After graduating Cum Laude from Cornell University with a Bachelor of Science in
Human Development, Dr. Kara Cicero volunteered with AmeriCorps. Faced with the reality of
health-related inequities, she was motivated to pursue a career focused on minimizing health
disparities. Accordingly, she attended Tulane University School of Medicine and obtained a
Master of Public Health in Global Health Systems and Development, in addition to her Medical
Degree. There, she was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society and was
honored with the Harry and Rose Caplovitz Internal Medicine Award. She also received the
Jack Ling Travel Award and Penny Jessop Travel Fund for teaching local healthcare workers in
Malawi.
Dr. Cicero returned to her home state of New York to complete residency in Internal
Medicine at Columbia University, New York Presbyterian, and was inspired to pursue a career in
oncology. She remained at Columbia for her clinical fellowship in Hematology and Medical
Oncology, where she was granted multiple awards for her research in global oncology, including
the American Association for Cancer Research Cancer Disparities Fellowship, the American
Society of Clinical Oncology Young Investigator Award, and the Herbert Irving Comprehensive
Cancer Center Trainee Associate Member Postdoctoral Pilot Award.
Following training, Dr. Cicero was drawn to the Pacific Northwest’s active, outdoor
culture, and more specifically, University of Washington’s collaborative environment of
compassionate faculty. She joined the Myeloma program in the Division of Hematology, where
she cares for those with multiple myeloma, amyloidosis, and other plasma cell disorders. She
continues to be involved in research endeavors focused on health disparities, such as leading an
international, multidisciplinary team on a project assessing the prevalence of MGUS in Eswatini
(formerly Swaziland) to deepen the epidemiologic understanding of MGUS and multiple
myeloma in an understudied population that is also most likely to be affected.
