Dr. June McKoy Named to NCCN Forum on Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network’s new Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI) Directors Forum is working to improve diversity of clinical staff representation across the nation’s leading academic cancer centers. June McKoy, MD, MPH, JD, MBA, assistant director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University, has been selected to join the forum.

Comprised of more than 20 experts on diversity, equity, and inclusion in health care working to improve equity in cancer care systems, the NCCN DEI Directors Forum will provide a venue to share challenges and best practices in advancing DEI initiatives in a timely fashion.

A recognized expert in geriatric oncology, Dr. McKoy is a professor in the Departments of Medicine, Preventive Medicine, and Medical Education at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. As assistant director of DEI, she works closely with associate director, Sarki A. Abdulkadir, MD, PhD, and assistant director, Jonathan Moreira, MD, to foster a diverse, equitable and inclusive environment throughout the Lurie Cancer Center.

“There are significant disparities in cancer outcomes across race and ethnicity; this is unacceptable and must be addressed urgently and thoroughly. Increasing diverse representation among care providers is one overdue step toward improving the equity and quality of cancer care,” said Robert W. Carlson, MD, Chief Executive Officer, NCCN. “Unfortunately, we have a long way to go, and the people doing this crucial work are often underfunded and overburdened. We’re happy to be able to use NCCN’s existing infrastructure to address some of that burden.

Read the full story and learn more about the DEI Directors Forum