Karen J. Wernli, PhD

“I consider patients the core of my research.”

Karen J. Wernli, PhD

Senior Scientific Investigator, Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute
Professor, Department of Health System Science, Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine
Affiliate Professor, Department of Epidemiology and Department of Health Systems and Population Health, University of Washington

Karen.J.Wernli@kp.org
206-287-2934
Twitter: @wernlikarenj

Curriculum vitae (CV)

Biography

Karen Wernli, PhD, is a cancer epidemiologist and health services researcher whose work focuses on incorporating patient-centered outcomes to improve care along the cancer care continuum, from prevention to survivorship. Her work spans several cancer types, including lung, breast, and colorectal, and also explores the impact of cancer in special populations, such as adolescents and young adults. Her research strives to answer critical questions at the confluence of patients’ needs and clinical priorities. Overall, her research has resulted in more than $38 million in research funding, more than 170 peer-reviewed publications (h-index 42), and over 85 presentations at national conferences, symposia, and other public venues.

Dr. Wernli is a leader in lung cancer screening research. She is currently conducting a pragmatic clinical trial funded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to test 2 multilevel interventions to improve adherence to annual lung cancer screening at Kaiser Permanente Washington. Study interventions were developed using a mixed-methods approach — including patient and stakeholder engagement and human-centered design methods — to determine gaps for interventions, relevant features of interventions, and design concepts. Dr. Wernli is also leading NCI-funded research in expanding lung cancer screening in federally-qualified healthcare systems through the National Cancer Institute SUMMIT Initiative.

Dr. Wernli is a leader in the use of breast imaging in women with prior breast cancer, including in the use of breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Dr. Wernli recently completed a Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) project that compared breast MRI to mammography for women already treated for breast cancer. Called Surveillance Imaging Modalities for Breast Cancer Assessment (SIMBA), the study used data from the Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium (BCSC) and engaged patients and stakeholders to determine the best information for patient and physician decision-making. Dr. Wernli’s team translated that information into a new decision aid for breast cancer survivors. PCORI has recognized this work nationally and pointed to SIMBA as a model for effective patient engagement.

Dr. Wernli is leading patient-centered research in adolescent and young adult (AYA) populations. She is a project co-lead with Kaiser Permanente Southern California researcher Erin Hahn, PhD, MPH, and Veterans Affairs researcher Neetu Chawla, PhD, MPH, in an NCI-funded project to evaluate health service utilization in early survivorship for AYA populations. The research is intended to identify multilevel gaps in health care utilization in AYA early-cancer survivors for forthcoming interventions.

Finally, Dr. Wernli also leads clinical research studies beyond oncology. She is principal investigator of a multisite study of flu and COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 2022 to 2027. Her study team annually enrolls about 1,200 participants with flu-like symptoms into her research.

Dr. Wernli is a member of the American Society for Preventive Oncology, the Society for Epidemiologic Research, the American Society for Clinical Oncology, and the American Association for Cancer Research. She is an affiliate professor of epidemiology and health systems and population health at the University of Washington and a professor of health system science at the Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine.

Research interests and experience

Cancer

Breast, lung, colorectal, ovarian, skin, and endometrial cancer; screening and surveillance; survivorship; patient-centered care; biostatistics; low-dose CT (LDCT); mammography; surveillance imaging; breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); systematic reviews; multilevel intervention studies; pragmatic clinical trials
Health Services & Economics

Comparative effectiveness research, health outcomes research, patient-centered outcomes, health care quality, implementation science

Preventive Medicine

Cancer screening and surveillance
Patient-Centeredness

Patient engagement, stakeholder engagement, qualitative research methods, mixed-methods, human-centered design
Vaccines & Infectious Diseases
Aging & Geriatrics

Recent publications

Kerlikowske K, Zhu W, Su YR, Sprague BL, Stout NK, Onega T, O'Meara ES, Henderson LM, Tosteson ANA, Wernli K, Miglioretti DL Supplemental magnetic resonance imaging plus mammography compared with magnetic resonance imaging or mammography by extent of breast density 2024 Feb 8;116(2):249-257. doi: 10.1093/jnci/djad201. Epub 2023-10-27. PubMed

Hahn EE, Ritzwoller DP, Munoz-Plaza CE, Gander J, Kushi LH, McMullen C, Oshiro C, Roblin DW, Wernli KJ, Staab J Incidence and Survival for Patients Diagnosed With Breast, Colorectal, and Lung Cancer in an Integrated System 2023 Dec 15;27(4):129-135. doi: 10.7812/TPP/23.021. Epub 2023-09-19. PubMed

Ahmed F, Nowalk MP, Zimmerman RK, Bear T, Grijalva CG, Talbot HK, Florea A, Tartof SY, Gaglani M, Smith M, McLean HQ, King JP, Martin ET, Monto AS, Phillips CH, Wernli KJ, Flannery B, Chung JR, Uzicanin A Work Attendance with Acute Respiratory Illness Before and During COVID-19 Pandemic, United States, 2018-2022 2023 Dec;29(12):2442-2450. doi: 10.3201/eid2912.231070. Epub 2023-11-12. PubMed

Sandford R, Yadav R, Noble EK, Sumner K, Joshi D, Tartof SY, Wernli KJ, Martin ET, Gaglani M, Zimmerman RK, Talbot HK, Grijalva CG, Belongia EA, Carlson C, Coughlin M, Flannery B, Pearce B, Rogier E Antibody Response to Symptomatic Infection With SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Variant Viruses, December 2021-June 2022 2023 Nov 18 doi: 10.1101/2023.11.17.23298700. Epub 2023-11-18. PubMed

Knerr S, Guo B, Wernli KJ, Mittendorf KF, Feigelson HS, Gilmore MJ, Jarvik GP, Kauffman TL, Keast E, Liles EG, Lynch FL, Muessig KR, Okuyama S, Veenstra DL, Zepp JM, Wilfond BS, Devine B, Goddard KAB Longitudinal adherence to breast cancer surveillance following cancer genetic testing in an integrated health care system 2023 Oct;201(3):461-470. doi: 10.1007/s10549-023-07007-w. Epub 2023-07-20. PubMed

Sumner KM, Yadav R, Noble EK, Sandford R, Joshi D, Tartof SY, Wernli KJ, Martin ET, Gaglani M, Zimmerman RK, Talbot HK, Grijalva CG, Chung JR, Rogier E, Coughlin MM, Flannery B Anti-SARS-CoV-2 Antibody Levels Associated with COVID-19 Protection in Outpatients Tested for SARS-CoV-2, US Flu VE Network, October 2021-June 2022 2023 Sep 23 doi: 10.1101/2023.09.21.23295919. Epub 2023-09-23. PubMed

Thompson MJ, Suchsland MZ, Hardy V, Lavallee DC, Lord S, Devine EB, Jarvik JG, Findlay S, Trikalinos TA, Walter FM, Chou R, Green BB, Wernli KJ, Fitzpatrick AL, Bossuyt PM Patient-centred outcomes of imaging tests: recommendations for patients, clinicians and researchers 2023 Sep;32(9):536-545. doi: 10.1136/bmjqs-2021-013311. Epub 2021-10-06. PubMed

Nichols HB, Wernli KJ, Chawla N, O'Meara ES, Gray MF, Green LE, Baggett CD, Casperson M, Chao C, Jones SMW, Kirchhoff AC, Kuo TM, Lee C, Malogolowkin M, Quesenberry CP, Ruddy KJ, Wun T, Zebrack B, Chubak J, Hahn EE, Keegan THM, Kushi LH Challenges and Opportunities of Epidemiological Studies to Reduce the Burden of Cancers in Young Adults 2023 Sep;10(3):115-124. doi: 10.1007/s40471-022-00286-9. Epub 2022-03-29. PubMed

Ahmed F, Nowalk MP, Zimmerman RK, Bear T, Grijalva CG, Talbot HK, Florea A, Tartof SY, Gaglani M, Smith M, McLean HQ, King JP, Martin ET, Monto AS, Phillips CH, Wernli KJ, Flannery B, Chung JR, Uzicanin A. Work attendance during acute respiratory illness before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, United States, 2018-2022. medRxiv 2023. PubMed

Lee JM, Ichikawa LE, Wernli KJ, Bowles EJA, Specht JM, Kerlikowske K, Miglioretti DL, Lowry KP, Tosteson ANA, Stout NK, Houssami N, Onega T, Buist DSM Impact of Surveillance Mammography Intervals Less Than One Year on Performance Measures in Women With a Personal History of Breast Cancer 2023 Aug;24(8):729-738. doi: 10.3348/kjr.2022.1038. PubMed