David A. Karnofsky

David Aryah Karnofsky (March 28, 1914 – August 31, 1969) was an American clinical oncologist.[1] In 1940, while he was a resident at the Colis P. Huntington Memorial Laboratory for Cancer Research of Harvard University, David A. Karnofsky began clinical research in cancer, and devoted himself to this area throughout his career. He was an internationally recognized specialist in cancer chemotherapy and affiliated with the Division of Experimental Chemotherapy, Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research.[2]

David Aryah Karnofsky
BornMarch 28, 1914
Los Angeles
DiedAugust 31, 1969(1969-08-31) (aged 55)
Ellsworth, Maine
NationalityUS
Occupationphysician, medical oncologist
Known forKarnofsky score
Spouse(s)Elesa Campbell Addis (m 1943-1969, his death)

Education and Training

David Karnofsky was the son of Lithuanian Jewish immigrants, Sam Karnofsky, a metals buyer, and Lena Karnofsky.[3] David graduated from Belmont High School (Los Angeles, California) (1930), UCLA 1934. He received his masters (A.M, 1936) in biology from Stanford University with a thesis entitled Some effects of thyroidectomy on the mammary glands and some other organs in the rat.[4] He received his medical degree (Alpha Omega Alpha 1940), also from Stanford University. In the early years of his career at the Collis P. Huntington Memorial Laboratory at Harvard University, he became interested in clinical cancer research. This interest was further fueled by experiments he conducted during World War II as part of the Army Chemical Warfare Service.[5]

Medical Oncologist

Karnofsky is considered one of the pioneer medical oncologists, devoting his 30-year career to the successful use of chemotherapeutic agents to treat cancer.[6] In 1948 Karnofsky, together with Dr. Walter H. Abelmann, Dr. Lloyd F. Craver, and Dr. Joseph H. Burchenal (the latter also worked in the Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research), described the Karnofsky Performance Status Scale.[7] The primary purpose of the development of the scale was to allow physicians to evaluate a patient's ability to survive chemotherapy for cancer in a more objective manner.[8] The widely used Karnofsky score runs from 100 to 0, where 100 is "perfect" health and 0 is death. Practitioners occasionally assign performance scores in between standard intervals of 10.

Karnofsky Memorial Lecture

When Karnofsky died of lung cancer in August 1969, a group of his friends donated a fund to be used to finance a yearly lecture at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).[6] An obituary detailing his work was written by Joseph H. Burchenal.[9] He is interred in Home of Peace Cemetery (East Los Angeles).[10]

References
  1. Dr. David A. Karnofsky Is Dead; A Specialist on Cancer Was 55. New York Times. September 01, 1969.
  2. Evans, David (13 Aug 2015). Marine Physiology Down East: The Story of the Mt. Desert Island Biological Laboratory. Springer. pp. 141–142. ISBN 9781493929603.
  3. Samuel Karnofsky on findagrave.com
  4. Karnofsky Masters Thesis/dissertation, 1936
  5. "Oncology Luminaries: Dr. David A. Karnofsky (1914-1969)". CancerProgress.Net. 2014-02-13. doi:10.1177/1742395313466903 (inactive 2021-01-11). Archived from the original on 2015-12-24. Retrieved 2015-12-27.CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of January 2021 (link)
  6. Cavallo, Jo (February 15, 2013). "David A. Karnofsky's Early Contributions to Cancer Research Helped Establish Oncology as a Medical Discipline". The ASCO Post. 4 (3). Retrieved 18 December 2015.
  7. Karnofsky DA, Abelmann WH, Craver LF, Burchenal JH. The Use of the Nitrogen Mustards in the Palliative Treatment of Carcinoma - with Particular Reference to Bronchogenic Carcinoma. Cancer. 1948;1(4):634-56.
  8. "David A. Karnofsky". Scientificspine.com. Retrieved 2015-12-27.
  9. "David A. Karnofsky". Cancerres.aacrjournals.org. 2015-12-15. Retrieved 2015-12-27.
  10. David Karnofsky on findagrave.com

Literature
  • Burchenal JH. Obituary: David A. Karnofsky. Cancer Res. 1970:30:549-550.
  • Karnofsky DA and Burchenal JH. The clinical evaluation of chemotherapeutic agents in cancer. In: MacLeod CM (ed.) Evaluation of chemotherapeutic agents. New York: Columbia University Press, 1949, pp.191–205.
  • Timmermann Carsten. ‘Just give me the best quality of life questionnaire’: the Karnofsky scale and the history of quality of life measurements in cancer trials. Chronic Illness. 2012;doi:10.1177/1742395313466903.
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