An accomplished physician and researcher, Kemp H. Kernstine, M.D., Ph.D., joined City of Hope in June 2004 to assume leadership of the newly created Division of Thoracic Surgery, and to become Director of the Lung Cancer Program. He has a secondary appointment as Professor with the Beckman Research Institute.
Dr. Kernstine is recognized as a national leader in the surgical management of a wide spectrum of thoracic diseases including benign and malignant diseases in the chest (thoracic) of children and adults. His clinical and research interests include minimally invasive and robotic surgical procedures in thoracic surgery; surgical evaluation and treatment, early detection, and treatment of lung and esophageal malignancy; evaluation of myasthenia gravis; molecular biologic aspects of lung and esophageal cancer and mesothelioma; and complex tracheal and esophageal surgery. Dr. Kernstine’s work in these areas is nationally regarded and his research is funded by the National Institutes of Health, the National Cancer Institute, and various regional and national grants agencies.
Dr. Kernstine is board certified in Surgery and Thoracic Surgery. His professional affiliations are numerous and include the American Medical Association, American College of Surgeons, American College of Chest Physicians, American College of Thoracic Surgeons, American Heart Association, Society of Thoracic Surgeons, American College of Cardiology, Society of Surgical Oncologists, and the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group. He has written and contributed to a number of journal research articles, book chapters, abstracts, presentations and studies, and has won numerous awards for his work.
He earned his bachelor of science degree, magna cum laude, in chemistry at Duke University, and later earned his medical doctorate from Duke University Medical School. He obtained his PhD in surgery with a minor in biometry and anatomy from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. He pursued further training in heart and lung surgery at The Brigham and Women’s Hospital at Harvard’s Medical School.
Prior to joining City of Hope, Dr. Kernstine held the post of Chief of the Section of Thoracic Surgery and Professor of Surgery at the University of Iowa College of Medicine, Department of Surgery, Iowa City, Iowa.
