Oncologist Near Me – Razelle Kurzrock: Revolutionizing Cancer Treatment Through Precision Medicine

Welcome to OncoDaily‘s special section, “Oncologist Near Me,” where we introduce prominent oncologists worldwide.

Here, you can get to know the leading cancer specialists in your area, including personal and professional details you won’t find in their research articles.

Interested solely in research? We’ve got that covered too! Discover top research articles by the author, learn about their academic achievements, awards, and honors, watch their interviews, and memorize some quotes for much-needed inspiration!

Razelle Kurzrock, MD FACP

Dr. Razelle Kurzrock is a world-renowned physician-scientist and a leading figure in precision medicine and novel cancer therapeutics. She is the Founding Director of the Michels Rare Cancers Research Laboratories at the Medical College of Wisconsin. Dr. Kurzrock led the I-PREDICT study (Nature Medicine, 2019), which was the first to deliver individualized N-of-1 matched combination therapies to patients with lethal malignancies, helping to define a new era of personalized cancer treatment.

Early Life and Education

Dr. Razelle Kurzrock’s love for science began almost as early as she can remember. In Legends and Legacies, a 2008 collection from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, she shares:

“I was practically born wanting to be a scientist. I have known that I wanted to be a research scientist and to discover things since I was six years old.”

That passion was deepened by personal loss. “This decision was reinforced with the death of my mother from rheumatic heart disease when I was 12.” Even as a child, her fascination with science was unmistakable. “I remember in second grade hiding my science book under the table and reading it while other classes were in progress,” she recalled. “Unfortunately, I was ‘discovered,’ which led to my nickname, mostly by the boys in my class, of  ‘the scientist.’”

Dr. Kurzrock followed that calling through a distinguished academic path. She earned her Doctor of Medicine from the University of Toronto in 1978, completed her residency in Internal Medicine at Tulane University Hospital and Clinics in New Orleans (1979–1981), and pursued a fellowship in Medical Oncology at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston (1982–1983).

Her decision to train at MD Anderson would prove pivotal, shaping a career that would see her become one of the most influential leaders in precision oncology.

 Young Razelle Kurzrock in her early academic years

Career

Dr. Razelle Kurzrock is widely recognized for her pioneering work in precision oncology, rare cancers, and experimental therapeutics.

“If there is one characteristic needed by women to enable them to succeed in medicine and science, it is a dogged persistence to stick by their choices no matter what roadblocks are put in their way. At some junctures, it would have undoubtedly been easier to abandon my goal, but I was resolute, and because my goal had been a focal point of my life for so many years, I persisted.”

She currently serves as Founding Director of the Michels Rare Cancers Research Laboratories and Professor of Medicine at the Medical College of Wisconsin. In addition to her academic leadership, she is an entrepreneur, Co-founder of CureMatch, and a Board member of both CureMatch and CureMetrix.

Dr. Kurzrock also plays a leading role in national cancer research networks, serving on the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) and as Chair of Early Therapeutics and Rare Cancers and Board of Governors member of NCI SWOG.

Previously, she led transformative programs at two of the world’s top cancer centers. At MD Anderson Cancer Center, she served as Chair of the Department of Investigational Cancer Therapeutics, building one of the largest and most innovative Phase I clinical trial programs. Later, at UC San Diego, she was Distinguished Professor of Medicine and Senior Deputy Center Director for Clinical Science, where she founded the Center for Personalized Cancer Therapy and the Rare Tumor Clinic.

Recently, Dr. Kurzrock was honored as a Healthcare Pioneer in San Diego Magazine’s Celebrating Women 2024 Awards, recognizing her decades-long work to make cancer treatment more personal, precise, and hopeful for patients. She was also named in the 100 Influential Women in Oncology by OncoDaily.

Research

Dr. Razelle Kurzrock has played a defining role in shaping modern precision oncology. At MD Anderson Cancer Center, she founded and led what became the largest Phase I clinical trials department in the world, placing personalized medicine at the heart of early drug development. Her work there introduced the PREDICT protocol (Profile-Related Evidence Determining Individualized Cancer Therapy), one of the earliest clinical strategies to guide treatment based on tumor molecular profiling, a concept that helped establish precision medicine as a standard of care.

Her work has involved the early investigation of novel molecules, including growth factors, cytokines, retinoids, and targeted therapies such as farnesyltransferase, IGFR, IL-6, MET kinase, and VEGF inhibitors. She was the principal investigator on a pivotal trial of 2′-deoxycoformycin (pentostatin), which led to its FDA approval for hairy-cell leukemia.

Her research has been supported by major grants from the American Cancer Society, the National Cancer Institute, and the pharmaceutical industry. She also has deep experience in translational science, with studies exploring leukemia pathogenesis and cytokine signaling. Her lab work has resulted in two patents pending, one for a novel NFκB inhibitor and another for a new molecular imaging method.

Her research impact goes back even further. In 1987, she was the first to describe a key molecular abnormality in Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute leukemia and demonstrate its abnormal kinase activity (Nature, 1987). This discovery, along with similar findings, laid the foundation for targeted therapies that transformed leukemia treatment.

Over the course of her career, Dr. Kurzrock has authored more than 950 scientific publications and is among the most highly cited researchers in the world. She is widely recognized as one of the 25 most influential voices in precision medicine, and currently serves as Chair of the Early Therapeutics and Rare Cancers Committee at SWOG/NCI, one of the largest cooperative clinical trial networks in the U.S.

She has served as Principal Investigator for over 100 early-phase clinical trials, leading to the FDA approval of eight breakthrough therapies. In 2022, she and the DART rare cancer study team received the National Cancer Institute Director’s Award of Merit for their outstanding contributions to advancing treatment in rare malignancies.

Top 10 papers by Razelle Kurzrock*

1. Patel SP, Kurzrock R. PD-L1 Expression as a Predictive Biomarker in Cancer Immunotherapy. Mol Cancer Ther. 2015 Apr;14(4):847-56. doi: 10.1158/1535-7163.MCT-14-0983. Epub 2015 Feb 18. PMID: 25695955.
2. Goodman AM, Kato S, Bazhenova L, Patel SP, Frampton GM, Miller V, Stephens PJ, Daniels GA, Kurzrock R. Tumor Mutational Burden as an Independent Predictor of Response to Immunotherapy in Diverse Cancers. Mol Cancer Ther. 2017 Nov;16(11):2598-2608. doi: 10.1158/1535-7163.MCT-17-0386. Epub 2017 Aug 23. PMID: 28835386; PMCID: PMC5670009.
3. Dhillon N, Aggarwal BB, Newman RA, Wolff RA, Kunnumakkara AB, Abbruzzese JL, Ng CS, Badmaev V, Kurzrock R. Phase II trial of curcumin in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer. Clin Cancer Res. 2008 Jul 15;14(14):4491-9. doi: 10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-08-0024. PMID: 18628464.
4. Kurzrock R, Gutterman JU, Talpaz M. The molecular genetics of Philadelphia chromosome-positive leukemias. N Engl J Med. 1988 Oct 13;319(15):990-8. doi: 10.1056/NEJM198810133191506. PMID: 3047582.
5. Thompson MP, Kurzrock R. Epstein-Barr virus and cancer. Clin Cancer Res. 2004 Feb 1;10(3):803-21. doi: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-0670-3. PMID: 14871955.
6. Krishnamurthy N, Kurzrock R. Targeting the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway in cancer: Update on effectors and inhibitors. Cancer Treat Rev. 2018 Jan;62:50-60. doi: 10.1016/j.ctrv.2017.11.002. Epub 2017 Nov 13. PMID: 29169144; PMCID: PMC5745276.
7. Janku F, McConkey DJ, Hong DS, Kurzrock R. Autophagy as a target for anticancer therapy. Nat Rev Clin Oncol. 2011 May 17;8(9):528-39. doi: 10.1038/nrclinonc.2011.71. PMID: 21587219.
8. Jardim DL, Goodman A, de Melo Gagliato D, Kurzrock R. The Challenges of Tumor Mutational Burden as an Immunotherapy Biomarker. Cancer Cell. 2021 Feb 8;39(2):154-173. doi: 10.1016/j.ccell.2020.10.001. Epub 2020 Oct 29. PMID: 33125859; PMCID: PMC7878292.
9. Kato S, Goodman A, Walavalkar V, Barkauskas DA, Sharabi A, Kurzrock R. Hyperprogressors after Immunotherapy: Analysis of Genomic Alterations Associated with Accelerated Growth Rate. Clin Cancer Res. 2017 Aug 1;23(15):4242-4250. doi: 10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-16-3133. Epub 2017 Mar 28. PMID: 28351930; PMCID: PMC5647162.
10. Helsten T, Elkin S, Arthur E, Tomson BN, Carter J, Kurzrock R. The FGFR Landscape in Cancer: Analysis of 4,853 Tumors by Next-Generation Sequencing. Clin Cancer Res. 2016 Jan 1;22(1):259-67. doi: 10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-14-3212. Epub 2015 Sep 15. PMID: 26373574.

*Most cited papers, where Razelle Kurzrock is the first or last author according to Google Scholar

Interviews and Lectures with Razelle Kurzrock

Dr. Razelle Kurzrock, Medical Oncologist – Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin

MedNews Week Keynote Conference – Dr. Razelle Kurzrock (CureMatch & Med College of WI Cancer Center) 

Why Do Cancer Patients Need Precision Cancer Medicine? Dr. Razelle Kurzrock Explains – The Cancer Guy

Personalized Cancer Therapy: Promise and Challenge with Razelle Kurzrock, MD – University of California Television (UCTV)

Beyond the White Coat

Outside of her work in the lab and clinic, Dr. Razelle Kurzrock finds her greatest joy in family life. She’s married to a dermatologist and proudly calls herself a mom of seven, four children, and three Basenji dogs.

She stays active with running, skiing, and traveling, and carves out time for reading as well. But above all, her heart belongs to her family. “My major passion remains my family and children,” she shares, a grounding force behind her remarkable professional journey.

Baby Esha, one of Dr. Razelle Kurzrock’s three Basenji dogs (2023)

How to contact her?

Email: [email protected]
Location:  8701 W Watertown Plank Rd, Milwaukee, WI 53226, United States

Read the previous articles in the “Oncologist Near Me” series to explore insights into the lives and careers of leading oncologists worldwide.

We’ve curated the internet to find the most important information about them. If you have more information, please don’t hesitate to contact us at [email protected]

Written by Vahe Grigoryan