Dr. William Cance

Surgical Oncology

Surgical Oncologist and Physician-Scientist, Atlanta, Georgia, United States.

United States of America

Biography

William G. Cance MD is a transformative physician executive and Key Opinion Leader with a proven track record of strategic, operational, and scientific accomplishments. Most of his career has been in leadership roles at NCI-designated comprehensive cancer centers. He is a strong collaborator with diverse stakeholders to influence, define, and execute visionary cancer care and cancer research. Dr. Cance maintained an active clinical practice in surgical oncology/endocrine surgery for 25+ years. He is a successful physician-scientist with continuous peer-reviewed funding for 25+ years from the National Institute of Health, conducting pioneering work on cancer diagnosis and treatment. The American Cancer Society named Dr. Cance chief medical and scientific officer in 2019. He has guided the research program through a restructuring that included enhancing the cancer cohort studies at the ACS through the embrace of genomic technologies and the launch of significant programs in health equity through the support of minority-serving institutions. Before joining the Society, he was deputy director and interim director of the University of Arizona Cancer Center, where he led the integration of the university’s Tucson- and Phoenix-based research programs. Dr. Cance was also the Finley & Florence Brown Professor of Cancer Research at the University of Arizona; Professor, Interdisciplinary Oncology and Professor, Surgery at the University of Arizona College of Medicine-Phoenix. He was chair of the Arizona Cancer Coalition for the Arizona Department of Health Services, during which he focused on promoting programs that addressed cancer disparities in underserved populations. Dr. Cance is a practicing surgical oncologist. His areas of expertise include thyroid cancer, parathyroid disease, and advanced gastrointestinal malignancies. He was the principal investigator for a 25-year National Cancer Institute (NCI) R01 grant focused on focal adhesion kinase, a protein involved in cancer metastasis. He has received additional grant funding from the NCI and the US Department of Defense. He holds eight patents and has been involved in several entrepreneurial projects to bring his research advancements to commercialization. Dr. Cance earned undergraduate and medical degrees from Duke University. He completed a residency in general surgery at Barnes-Jewish Hospital/Washington University School of Medicine and a fellowship in surgical oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

Publications

Selected publications from PubMed

Correction: Golubovskaya et al. Gene Expression Profiling Identifies Important Genes Affected by R2 Compound Disrupting FAK and P53 Complex. Cancers 2014, 6, 166-178.

Golubovskaya VM, Ho B, Conroy J, Liu S, Wang D, Cance WG

Cancers (Basel). 2026 Feb 6;18(3) doi: 10.3390/cancers18030526.

Identification of a Subset of Stage I Colorectal Cancer Patients With High Recurrence Risk.

Lee LH, Davis L, Ylagan L, Omilian AR, Attwood K, Firat C, Shia J, Paty PB, Cance WG

J Natl Cancer Inst. 2022 May 9;114(5):732-739 doi: 10.1093/jnci/djac023.

Oncogenic Receptor Tyrosine Kinases Directly Phosphorylate Focal Adhesion Kinase (FAK) as a Resistance Mechanism to FAK-Kinase Inhibitors.

Marlowe TA, Lenzo FL, Figel SA, Grapes AT, Cance WG

Mol Cancer Ther. 2016 Dec;15(12):3028-3039.

Efficacy of focal adhesion kinase inhibition in non-small cell lung cancer with oncogenically activated MAPK pathways.

Zhang H, Shao H, Golubovskaya VM, Chen H, Cance W, Adjei AA, Dy GK

Br J Cancer. 2016 Jul 12;115(2):203-11 doi: 10.1038/bjc.2016.190.

Pharmacokinetic analysis of the FAK scaffold inhibitor C4 in dogs.

Wilton J, Kurenova E, Pitzonka L, Gaudy A, Curtin L, Sexton S, Cance W, Fetterly G

Eur J Drug Metab Pharmacokinet. 2016 Feb;41(1):55-67 doi: 10.1007/s13318-014-0233-6.

Featured in

Lessons from Leaders in DE&I: Creating and Perpetuating Opportunities

PROGRAM Creating a DE&I culture in a health care enterprise – Dr. Conor Delaney (USA)Prioritizing DE&I at the American College of Surgeons – Dr. Timothy Eberlein (USA)Conquering unconscious bias – Dr. Doug Wood (USA)Developing women leaders – Dr. Diana Farmer (USA)Disparities in cancer care – Dr. William Cance (USA)Diversity in Clinical Trials – Ms. Cassandra Smith (USA)Discussion –All faculty moderated by Dr. Steven Wexner (USA) and Dr. Patricia Turner (USA) FACULTY Dr William Cance (USA) – Chief Medical and Scientific Officer of the American Cancer Society Dr Conor Delaney (USA) – CEO of Cleveland Clinic Florida, USA Dr Timothy Eberlein (USA) – Director, Alvin J. Siteman Cancer Center, Spencer T. and Ann W. Olin Distinguished Professor; and Bixby Professor and Chairman, Department of Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine, USA Dr Diana Farmer (USA) – Chair of Surgery at the University of California Davis Health System; American College of Surgeons Board of Regents Ms. Cassandra Smith - Director, Diversity & Inclusion in Clinical Trials at The Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson Dr Patricia Turner (USA) – Director, Division of Membership Services, American College of Surgeons past Chair, AMA Council on Medical Education; past Chair, Surgical Section, National Medical Association; past President, Society of Black Academic Surgeons; and Member, Board of Directors, Council on Medical Specialty Societies Dr Steven Wexner (USA) – Director, Digestive Disease Institute, Chair, Department of Colorectal Surgery, Cleveland Clinic Florida, Past President American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons, Past President American Board of Colon and Rectal Surgery, Past President Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons, Editor-in-Chief Surgery, Vice-Chair, Board of Regents, American College of Surgeons Dr Doug Wood (USA) – The Henry N. Harkins Professor and Chair, Department of Surgery, University of Washington; American College of Surgeons Board of Regents; Past President of the Society of Thoracic Surgeons; Past Director of the American Board of Thoracic Surgery; Past President Cardiothoracic Surgery Network (CTSNet)

Published

Jul 2021

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