Online Exclusive - Sept. 29, 2009
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| William A. Knight III, MD |
William A. Knight III, MD, a respected cancer researcher and dedicated practicing oncologist, died on May 16, 2009. He was 62. Dr. Knight’s spent his career investigating the biology of breast cancer and caring for patients with the disease. He had been an ASCO member since 1978.
Dr. Knight came from a family of physicians. His grandfather, William A. Knight, MD, and his father, William A. Knight, Jr., MD, were both long-time physicians in St. Louis, Missouri. His wife, Gerlyn M. Friesenhahn, MD, and two of their four children also practice medicine. Dr. Friesenhahn notes that her husband’s career influenced many people, including her own decision to pursue a medical degree.
Dr. Knight earned his bachelor’s degree from Union College in New York in 1968, and attended the St. Louis University School of Medicine, graduating with a medical degree in 1973. He was an internal medicine resident at the St. Louis University Hospital and completed fellowships in developmental therapeutics at M.D. Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute and in medical oncology at the University of Texas Health Science Center. In 1986, Dr. Knight became the Director of the Division of Medical Oncology at the St. Louis University School of Medicine, as well as the Director of Hematology/Oncology at the John Cochran Division of the St. Louis VA Medical Center.
