Stephen G. Swisher, M.D.
- Contact Address
- Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery
The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
1515 Holcombe Boulevard, Box 445
Houston, TX, 770304095 - Contact Phone
- (713) 792-8659
- Contact E-Mail
- sswisher@mail.mdanderson.org
- Professional Affiliations
- M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
Position held: Professor and Chair
Program: Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery - M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
Position held: Director
Program: Esophageal Cancer Program
- M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
- Expertise
- Lung Cancer
- Esophageal Cancer
- Gene Therapy
- Education
- Stanford University, B.A., 1982
- University of California at San Diego Medical School, M.D., 1986
- Residencies
- Resident, University of California at Los Angeles Medical Center, 1987 - 1988
- Resident, University of California at Los Angeles Medical Center, General Surgery, 1990 - 1993
- Registrar, Nottingham University Hospital, Nottingham, United Kingdom, General Surgery, 1991
- Fellowships
- Fellow, University of California at Los Angeles Medical Center, Surgical Oncology, 1988 - 1990
- Fellow, M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and St. Lukes Episcopal Hospital/Texas Heart Institute, Cardiothoracic Surgery, 1994 - 1996
- Board Certification
- California State Board of Medical Examiners, 1987
- National Board of Medical Examiners, 1987
- Texas State Board of Medical Examiners, 1994
- Diplomate, American Board of Surgery, 1994, 2002, 2006
- Diplomate, American Board of Thoracic Surgery, 1997
- Website
- Biography/CV (will open new window)
- Biography
Dr. Stephen Swisher is Professor and Chair of the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery. Internationally recognized for his contributions to the staging and treatment of esophageal cancer and innovative translational research, Dr. Swisher devotes his efforts to clinical practice and research.
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Dr. Swisher received a bachelor’s degree in history and biology from Stanford University in 1982 and a medical degree with honors from the University of California at San Diego Medical School in 1986. He interned and completed a general surgical residency at the University of California at Los Angeles, where he received the Golden Scalpel Chief Award. In 1994, he became a cardiothoracic surgery fellow at St. Luke’s Episcopal Health System and The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, both in Houston.
Dr. Swisher joined the faculty at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in 1995 as junior faculty associate in the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery. A year later, he was promoted to Assistant Professor of Surgery. He was promoted to Associate Professor in 2001, Professor in 2005, and Department Chair in 2007.
Dr. Swisher’s clinical practice often involves complex lung and esophageal cancer cases, requiring an average of 200 major surgical procedures annually. As a clinician investigator, he focuses on integrating multimodality approaches in esophageal cancer and evaluating novel gene therapy strategies in the clinic. Enrolling patients in clinical trials is a top priority for him, and his participation in multidisciplinary conferences helps advance this program. The first Director of the Esophageal Cancer Program at M. D. Anderson, he currently leads the development and management of an esophageal database that interfaces with other departmental and institutional databases.
Dr. Swisher serves on five M. D. Anderson institutional committees, two scientific boards, and three national advisory boards that include the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Esophageal Gastric Panel and the National Cancer Institute Subcommittee for the American Association for Thoracic Surgery’s Scientific and Government Relations.
A diplomate of the American Board of Surgery, Dr. Swisher is a member of many professional societies including the Phi Beta Kappa Society, American Medical Association, Texas Medical Association, American Association for Cancer Research, and the Society of Surgical Oncology. He has received more than 65 invitations to speak at seminars and both national and international conferences and has participated in workshops, teleconferences, webcasts, and panel discussions. In 2005, he was cited in Texas Best Doctors and Best Doctors in America.
His editorships and editorial board memberships include Molecular Cancer, Clinical Lung Cancer, International Society of Gastrointestinal Cancer, and American Society of Gastrointestinal Oncology. He is a reviewer for many publications. Dr. Swisher has authored several scientific papers, including more than a hundred articles for journals and books, manuals and teaching aids.
Research Interests
Dr. Swisher’s research interests focus on the development of novel gene therapy strategies to treat esophageal and lung cancer patients. His laboratory has documented the critical role of the double-stranded RNA protein kinase (PKR) in radiation resistance. Efforts to overcome PKR radiation resistance have led to the development of a gene therapy vector which blocks PKR activity. In collaboration with colleagues, he has also identified a novel gene that is down-regulated in lung tumors.
