Allegheny Health Network Names Thomas C. Krivak, MD, as Julie and Michael McMullen Endowed Chair in Gynecologic Oncology

PITTSBURGH – Allegheny Health Network (AHN) has appointed Thomas C. Krivak, MD, as the inaugural Julie and Michael McMullen Endowed Chair in Gynecologic Oncology.

The appointment was announced at a special ceremony in May at West Penn Hospital. The purpose of this chair is to provide AHN’s Women’s Institute with endowment funding for research, education, outreach, and innovation in the treatment of women with gynecologic cancers.

“Endowed chairs play a key role in supporting AHN’s mission to provide exceptional care to patients, while also advancing cutting-edge cancer research and therapeutic innovations,” said Marcia Klein-Patel, MD, PhD, Chair of AHN Women’s Institute. “On behalf of the AHN Women’s Institute, I want to extend our sincerest gratitude to the McMullens for their ongoing support and dedication to improving the health of women diagnosed with gynecologic cancers.”

Dr. Krivak is the Director of the Division of Gynecologic Oncology & Ovarian Cancer Center of Excellence at AHN. As a surgical oncologist, he specializes in treating ovarian, uterine, and other gynecologic cancers, and is a highly accomplished cancer researcher with over 100 hundred articles published in peer-reviewed journals.

The Julie and Michael McMullen Endowed Chair in Gynecologic Oncology was created in recognition of and in gratitude to Dr. Krivak for the care he and his team provided to Julie, of Sewickley Heights, who was diagnosed with ovarian cancer when she was just 27 years old. At the time, she was also soon to be married, and hoped to start a family with her new husband.

Dr. Krivak was able to treat Julie’s cancer while preserving her fertility, and she has now been cancer-free for 18 years and has given birth to two children during that time.

In 2017, the McMullens pledged to raise $2 million for an endowed chair in recognition of Dr. Krivak and to fund ovarian cancer research at AHN. The official appointment of Dr. Krivak as the endowed chair celebrates the fulfillment of that commitment.

“Every dollar invested in ovarian cancer research means lives saved,” said Julie. “We’re honored to help Dr. Krivak and AHN advance treatment options, pursue research, and develop early-detection options that will allow future generations to face this disease with hope, not fear.”

While ovarian cancer is relatively rare, with approximately 19,000 new cases expected to be diagnosed in 2024, it accounts for more deaths than any other cancer of the female reproductive system, according to the National Cancer Institute. Because its symptoms are subtle, the disease is typically not diagnosed until its late stages, when it is less curable.

“Julie’s remarkable story exemplifies the lifesaving work of Dr. Krivak and his team here at AHN,” said.  David Bartlett, MD, chair of the AHN Cancer Institute. “As we develop new screening methods, investigate targeted immunotherapies, and work to unravel ovarian cancer’s genetic complexities, generous donors like Julie and Michael McMullen help to ensure that AHN and Dr. Krivak have the resources they need to lead the fight against this aggressive disease and provide the best possible outcomes to our patients.”

The funds will be administered by the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, which sits within the AHN Women’s Institute, in cooperation with the AHN Cancer Institute and the AHN Office of Development, and are intended for programmatic, educational, research and capital needs.

Dr. Krivak will work alongside his physician peers, John Nakayama, MD, Sarah Crafton, MD, Eirwen Miller, MD, Alyssa Wield, MD, and Chris Morse, MD to lead all research and new therapeutic endeavors funded by the endowment.