from the UCSF Dean's Diversity Fund. Dr. Coleman developed the UCSF Thoracic Surgery Fellowship curriculum and is currently pursuing research focused on learning strategies in graduate medical education. She received the 2020 UCSF Thoracic Residency Program Teaching Award, earned the UCSF Haile T. Debas Academy of Medical Educators Excellence in Teaching Award 2021 and completed the UCSF Teaching Scholars Program in 2023. Dr. Coleman is also the Director of UCSF School of Medicine Clinical Immersive Experiences (CIEx) program.