Ken Cowan, MD, PhD, who led the NCI-designated cancer center at UNMC through tremendous growth for more than two decades, died on Sunday.
Services are planned for 4 p.m. on Tuesday (Dec. 17) at Temple Israel, 13111 Sterling Ridge Drive in Omaha. An additional celebration of life will take place on campus at a later time. Dr. Cowan is survived by his wife, Alison Freifeld, MD, professor emeritus of the UNMC Division of Infectious Diseases; daughter Eliza; daughter Sara and her husband, Brian Fahey; grandchildren Miriam and Clara Fahey; and extended family and friends.
“Ken Cowan was an exceptional colleague and friend,” said Interim UNMC Chancellor H. Dele Davies, MD. “During more than two decades as director of the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center, Ken was instrumental in leading the cancer center to sustained research growth, advanced clinical care, and unprecedented national and international recognition. He also was the visionary behind the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center facility. All the while, Ken never lost his personal touch with his patients, with whom he was always kind, patient and understanding. We extend our deepest sympathies to Alison and the entire family.”
Dr. Cowan joined UNMC in 1999 as the director of what was then called the Eppley Cancer Center and the Eppley Institute for Cancer Research. Even after stepping down in 2023 as director of the cancer center and institute, he remained a full-time faculty member and clinician. The NCI-designated cancer center changed its name in 2017 to closely align with the new facility that shared the same name: the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center.
“I worked closely with Ken on several initiatives during his tenure at UNMC, and at no time was his leadership more evident than during construction of the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center, still the largest public-private partnership in the history of the state of Nebraska,” said University of Nebraska President Jeffrey P. Gold, MD. “Ken’s vision allowed our researchers and clinicians to be located together in one space, all for the betterment of patients. Ken always put the patients first, and his legacy will be felt for generations.”
Dr. Cowan had a distinguished medical and scientific pedigree. After receiving his MD and PhD at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, he completed his residency in internal medicine at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas in 1978 and decided to sub-specialize in oncology. He finished his oncology fellowship at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, in 1981. Dr. Cowan spent 21 years in the Public Health Service at the National Cancer Institute, serving as chief of the Medical Breast Cancer Section, Medicine Branch beginning in 1988. In his NCI position, he was responsible for overseeing laboratory researchers and clinical staff involved in basic and clinical research in breast cancer.
A New York City native, Dr. Cowan earned his undergraduate degree at the University of Rochester in Rochester, NY, and his medical and doctorate degrees from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. He has authored more than 240 papers for scientific journals and has been an invited guest lecturer at numerous scientific conferences.
When Dr. Cowan and his wife moved to Omaha in 1999, Dr. Cowan started expanding the Eppley Cancer Center’s clinical research programs almost immediately. As it expanded significantly over the first 10 years, he realized that UNMC needed a new cancer facility to consolidate existing clinical and research programs and also to provide room for growth.
He proposed the idea of a new cancer center to then-chancellor Harold M. Maurer, MD, who saw the need and agreed. So, with the help of philanthropists and the Nebraska Legislature, they raised $323 million for a new facility, shared by UNMC and its primary clinical partner, Nebraska Medicine. This included a lead gift from Pamela Buffett in honor of her husband, Fred Buffett, who died of kidney cancer. The opportunity to help cancer patients now had been expanded tremendously.
Omaha businessman Mike Yanney, who led community support for the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center, lauded Dr. Cowan.
“Dr. Ken Cowan was a real pioneer and great leader,” Yanney said. “He will be sorely missed by all of us.”
Said James Linder, MD, CEO of Nebraska Medicine, “I had the honor of working with Dr. Cowan for many years. I believe a measure of a person’s impact is the lives they improve; in his research, leadership and clinical care, Ken excelled by that metric.”
The Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center now has more than 250 faculty members working in more than 100 laboratories at UNMC and hundreds of post-doctoral research fellows, lab technicians and PhD students – all with the goal of creating better health outcomes for cancer patients.
“Ken was a leading figure among cancer research-scientists, and his work in leading the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center and Eppley Institute was instrumental in improving the lives of the people of Nebraska and beyond,” said Joann Sweasy, PhD, director of the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer and Eppley Institute. “Our sympathies go out to Alison, their two daughters, their extended family and friends.”
Dr. Cowan was known for being a highly empathetic physician. His parents both had cancer, and they both passed away while he was completing his oncology residency at Parkland. He often gave his personal cell phone number and email address to patients, who describe him as approachable and caring.
He said the courage of his patients were inspirational to him.
“I have enjoyed learning about their lives and their families. Patients have taught me to appreciate every day and to be there for others,” he said.