Karen Knudsen is the 2025 Allen Lichter Visionary Leader Award Recipient

Karen E. Knudsen is the recipient of the 2025 Allen Lichter Visionary Leader Award, she will be honoured with the award at the 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting, by ASCO and Conquer Cancer, the ASCO Foundation.

Karen E. Knudsen is the Executive Strategic Advisor and Immediate Past CEO of the American Cancer Society (ACS). She is also the Director of the Board of Directors at Exai Bi.

She is the third director of the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center (SKCC) at Jefferson Health, an NCI-Designated Cancer Center since 1995.

She was appointed as the enterprise director in January 2015 after serving as the deputy director and founding member of the SKCC Prostate Cancer Program.

As enterprise director, Dr. Knudsen oversees cancer research and care across 14 hospitals within Jefferson Health, reporting directly to the CEO of Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson Health.

Under Dr. Knudsen’s leadership, SKCC achieved an “Outstanding” evaluation in its most recent NCI renewal, with the center also being ranked as “Exceptional” in Community Outreach and Engagement—one of only four cancer centers to receive such a distinction.

Since taking the helm in 2015, Dr. Knudsen has expanded the center’s reach, establishing three Advanced Care Hubs outside the main academic site and extending clinical trial offerings across a two-state region.

Before assuming the directorship at SKCC, Dr. Knudsen served as the vice provost of Thomas Jefferson University, where she managed basic and clinical research across all six university schools.

She also serves as chair of the Department of Cancer Biology at Thomas Jefferson University and holds the Hilary Koprowski Endowed Professorship. In recognition of her translational research, Dr. Knudsen holds joint appointments in the departments of medical oncology, urology, and radiation oncology.

Her laboratory focuses on cell cycle and DNA repair regulation in prostate cancer and has generated discoveries that contributed to practice-changing clinical trials, particularly in targeting DNA repair-defective cancers. Currently, four investigator-initiated clinical trials are based on her laboratory’s findings.

Dr. Knudsen earned her BS in Biology from George Washington University and completed her PhD at the University of California, San Diego, where her research focused on cell cycle checkpoint control.

She later completed a postdoctoral fellowship with Webster K. Cavenee, studying hormone action and the impact of cell cycle dysregulation on prostate cancer progression.

Before joining Thomas Jefferson University in 2007, Dr. Knudsen was tenured faculty at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.

With more than 20 years of continuous NIH funding, Dr. Knudsen’s expertise lies in the molecular basis of hormone-dependent cancer development and progression. She is an editor for several leading oncology journals, including serving as editor-in-chief of Molecular Cancer Research and associate editor for Oncogene.

She has received numerous accolades for her work, including the Richard E. Weitzman Laureate Award from the Endocrine Society and the Sophie Yen Award for Distinguished Training in Translational Research.

Dr. Knudsen also plays a significant role in cancer center leadership and serves on numerous advisory, review, and elected panels for the Department of Defense, the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO), the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), and the NIH, including Parent Committee-A of the NCI.

She led the Advanced Prostate Cancer Track for the ASCO-GU Program Steering Committee for two years and is currently the Chair-Elect for ASCO-GU.

Dr. Knudsen serves on the advisory boards of nine NCI-designated cancer centers and chairs the AACR Nominating Committee.

She has also chaired the program for the AACI/CCAF Annual Meeting.

Dr. Knudsen’s work extends beyond research leadership; she is also an advocate for cancer research funding and patient access to clinical innovations.

She previously served as president of the Association of American Cancer Institutes (AACI), representing 102 leading cancer centers in North America, and has been a key member of the One Voice Against Cancer Coalition, which advocates for increased federal investment in cancer research.

As a National Cancer Institute-funded researcher, she understands the crucial role government plays in cancer research and patient care.

Karen Knudsen shared about her receiving this award on LinkedIn:

“Kicking off ‘ASCO season’ with deep gratitude!

I am both humbled and honored to receive the 2025 Allen Lichter Visionary Leader Award from American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).

This award was created in honor of the incredible Allen Lichter, to recognize ASCO members who have transformed the field of oncology.

I am so pleased to have been recognized for translational cancer discoveries of impact and in leading American Cancer Society, AACI (Association of American Cancer Institutes), and the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson Health.

At each of these organizations and within my own laboratory, I had the privilege of working with exceptional teams who leaned in to fast-track progress against cancer. I am endlessly grateful for their brilliance, integrity, and partnership.

I look forward to celebrating with my colleagues past and present at ASCO25 and GU25. Thank you to ASCO for this tremendous honor. I remain committed to our shared mission of reducing the burden of cancer and advancing equitable, patient-centered care.

A special congratulations also to recipients of the other 2025 ASCO Special Awards:

Susan Domchek , Heidi Klepin, Dawn Hershman, Don S. Dizon, Ian Krop, Barbara McAneny, Christopher R. Flowers, Karen Jackson, Melissa Hudson, Karen Mustian. Congratulations, all!”