Robert R. McWilliams, MD, MSc, MSHA

Robert McWilliams, MD, is an internationally recognized clinician, trialist, and leader in gastrointestinal oncology and skin cancers. He serves as the Deputy Director of the OSF Cancer Institute, where he continues clinical trial and outcomes research in addition to transforming the cancer clinical practice.

Dr. McWilliams completed his medical training at Georgetown University School of Medicine, graduating summa cum laude and pursued residency in Internal Medicine at Johns Hopkins. He completed Hematology/Oncology fellowship at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, where he also completed a genetic epidemiology research fellowship and a Masters Degree in Clinical Research. He was on faculty at Mayo Clinic for 20 years, rising to the rank of Professor, serving in numerous leadership roles including Clinical Practice Chair of Medical Oncology, Vice Chair of Oncology, Deputy Director of Cancer Practice, Chair of the Biospecimens Subcommittee, and Chair of the Therapeutic Strategy Subcommittee. He led redesign of the medical oncology care model at Mayo Clinic, optimizing the utilization of each team member to the top of their scope. He grew the Patient Navigator program in the Cancer Center, led the adoption of Epic EHR system for hematology and oncology, pioneered the use of patient reported systems to address financial barriers, and led the first precision oncology clinic.

He has authored more than 180 publications, including in high impact journals such as The New England Journal of Medicine, JAMA, JAMA Oncology, Lancet Oncology, the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Nature Genetics, Gut, and Clinical Cancer Research. He has served numerous roles nationally and internationally, including serving on the Pancreas Cancer Task Force and the GI Cancers Steering Committee of the National Cancer Institute, and the U.S. Lead for Small Bowel Adenocarcinoma in the International Rare Cancers Initiative. He served in several roles in the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, including on the Board of Directors, the Finance Committee, the Electronic Health Records subcommittee, and on the Best Practices Committee (alternate). He has also served on the Epic Adult Oncology Advisory Board.

His career has focused on using genetic information to advance care for patients, tapping into increasingly available technological systems to enhance care on a population scale. He believes technology can be harnessed to enhance the prevention, detection, and treatment of cancer, while enhancing the humanistic experience for providers and patients.

Areas of Interest

GI and Skin Cancers

Medical Oncology

Advancing patient care with genetic information on a populations scale for prevention, detection and treatment of cancer

Education & Training

MD in Clinical Medicine from Georgetown University School of Medicine

Internal Medicine Residency at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Hematology/oncology and a research fellowship in genetic epidemiology of cancer, at the Mayo School of Graduate Medical Education, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine

Hematology/oncology residency at Mayo School of Graduate Medical Education, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine

Master’s in healthcare administration from the University of Wisconsin – LaCrosse.