Carol Westbrook, MD, PhD

Medical Oncologist

Dr. Westbrook is a medical oncologist with a longstanding interest in the relationship between gene mutations and cancer. She received her MD and her PhD from the University of Chicago, and completed Hematology-Oncology fellowships at UCLA and University of Chicago. Dr. Westbrook has pursued an active research career in the genetic analysis of breast cancer, colon cancer, and hematologic malignancies, leading to over 100 publications and one patent for leukemia diagnosis.

These research interests have shaped Dr. Westbrook’s professional practice, leading to positions including head of the Medical Oncology Breast Cancer Clinic at the University of Illinois (Chicago), Director of the Familial Cancer Clinic at University of Illinois (Chicago), and Director of the Molecular Oncology Clinical Laboratories at both University of Illinois and University of Chicago. She has been a Program Leader for the Cancer Research Centers at University of Chicago and University of Illinois.

As Professor of Medicine at the University of Illinois, and later at Boston University, she has used her knowledge and experience to teach future generations of doctors and researchers. After serving as Chief of Hematology and Oncology at Boston University, she returns to her Midwestern roots and her family in Indiana, bringing her expertise to the Goshen Center for Cancer Care.

Dr. Westbrook also serves the community through volunteerism. She has taught high school students at the Illinois Math and Science Academy and founded the Lincoln Park High School Drama Parents’ Group. Her love of theater also led her to serve on the Board of Directors for the American Theater Company in Chicago.

Dr. Westbrook has lent her expertise to the review of grants for many organizations, including the National Cancer Institute, the Leukemia Research Fund (London), and the NIH Human Genome Study Section. She is currently serving on the advisory panel for the NIH Cancer Genetics Study Section, has been on the advisory boards of the journals Blood and Experimental Hematology.

She recently completed her own work on a research grant from the Department of Defense on the genetic analysis of breast cancer metastases. Dr. Westbrook has received several honors, including the James S. McDonnell Scholar in Molecular Medicine of Cancer, the American Society of Hematology Stratton-Jaffe Fellow, Damon Runyon-Walter Winchell Cancer Fund Fellow, and the Von Willegh Visiting Fellow, Johannesburg, South Africa.

Previous Position
Professor of Medicine, Boston University Medical Center, Boston

Education
Doctor of Medicine (with honors), University of Chicago, Chicago
PhD Biochemistry, University of Chicago, Chicago

Residency
Internal Medicine, University of Chicago Hospitals and Clinics, Chicago

Fellowships
Hematology/Oncology, UCLA
Hematology/Oncology, University of Chicago

Board Certifications
Diplomate in Medical Oncology, ABIM
Diplomate of American Board of Internal Medicine

Licensure
Commonwealth of Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine
Medical Licensing Board of Indiana

Professional Memberships
American Society of Hematology
American Society of Clinical Oncology