Sonia Kupfer, MD, has been named as the inaugural Director of the Community for Advancement of Physician-Scientists (CAPS) for the Biological Sciences Division and the Pritzker School of Medicine. This new BSD program will work to unite and support the entire physician-scientist pipeline at the University of Chicago, from undergraduate students to faculty. It is intended to address the critical shortage of physician-scientists by providing career stage-specific support and a community for physician-scientists at UChicago.
Dr. Kupfer is a Professor in the Section of Gastroenterology and serves as the Director of the Physician-Scientist Development Program in the Department of Medicine. She co-directs the T32 training program in Digestive Diseases and the TL1 training program in the Institute for Translational Medicine. Her NIH-funded translational research program studies genetics and genomics of GI cancers with a focus on host-environment interactions, inherited predisposition, and health disparities. As a clinician, she founded the GI Cancer Risk and Prevention clinic and now leads the Center for Clinical Genetics and Genomics in the Department of Medicine, where she heads clinical operations for genetics services, leads collaborative clinical trials, and cares for GI patients. She is a recognized expert in the field with national and international leadership positions and speaking engagements as well as service as an associate editor of Gastroenterology. Her achievements as a physician-scientist have been recognized with the American Gastroenterological Association Young Investigator award and BSD Distinguished Leader in Diversity and Inclusion award.
As Director, Dr. Kupfer will report to Scott Oakes, MD, Vice Dean of Clinical Science Research, and Conrad Gilliam, PhD, Vice Dean of Basic Science Research. She will work closely with other institutional leaders to implement a strategic plan that will strengthen and unify all aspects of physician-scientist development, including partnering with existing development programs, supporting departments and institutes seeking to establish training programs, and helping academic departments recruit, train, and retain superb and diverse physician-scientists to grow physician-led research in the BSD.
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