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institutionsInstitution
OHSU Knight Cancer Institute
Brian Druker's institute, where imatinib was proven in CML and precision oncology was born; now focused on early detection and functional genomics.
Also called: Knight Cancer Institute
Overview
NCI-designated since 1997, the Knight Cancer Institute is led by Brian Druker, whose clinical development of imatinib for BCR-ABL-positive chronic myeloid leukaemia in the late 1990s established targeted therapy as a paradigm. A $1 billion fundraising campaign completed in 2015 funded the Cancer Early Detection Advanced Research (CEDAR) centre and new research buildings on Portland's South Waterfront. Jeffrey Tyner's functional drug screening created the Beat AML programme, Joe Gray's SMMART trials pursue serial multi-omic profiling of individual patients, and Lisa Coussens leads work on myeloid cells in the tumour microenvironment. Charles Blanke chairs SWOG from OHSU.
Location
Portland, OR, US
Type
cancer center · Oregon Health & Science University
Newsweek 2026 oncology rank
Not in top 300 listing used
NCI designation
comprehensive
OnCo score
#78 · 43 points (0 Newsweek + 15 NCI + 28 from 14 linked objects) · ranking
Research output
From OpenAlex, oncology works in the last five years (2022 to 2026, current year in progress); counted on 2026-09-16.
Matched to OHSU Knight Cancer Institute, including child institutions. 62 works · 620 citations · 56% open access · 21% clinical trials · 0% reviews.
Oncology works per year
82022
182023
182024
142025
42026
Most works
- Gordon B. Mills15 works
- Adel Kardosh13 works
- Brett C. Sheppard11 works
- Charles D. Lopez10 works
- Shaun M. Goodyear8 works
- Jonathan R. Brody8 works
- Rosalie C. Sears8 works
- Richard T. Maziarz8 works
- Shivaani Kummar6 works
- Skye C. Mayo6 works
Most cited
- CML and targeted therapy
- Early detection (CEDAR)
- Functional genomics (Beat AML)
- SMMART n-of-1 trials
Brian Druker
Physician-scientist who brought imatinib to patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia
Chronic myeloid leukaemiaKinase inhibitorsTargeted therapy
He pushed a shelved kinase inhibitor through the laboratory and into a 1998 trial when few believed a targeted pill could work. Imatinib made chronic myeloid leukaemia a disease people live with, and became the model for targeted therapy.
Gert Boyle
Columbia Sportswear chairwoman whose $100 million helped Oregon meet the Knight Cancer Challenge
Cancer centre buildingChallenge grants
In 2014 the Columbia Sportswear chairwoman gave $100 million to OHSU's Knight Cancer Institute, the largest single contribution toward matching Phil and Penny Knight's $500 million challenge.
Michael C. Heinrich
Medical oncologist and laboratory scientist, Oregon Health & Science University and Portland VA
Gastrointestinal stromal tumourKIT and PDGFRA mutationsKinase inhibitor development
Oregon physician-scientist who showed that the KIT mutation type in a GIST predicts how well imatinib works, discovered PDGFRA mutations in the tumours without KIT mutations, and led NAVIGATOR, which established avapritinib for PDGFRA D842V disease.
Phil Knight
Nike co-founder whose gifts to OHSU Knight Cancer Institute total more than $2.6 billion
Cancer centre buildingEarly detection researchChallenge grants
Phil and Penny Knight gave OHSU $100 million in 2008, a $500 million challenge in 2013 that Oregon met within two years, and $2 billion in 2025, described by OHSU as the largest gift to a US university.
Shivaani Kummar
Chief Scientific and Academic Officer, Knight Cancer Group and Director, Knight Cancer Institute
Early-phase drug developmentMedical oncologyPrecision oncology
Drug development oncologist who directs the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute.
Charles D. Blanke
Chief Medical Officer, SWOG Cancer Research Network; Professor, Oregon Health & Science University
Gastrointestinal oncologyGISTClinical trial leadership
Charles Blanke is a GI oncologist who chaired SWOG for a decade and led early imatinib trials in GIST.
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cancers
fronts
technologies
targets
drugs
ApprovedSmall-molecule kinase inhibitor (BCR-ABL, KIT, PDGFRA)
Imatinib · Gleevec