Robert Vonderheide Appointed to Second Five-Year Term as Director of the Abramson Cancer Center – U Penn

Robert Vonderheide Appointed to Second Five-Year Term as Director of the Abramson Cancer Center

Robert H. Vonderheide has been appointed to a second five-year term as director of the Abramson Cancer Center (ACC) at the University of Pennsylvania, following a highly successful tenure that saw 17 FDA approvals in oncology for therapies based on studies led or co-led by ACC investigators, high-impact basic and translational research discoveries, expansion of radiation oncology services to new sites across the Philadelphia region, and development of new methods for live tumor imaging during surgeries. Under his leadership, the ACC has also launched new cancer home care and telemedicine programs, as well as initiatives that drove improvements in germline genetic testing, cancer screenings, and clinical trial participation by minority patients. Dr. Vonderheide will also continue in his roles as Vice President for Cancer Programs in the University of Pennsylvania Health System and Vice Dean for Cancer Programs in Penns Perelman School of Medicine.

In the next phase of his leadership, Dr. Vonderheide will build on the development of pathways to ensure that, amid the increasingly complex landscape of cancer care and research, patients across the entire health system are able to access leading-edge Penn Medicine care no matter where they live. Among key examples already underway: proton therapy at Lancaster General Health and Virtua Health in New Jersey, both set to open this year; sub-specialty surgery consultation at outpatient sites and Penn Medicines regional hospitals; and telemedical options for genetic counseling and CAR T cell therapy and bone marrow transplant evaluation and education.

Patients can expect an exceptional experience at every location across our health systema place they are cared for by the most committed staff, specialized nurses, and top physician experts, said University of Pennsylvania Health System CEO Kevin B. Mahoney. Now, we are harmonizing that patient experience to ensurethat every patient has the most seamless care and robust options across different sites of care, and the assistance to navigate easily between them. Under Dr. Vonderheides leadership, we are ensuring that every patient has every opportunity for the most personalized treatment and the very best chance at a cure through every door they enter across Penn Medicine.

Dr. Vonderheides renewal as ACC director includes a five-year, $130 million investment from the health system to provide resources and infrastructure to unify all missions of cancer care and research across Penn Medicine.

Growing access to cancer clinical trials is a key area of focus that will happen through the development of a cancer clinical trials network, including more opportunities for patients at Penn Medicines regional hospitals to participate in clinical trials being led at the ACCs main campus sites in Philadelphia, and the expansion of other trial sites closer to patients homes. Additional efforts will harness the power of Penns unified electronic health record, from new approaches to involve patients in the Penn Medicine BioBank to the expansion of programs providing patients with e-nudges to schedule mammograms and other tests and appointments through the MyPennMedicine portal.

This is a time of exciting, unprecedented momentum for cancer care and research, said J. Larry Jameson, dean of the Perelman School of Medicine and Executive Vice President of the University of Pennsylvania for the Health System. The cancer death rate has dropped faster in the past two years than ever before, due in part to the development of prevention strategies and of targeted and immunotherapies for an array of diseases. Dr. Vonderheide embodies that momentum as an exceptional collaborator who brings experts together across different disciplines to focus efforts on the most innovative ways to meet our shared goals of driving cancer discovery and improving patient care.

The ACC has continuously been designated as a Comprehensive Cancer Center by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) since 1974, one of 52 such centers in the United States. It is among the nations most highly ranked cancer centers, providing care to adults during more than 300,000 outpatient visits annually across the six-hospital Penn Medicine Cancer System, as well as delivering more than 190,000 outpatient infusion therapies, over 130,000 radiation treatments, and 330 stem cell transplants each year. The ACC was rated as exceptional during its competitive research funding review, the highest possible merit rating for an NCI Cancer Center.

Dr. Vonderheide is a leading authority in cancer immunology, leading a lab and clinical research focused on immunotherapies and vaccines for pancreatic, breast, and other cancers. He serves on the boards of directors of the American Association for Cancer Research, the Association of American Cancer Institutes, and the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. He is a member of the NCI Board of Scientific Advisors.

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Robert Vonderheide Appointed to Second Five-Year Term as Director of the Abramson Cancer Center - U Penn