The Jeffery and Cynthia King Professorship of Lynch Syndrome Research
The Jeffery and Cynthia King Professorship of Lynch Syndrome Research was established in 2023 by Jeffery and Cynthia King and family. The King family are dedicated advocates for Lynch syndrome research and awareness. Lynch syndrome is one of the most common causes of hereditary cancer risk, affecting approximately one in every 270 people (primarily colorectal and uterine cancer). The King family has funded innovative research and educational programs, enhancing our understanding of Lynch syndrome and encouraging genetic awareness and action to the general public and patient community.
The King family's philanthropy at Penn Medicine has supported organoid development under the leadership of Bryson Katona, MD and immune system-focused Lynch syndrome research in collaboration with Dr. E. John Wherry, focusing on cancer treatment and prevention strategies.
The King family also sponsors Penn Medicine's annual Lynch Syndrome Symposium and provides multiple travel awards for early career health care providers in cancer genetics from other institutions to attend or present at the symposium. These resources continue to drive attendance, helping to spread knowledge and awareness to medical providers, genetic counselors, and patients and their families. Through newsletters and a dedicated website, the Kings have helped fund programs to facilitate improvements in the delivery and uptake of GI cancer genetic care and eliminate disparities to ensure that all individuals have access to these critical prevention services.
Julia Borrelli, the King family's Penn Medicine representative, has served on the Abramson Cancer Center Director's Leadership Council since 2019 and was appointed Chair in June 2024. Julie's other philanthropic and volunteer activities outside of the Lynch syndrome community consist of volunteering at her children's schools and athletic programs, as well as at the Talk School (a center for the education of children with autism and speech and language disorders). Julie and her husband Jason Borelli were honored in 2024 as Penn State University Philanthropists of the Year. Citing their family’s personal connection to Lynch syndrome, Borrelli states “Lynch syndrome is the most common cause of inherited colorectal cancer and affects approximately 1.2 million individuals in the US. Our family is honored to stand with the amazing clinicians, faculty, and researchers at the ACC to find new cures and advancements for this disease.”
Current Chairholder
Bryson Katona, MD, PhD
Dr. Katona is an Assistant Professor of Medicine and serves as the Director of the Gastrointestinal Cancer Genetics Program and the Gastrointestinal Cancer Risk Evaluation Program. As leader of Penn Medicine’s Lynch Syndrome Program, he provides state-of-the-art care and proactive health management for patients and families with Lynch syndrome.
To further his work, he leads a lab focused on gastrointestinal cancer and hereditary gastrointestinal cancer predisposition syndromes, using the full spectrum of discovery science – from bench to bedside – to determine who may be at risk, and why, and to determine novel ways to prevent cancer development. With these answers, Dr. Katona hopes to create additional cancer prevention and risk reduction strategies for Lynch syndrome and hereditary cancers as well as to inform diagnosis, individual risk, and management recommendations for Lynch syndrome patients.
Dr. Katona received his BA/MS at the University of Pennsylvania, followed by his MD/PhD at Washington University in St. Louis. After, he completed his residency, fellowship, and postdoctoral research at the University of Pennsylvania.