Dr. Knudsen Named Director of SKCC
Karen E. Knudsen, PhD, has been named the Director of the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Thomas Jefferson University and the Hilary Koprowski Chair of the Department of Cancer Biology of the Sidney Kimmel
Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University. Dr. Knudsen has been serving in these interim roles since January, and is exceptionally qualified to lead the vitally important research and clinical work
being done at Jefferson to conquer cancer.
Dr. Knudsen is both committed and passionate about ushering in a new era of progress and excellence at the SKCC. With her team of equally devoted researchers and clinicians, Dr. Knudsen will execute on her
vision to reimagine cancer care, research and education -- both nationally and globally. Under her leadership, precision medicine will drive patient treatments, and greater collaboration in the lab will
yield more powerful discoveries.
In addition to leading the SKCC and expanding the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Network, Dr. Knudsen and her team will provide Jefferson's oncology expertise to patients in South Jersey through our partnership with
the Inspira Health Network. The relationship will offer patients greater access to our clinical trials and sub-specialty services such as genetic counseling and oncological surgery. The SKCC will also continue
its collaboration with the Myrna Brind Center of Integrative Medicine at Jefferson, and in the fall, Marcus Integrative Health at the Myrna Brind Center in Villanova, to integrate complementary therapies into
the care of patients with cancer.
Dr. Knudsen received her BS from George Washington University and PhD from the University of California at San Diego. Her postdoctoral studies with National Academy of the Sciences member Dr. Webster K. Cavenee
at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, cultivated a program centered on the molecular basis of prostate cancer growth and progression. Dr. Knudsen joined Jefferson in 2007 after a successful career as
a tenured associate professor at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.
A leading expert in the molecular basis of hormone-dependent cancer development and progression, Dr. Knudsen focuses her work on developing new means to prevent or treat lethal prostate cancers. Her studies
that identify tumor suppressor and hormone receptor alterations have uncovered new targets for treating advanced disease, and have led to innovative, biomarker-driven clinical trials.
Dr. Knudsen also has joint appointments in the Departments of Urology, Radiation Oncology and Medical Oncology. Notably, she served as the first Vice Provost for Thomas Jefferson University, overseeing
and integrating basic and clinical research across the college and schools.
The Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center is a Consortium Cancer Center. The SKCC Consortium Members are Thomas Jefferson University, Drexel University and Lankenau Institute for Medical Research.
SKCC Oncology Grand Rounds at a glance
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