Andrew Ko, MD
Professor of Clinical Medicine; Interim Division Chief, Oncology, Division of Hematology/Oncology, UCSF
Cancer Center Program Memberships
Experimental TherapeuticsResearch Summary
My primary clinical and research interests focus on gastrointestinal malignancies, where I have developed and led multiple clinical trials, both within UCSF and across multiple sites nationwide and overseas. I am interested in the development and evaluation of new therapeutic agents ranging from novel cytotoxics to molecular targeted agents to immunotherapies, with a particular emphasis on evaluating these in patients with pancreatic cancer. This work has entailed collaborating with laboratory-based investigators on the correlative/translational science to identify individual patient/tumor characteristics that influence prognosis and response to specific therapies, including both tissue- and blood-based biomarkers. Other university responsibilities include leading the site committee for gastrointestinal cancer-specific clinical trial development at the UCSF HDFCCC and serving as chair of the scientific Protocol Review Committee. Nationally, I have served on the scientific program committee, grants committee, and specialty editorial board for the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), sit on the editorial board for multiple peer-reviewed oncology journals, and am currently a member of NCI’s Pancreatic Cancer Task Force and the NCCN Pancreatic Cancer guidelines committee.Education
Brown University, Providence, RI, Sc.B., 1991, Applied Mathematics/Biology
Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, M.D., 1995, Medicine
Board certified, Internal Medicine, 1998
Board certified, Medical Oncology, 2002
Honors & Awards
- 1987
National Merit Scholarship - 1988
IBM Thomas J. Watson Memorial Scholarship - 1990
Sigma Xi, elected associate member - 1991
Departmental honors and Magna cum laude, Brown University - 1993
Alpha Omega Alpha, student essay competition honoree - 1994
Harry C. Saltzstein Prize in Medical Writing, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine - 1995
Medical Assistance Programs/Reader's Digest International Fellowship - 2000
Amgen National Oncology Fellows' Forum, selected for oral presentation - 2000
American Society of Clinical Oncology, Travel Award (meritorious abstract) - 2001
Digestive Disease Center Collaborative Postdoctoral Fellowship - 2003
UCSF Cancer Center Clinical Investigator Research Program award - 2003
American Society of Clinical Oncology Career Development Award - 2007
Joan Rombauer UCSF Endowed Fellowship - 2008
UCSF Kaiser Award for Excellence in Teaching in the Classroom Setting, nominee - 2011
NCI Cancer Clinical Investigator Team Leadership Award - 2013
UCSF Hematology and Oncology Division Teaching Award
Selected Publications
- Shitara K, Van Cutsem E, Bang YJ, Fuchs C, Wyrwicz L, Lee KW, Kudaba I, Garrido M, Chung HC, Lee J, Castro HR, Mansoor W, Braghiroli MI, Karaseva N, Caglevic C, Villanueva L, Goekkurt E, Satake H, Enzinger P, Alsina M, Benson A, Chao J, Ko AH, Wainberg ZA, Kher U, Shah S, Kang SP, Tabernero J. Efficacy and Safety of Pembrolizumab or Pembrolizumab Plus Chemotherapy vs Chemotherapy Alone for Patients With First-line, Advanced Gastric Cancer: The KEYNOTE-062 Phase 3 Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Oncol. 2020 Sep 03.
View on PubMed - Ko AH, Jordan AC, Tooker E, Lacey SF, Chang RB, Li Y, Venook AP, Tempero M, Damon L, Fong L, O'Hara MH, Levine BL, Melenhorst JJ, Plesa G, June CH, Beatty GL. Dual Targeting of Mesothelin and CD19 with Chimeric Antigen Receptor-Modified T Cells in Patients with Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer. Mol Ther. 2020 Jul 21.
View on PubMed - Shah MA, Enzinger P, Ko AH, Ocean AJ, Philip PA, Thakkar PV, Cleveland K, Lu Y, Kortmansky J, Christos PJ, Zhang C, Kaur N, Elmonshed D, Galletti G, Sarkar S, Bhinder B, Pittman ME, Plotnikova OM, Kotlov N, Frenkel F, Bagaev A, Elemento O, Betel D, Giannakakou P, Lenz HJ. Multicenter Phase II Study of Cabazitaxel in Advanced Gastroesophageal Cancer: Association of HER2 Expression and M2-Like Tumor-Associated Macrophages with Patient Outcome. Clin Cancer Res. 2020 Sep 15; 26(18):4756-4766.
View on PubMed - Wang ZJ, Zhang TT, An C, Ko AH, Tempero M, Collisson E, Yeh BM. Estimation of Fractional Extracellular Space at CT for Predicting Chemotherapy Response and Survival in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2020 Sep; 215(3):610-616.
View on PubMed - Burns ST, Damon L, Akagi N, Laszik Z, Ko AH. Rapid Improvement in Gemcitabine-associated Thrombotic Microangiopathy After a Single Dose of Eculizumab: Case Report and Review of the Literature. Anticancer Res. 2020 Jul; 40(7):3995-4000.
View on PubMed - Wu AA, Bever KM, Ho WJ, Fertig EJ, Niu N, Zheng L, Parkinson RM, Durham JN, Onners B, Ferguson AK, Wilt C, Ko AH, Wang-Gillam A, Laheru DA, Anders RA, Thompson ED, Sugar EA, Jaffee EM, Le DT. A Phase II Study of Allogeneic GM-CSF-Transfected Pancreatic Tumor Vaccine (GVAX) with Ipilimumab as Maintenance Treatment for Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer. Clin Cancer Res. 2020 Jun 26.
View on PubMed - Kundranda M, Gracian AC, Zafar SF, Meiri E, Bendell J, Algül H, Rivera F, Ahn ER, Watkins D, Pelzer U, Charu V, Zalutskaya A, Kuesters G, Pipas JM, Santillana S, Askoxylakis V, Ko AH. Corrigendum to 'Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase II study of istiratumab (MM-141) plus nab-paclitaxel and gemcitabine versus nab-paclitaxel and gemcitabine in front-line metastatic pancreatic cancer (CARRIE)': Annals of Oncology, Volume 31, Issue 1, 2020, Pages 79-87. Ann Oncol. 2020 Aug; 31(8):1094.
View on PubMed - Susko M, Wang CJ, Lazar AA, Kim S, Laffan A, Feng M, Ko A, Venook AP, Atreya CE, Van Loon K, Anwar M. Factors Impacting Differential Outcomes in the Definitive Radiation Treatment of Anal Cancer Between HIV-Positive and HIV-Negative Patients. Oncologist. 2020 May 10.
View on PubMed - Tsujikawa T, Crocenzi T, Durham JN, Sugar EA, Wu AA, Onners B, Nauroth JM, Anders RA, Fertig EJ, Laheru DA, Reiss K, Vonderheide RH, Ko AH, Tempero MA, Fisher GA, Considine M, Danilova L, Brockstedt DG, Coussens LM, Jaffee EM, Le DT. Evaluation of Cyclophosphamide/GVAX Pancreas Followed by Listeria-Mesothelin (CRS-207) with or without Nivolumab in Patients with Pancreatic Cancer. Clin Cancer Res. 2020 Jul 15; 26(14):3578-3588.
View on PubMed - Ursem C, Zhou M, Paciorek A, Atreya CE, Ko AH, Venook A, Zhang L, Van Loon K. Clinicopathologic Characteristics and Impact of Oophorectomy for Ovarian Metastases from Colorectal Cancer. Oncologist. 2020 Jul; 25(7):564-571.
View on PubMed - Kundranda M, Gracian AC, Zafar SF, Meiri E, Bendell J, Algül H, Rivera F, Ahn ER, Watkins D, Pelzer U, Charu V, Zalutskaya A, Kuesters G, Pipas JM, Santillana S, Askoxylakis V, Ko AH. Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase II study of istiratumab (MM-141) plus nab-paclitaxel and gemcitabine versus nab-paclitaxel and gemcitabine in front-line metastatic pancreatic cancer (CARRIE). Ann Oncol. 2020 01; 31(1):79-87.
View on PubMed - Diaz CL, Cinar P, Hwang J, Ko AH, Tempero MA. CA 19-9 Response: A Surrogate to Predict Survival in Patients With Metastatic Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma. Am J Clin Oncol. 2019 12; 42(12):898-902.
View on PubMed - Savoie MB, Paciorek A, Zhang L, Van Blarigan EL, Sommovilla N, Abrams D, Atreya CE, Bergsland EK, Chern H, Kelley RK, Ko A, Laffan A, Sarin A, Varma MG, Venook AP, Van Loon K. Vitamin D Levels in Patients with Colorectal Cancer Before and After Treatment Initiation. J Gastrointest Cancer. 2019 Dec; 50(4):769-779.
View on PubMed - Ko AH, Nakakura EK. Adjuvant Therapy for Ampullary Cancer. JAMA Surg. 2019 08 01; 154(8):715.
View on PubMed - Johns C, Diaz CL, Hwang J, Kerridge WD, Ko AH, Tempero MA. Alternate Week Gemcitabine and Capecitabine: An Effective Treatment for Patients With Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma. Pancreas. 2019 08; 48(7):927-930.
View on PubMed - Janssen QP, Buettner S, Suker M, Beumer BR, Addeo P, Bachellier P, Bahary N, Bekaii-Saab T, Bali MA, Besselink MG, Boone BA, Chau I, Clarke S, Dillhoff M, El-Rayes BF, Frakes JM, Grose D, Hosein PJ, Jamieson NB, Javed AA, Khan K, Kim KP, Kim SC, Kim SS, Ko AH, Lacy J, Margonis GA, McCarter MD, McKay CJ, Mellon EA, Moorcraft SY, Okada KI, Paniccia A, Parikh PJ, Peters NA, Rabl H, Samra J, Tinchon C, van Tienhoven G, van Veldhuisen E, Wang-Gillam A, Weiss MJ, Wilmink JW, Yamaue H, Homs MYV, van Eijck CHJ, Katz MHG, Groot Koerkamp B. Neoadjuvant FOLFIRINOX in Patients With Borderline Resectable Pancreatic Cancer: A Systematic Review and Patient-Level Meta-Analysis. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2019 08 01; 111(8):782-794.
View on PubMed - Le DT, Picozzi VJ, Ko AH, Wainberg ZA, Kindler H, Wang-Gillam A, Oberstein P, Morse MA, Zeh HJ, Weekes C, Reid T, Borazanci E, Crocenzi T, LoConte NK, Musher B, Laheru D, Murphy A, Whiting C, Nair N, Enstrom A, Ferber S, Brockstedt DG, Jaffee EM. Results from a Phase IIb, Randomized, Multicenter Study of GVAX Pancreas and CRS-207 Compared with Chemotherapy in Adults with Previously Treated Metastatic Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma (ECLIPSE Study). Clin Cancer Res. 2019 Sep 15; 25(18):5493-5502.
View on PubMed - Wu C, Jermakowicz WJ, Chakravorti S, Cajigas I, Sharan AD, Jagid JR, Matias CM, Sperling MR, Buckley R, Ko A, Ojemann JG, Miller JW, Youngerman B, Sheth SA, McKhann GM, Laxton AW, Couture DE, Popli GS, Smith A, Mehta AD, Ho AL, Halpern CH, Englot DJ, Neimat JS, Konrad PE, Neal E, Vale FL, Holloway KL, Air EL, Schwalb J, Dawant BM, D'Haese PF. Effects of surgical targeting in laser interstitial thermal therapy for mesial temporal lobe epilepsy: A multicenter study of 234 patients. Epilepsia. 2019 06; 60(6):1171-1183.
View on PubMed - Walker EJ, Carnevale J, Pedley C, Blanco A, Chan S, Collisson EA, Tempero MA, Ko AH. Referral frequency, attrition rate, and outcomes of germline testing in patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Fam Cancer. 2019 04; 18(2):241-251.
View on PubMed - Kim SS, Ko AH, Nakakura EK, Wang ZJ, Corvera CU, Harris HW, Kirkwood KS, Hirose R, Tempero MA, Kim GE. Comparison of Tumor Regression Grading of Residual Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma Following Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy Without Radiation: Would Fewer Tier-Stratification Be Favorable Toward Standardization? Am J Surg Pathol. 2019 03; 43(3):334-340.
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