Kelly Hewitt, MD, recently joined the Division of Surgical Oncology after being recruited from St. Charles Health System in Bend, Oregon, where she served as medical director of the Breast Program.
“What drew me to Vanderbilt are multiple reasons,” said Hewitt. “I had the desire to work at an institution that has the resources, the faculty and the ability to provide state-of-the-art cancer care, to get patients involved in clinical trials and to continue to push our knowledge base and the evolution of breast cancer care.”
Hewitt has an undergraduate degree from Johns Hopkins University and a medical degree from Georgetown University. She completed her residency in general surgery at the University of Utah. After working as a surgeon at Samaritan Pacific Communities Hospital, a critical access hospital on the Oregon coast, she developed a passion for caring for breast cancer patients. She then completed a breast surgical oncology fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF).
“I worked as a rural general surgeon at a critical access hospital on the Oregon coast right out of residency,” she said. “It was there that I really developed my passion for taking care of breast cancer patients, and I saw that in rural communities there really was a need for comprehensive breast cancer care.”
She is board-certified by the American Board of Surgery, General Surgery. She is a member of the American Society of Breast Surgeons and is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons.
“We are thrilled that she has chosen to join our team. Dr Hewitt brings a unique perspective to the breast team with her training outside of the Southeast and prior careers as a rural general surgeon and community breast surgeon. Her experience will provide an opportunity to collaborate with community and rural practices and enhance the presence of the breast program beyond our current metro based geographical area” said Ingrid Meszoely, MD, associate professor of Surgery, Ingram Associate Professor of Cancer Research and clinical director of the Vanderbilt Breast Center.
Hewitt and her husband are parents to three boys. In her spare time, she’s an avid runner who competes in marathons.
