Jennifer M Kwan
Jennifer M Kwan, MD, PhD (Yale School of Medicine Faculty Profile) is an American cardiologist, physician-scientist, educator, entrepreneur and nonprofit leader. She is an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Section of Cardiovascular Medicine at Yale School of Medicine, where her research focuses on cardio-oncology, cardiovascular imaging, clonal hematopoiesis, artificial intelligence, and immune-mediated cardiovascular disease. She is known for her work investigating cardiovascular toxicities associated with cancer therapies, particularly immune checkpoint inhibitor myocarditis, and for national advocacy efforts supporting the physician-scientist workforce.
Kwan is co-founder and co-president of the American Junior Investigator Association (AJIA), a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting early-career physician-scientists through mentorship, advocacy, networking, and career development initiatives. She previously served in national leadership positions within the American Physician Scientists Association (APSA), where she led physician-scientist workforce studies and policy initiatives.
Early life and education
Kwan earned a Bachelor of Arts with Honors in Molecular and Cell Biology from the University of California, Berkeley and was recipient of the Cal Alumni Scholar and recipient of the Berkeley Academic Scholarship. She subsequently completed combined Doctor of Medicine (MD) and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) training through the Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) at the UI Chicago.
Her doctoral research in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics focused on the regulation of adipogenesis and tumorigenesis through the PI3K-Akt signaling pathway. Her dissertation work contributed to understanding mechanisms by which Akt regulates epigenetic modifiers and cell-cycle progression.
Following graduation, Kwan completed postdoctoral research training through an NHLBI-supported fellowship and subsequently entered the UI Chicago Physician-Scientist Training Program. She completed residency training in Internal Medicine before pursuing fellowship training in Cardiovascular Medicine, Cardio-Oncology and advanced cardiac imaging at Yale School of Medicine.
Academic career
Kwan joined Yale School of Medicine as faculty in 2022 and serves as Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Section of Cardiovascular Medicine.
Her research program integrates cardiovascular imaging, genomics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and translational biology to investigate cardiovascular disease mechanisms and improve risk prediction in patients with cancer and cardiovascular disease.
She has served as principal investigator and co-investigator on multiple NIH-funded and foundation-supported projects, including NIH KL2 and R56 awards focused on integrating cardiac magnetic resonance imaging, genomics, and machine learning to improve prediction of cardiovascular outcomes.
Research
Cardio-oncology
Kwan's research focuses on cardiovascular complications associated with cancer therapies, including immune checkpoint inhibitors, anthracyclines, HER2-targeted therapies, tyrosine kinase inhibitors, and cellular immunotherapies. [1]
Her studies have investigated the incidence, diagnosis, and outcomes of immune checkpoint inhibitor-associated myocarditis and cardiomyopathy, including the application of advanced cardiac magnetic resonance imaging techniques to improve diagnosis and monitoring.
She has published widely on cardiovascular toxicities associated with modern cancer therapies and has contributed to the emerging field of cardio-oncology through clinical, translational, and imaging-based research.
Clonal hematopoiesis
A major focus of Kwan's research is clonal hematopoiesis of indeterminate potential (CHIP), an age-related condition involving somatic mutations in hematopoietic stem cells.
Her work has examined associations between CHIP and cardiovascular disease, including heart failure, cardiomyopathy, adverse cardiovascular events, and immune checkpoint inhibitor myocarditis.
Leveille, Etienne; Chehayeb, Rachel Jaber; Matute-Martinez, Carlos; Kwan, Jennifer M. (2024). "Clonal Hematopoiesis Is Associated With Cardiomyopathy During Solid Tumor Therapy". JACC: CardioOncology. 6 (4): 605–607. doi:10.1016/j.jaccao.2024.05.013. PMC 11372300 Check |pmc= value (help). PMID 39239339 Check |pmid= value (help).and increased risk of immune checkpoint inhibitor myocarditis among patients with clonal hematopoiesis.[2]
Kwan and colleagues evaluated the prognostic utility of the Clonal Hematopoiesis Risk Score (CHRS) in a cardio-oncology cohort, demonstrating an association between elevated CHRS and mortality risk. [3]
Kwan has also led translational studies using cytokine profiling, induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes, engineered heart tissues, genomics, and machine learning approaches to investigate biological mechanisms linking CHIP to cardiovascular disease.
Artificial intelligence and cardiovascular imaging
Kwan, in collaboration with Dr Alok Jha, has developed machine-learning and deep-learning approaches for cardiovascular imaging and genomics, transcriptomics analyses. [4]
Her work includes the use of cardiac magnetic resonance imaging to identify molecular and genetic cardiovascular risk factors, development of multimodal predictive models, and evaluation of large language models for extraction of clinically relevant information from imaging reports.
Entrepreneurship
In addition to her academic research, Kwan is a co-founder of Genomix AI, a Yale-affiliated healthcare technology company focused on leveraging artificial intelligence, genomics, cardiovascular imaging, and clinical data to enable personalized cardiovascular care."Genomix AI". Yale Ventures. Retrieved 2026-06-04.
The company's technology seeks to integrate multimodal data sources, including imaging, genomic information, and electronic health records, to improve cardiovascular risk prediction and individualized treatment strategies."AI-Powered Personalized Heart Health". Yale Ventures. Retrieved 2026-06-04.
Physician-scientist workforce advocacy
Kwan is internationally recognized for her contributions to physician-scientist workforce research and advocacy and was invited by Singapore Health in 2025 to discuss physician-scientist training policies.
While serving in leadership roles within the American Physician Scientists Association (APSA), she led national surveys examining physician-scientist career intentions, barriers to academic medicine, research funding challenges, gender disparities, and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on trainees and faculty. [5]
"COVID-19 forces conferences online; scientists discover upsides to virtual format". Science Magazine. 2020.
Kwan, Jennifer M. (2022). "The Impact of COVID-19 on Physician-Scientist Trainees and Faculty in the United States: A National Survey". Academic Medicine. 97 (10): 1536–1545. doi:10.1097/ACM.0000000000004802. PMC 9547818 Check |pmc= value (help). PMID 35921163 Check |pmid= value (help).
"To prepare for future pandemics, we must support physician-scientists". The Hill. 2021.
Her studies have been published in Academic Medicine, JAMA, BMC Medical Education, the Journal of Clinical and Translational Science, and related journals. Kwan has advocated for increased institutional and federal support for physician-scientists through workforce studies, policy initiatives, and scholarly publications.[6]
In 2024, Kwan co-founded the American Junior Investigator Association (AJIA), a nonprofit organization dedicated to strengthening the physician-scientist workforce. Under her leadership, AJIA established partnerships with scientific organizations, philanthropic foundations, and academic institutions to support physician-scientist career development. Kwan spearheaded a partnership with the National Academy of medicine to address the leaky physician-scientist pipeline, particularly at the early career stage. "Sustaining the Biomedical Workforce: Innovative Pathways for Retaining and Supporting Physician-Scientists". National Academy of Medicine Perspectives. National Academy of Medicine. 2025. Retrieved 2026-06-04.
National Academy of Medicine involvement
Kwan has participated in initiatives focused on sustaining the biomedical research workforce.
In a National Academy of Medicine (NAM) Perspectives publication addressing physician-scientist workforce sustainability, Kwan's research and observations regarding workforce attrition, funding challenges, and career development were highlighted as part of national discussions surrounding the future of the physician-scientist workforce in the United States. [7]
Her work has contributed to policy discussions regarding recruitment, retention, mentorship, and support structures for physician-scientists.
Public engagement and media
Kwan has been featured in national media discussing cardiovascular medicine, biomedical research, and physician-scientist workforce issues.
She has been interviewed by National Geographic regarding emerging recommendations for lipoprotein(a) screening and cardiovascular risk assessment [8]. She has also been featured by Yale News, Yale Medicine, Science Magazine, and other outlets discussing physician-scientist workforce development and biomedical research policy.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Kwan helped organize national discussions involving leaders from the National Institutes of Health, academic medicine, and scientific organizations to address the impact of the pandemic on physician-scientist trainees and faculty.
Awards and honors
Selected honors and awards include:
Kwan participated in the Time100 Health Leadership Forum in 2024, an invitation-only gathering of leaders from medicine, public health, biotechnology, policy, and healthcare innovation."Jennifer Kwan (@JennKwanMDPhD)". X (formerly Twitter). 2024-10-21. Retrieved 2026-06-04. NIH R56 Award, Principal Investigator NIH KL2 Career Development Award Northwestern Cardiovascular Young Investigator Research Forum Finalist Yale Medical Education Grant Burroughs Wellcome Fund-supported physician-scientist initiatives Ervin G. Erdös Prize for Excellence in Basic Sciences Chancellor's Student Service Award University of Illinois College of Medicine Leadership Award
Selected publications
Kwan JM, Gross CP. Improving Support for Physician Scientists—Mind the (Funding) Gap. JAMA Network Open. Kwan JM et al. The Impact of COVID-19 on Physician-Scientist Trainees and Faculty in the United States. Academic Medicine. Kwan JM et al. Multimodality Advanced Cardiovascular and Molecular Imaging for Early Detection and Monitoring of Cancer Therapy-Associated Cardiotoxicity. Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine. Leveille E et al. Clonal Hematopoiesis Is Associated With Cardiomyopathy During Solid Tumor Therapy. JACC: CardioOncology. Chehayeb RJ et al. Clonal Hematopoiesis of Indeterminate Potential Is Associated With Increased Risk of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Myocarditis. Cardio-Oncology.
Professional affiliations
In 2025, Kwan was appointed to the American Heart Association Council on Genomic and Precision Medicine, where she serves on committees focused on genomic, molecular, and precision cardiovascular medicine."Council on Genomic and Precision Medicine Committees". American Heart Association. Retrieved 2026-06-04.
Yale School of Medicine. American Heart Association American Junior Investigator Association (AJIA)
This article "Jennifer M Kwan" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Jennifer M Kwan. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
- ↑ Chi, Kevin; Song, Jing; Deshpande, Siddharth; Kwan, Jennifer M. (2025). "Glucagon-like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonist Treatment for the Primary Prevention of Major Adverse Cardiac and Cerebrovascular Events in Monoclonal Gammopathy of Undetermined Significance". JAMA Network Open. 8 (6): e2517541. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.17541. PMC 12210086 Check
|pmc=value (help). PMID 40587132 Check|pmid=value (help). Unknown parameter|status=ignored (help) - ↑ Chehayeb, Rachel J.; Singh, Jaspreet; Matute-Martinez, Carlos; Kwan, Jennifer M. (2024). "Clonal Hematopoiesis of Indeterminate Potential Is Associated With Increased Risk of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Myocarditis". Cardio-Oncology. 10 (1): 84. doi:10.1186/s40959-024-00289-z. PMC 11590368 Check
|pmc=value (help). PMID 39587635 Check|pmid=value (help). - ↑ Singh, Jaspreet; Chehayeb, Rachel J.; Im, Yunju; Kwan, Jennifer M. (2025). "Clonal Hematopoiesis Risk Score (CHRS) Evaluation as a Prognostic Marker for Death in a Cardio-Oncology Cohort". JACC Advances. 4 (12 Pt 2): 102290. doi:10.1016/j.jacadv.2025.102290. PMC 12793842 Check
|pmc=value (help). PMID 41205546 Check|pmid=value (help). - ↑ Xing, J. (2024). "Assessment of Clonal Hematopoiesis of Indeterminate Potential from Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging Using Deep Learning in a Cardio-Oncology Population". arXiv:2406.18508 [eess.IV].
- ↑ Parry, Julie (2023-06-21). "Physician-Scientists Are "Endangered Species"". Yale School of Medicine News.
- ↑ Kwan, Jennifer M.; Gross, Cary P. (2023). "Improving Support for Physician Scientists—Mind the (Funding) Gap". JAMA Network Open. 6 (9): e2332982. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.32982. PMID 37725379 Check
|pmid=value (help). - ↑ "Sustaining the Biomedical Workforce: Innovative Pathways for Retaining and Supporting Physician-Scientists". National Academy of Medicine.
- ↑ "This lesser-known cholesterol can quadruple your heart-attack risk". National Geographic. 2026-05-14.
