Karen Knudsen — SPARQNOW

At-a-Glance

Current CEO and Executive Director of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy (since 2025), an organization that has launched 17 biotech ventures raising over $4B.
Co-founder of Patient Agent, an AI-driven venture focused on delivering intelligent tools for personalized patient decisions.
Serves as a Board Director for AstraZeneca (since 2025), Paradigm Health (since 2025), Exai Bio (since 2024), and Research!America (since 2023).
Former Chief Executive Officer of the American Cancer Society and its advocacy affiliate, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, as the first woman to hold that position.
Former Executive Vice President of Oncology Services and Enterprise Director of the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Jefferson Health.
An oncology researcher whose studies focus on precision medicine in advanced prostate cancer, leading to new clinical trials.
Holds a PhD in Molecular Biology from the University of California at San Diego (1996) and an MBA with honors from the Fox School of Business and Management at Temple University.

Biography

Dr. Karen E. Knudsen is the Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy (PICI), a role she has held since 2025. PICI is an entrepreneurial organization dedicated to accelerating the development of immune-based therapies, backing high-risk, high-reward science, and building infrastructure to move discoveries from lab to clinic to market.