Cancer Prevention and Control

David Schwartz, MD, is the program co-leader for the Cancer Prevention and Control Program. Dr. Schwartz is an internationally recognized physician researcher who serves as Professor and Chair of Radiation Oncology in the College of Medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center. He is the institutional principal investigator for NRG Oncology with 20+ years of experience as a clinical trialist and scientist in the field of population sciences. Dr. Schwartz has authored more than 130 original research papers and serves as founding Director of the Center for Health Equity at UTHSC. The Center for Health Equity at UTHSC focuses on developing patient-facing digital technology to improve quality and access of cancer care in the Mid-South. His current academic portfolio consists of interrelated community-based projects focused on validation of novel data-driven solutions to improve patient access to high-quality radiotherapy regardless of income or social hardship. He collaborates closely with UTHSC’s data science programs to examine local disparities in radiotherapy interruption rates to identify patients in need of support. Dr. Schwartz engages closely with dozens of academic, business, education, and city leaders throughout Memphis to discover community-inspired paths to better health.

Dr. Schwartz received his medical degree from the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and performed his residency training at the University of Washington and Fred Hutchison Cancer Research Center. He has served as a member of key national research steering committees, and has received several dozen federal, state, foundation, and industry grants focused on advanced cancer imaging, targeted radiosensitization, stereotactic radiotherapy, mobile digital health, and clinical treatment trials.