Clara Curiel-Lewandrowski, MD

Professor of Medicine
Inaugural Chair, Department of Dermatology
University of Arizona

Biography

Dr. Curiel is a Professor of Medicine with tenure, the Inaugural Chair of the Department of Dermatology at the University of Arizona (UA), the Co-Director of the UA Skin Cancer Institute, and the recent Interim Director of Research for the UA Comprehensive Cancer Center. She is also an MPI of two NIH/NCI UG3/UH3 Team Science Awards spanning biomarker discovery to novel imaging modalities. Dr. Curiel focuses on addressing critical clinical gaps in skin cancer prevention, early detection, and immunotherapeutics through innovative study design and effective execution of multidisciplinary research initiatives. Her research interests include photobiology, skin carcinogenesis, immunoprevention and chemoprevention, early skin cancer detection through novel imaging modalities, and biomarker discovery. She was named Arizona Bioscientist of the Year in 2018 in recognition of her impactful contributions to translational skin cancer research at the state, national, and international levels.

Dr. Curiel completed medical school at the Central University of Venezuela, followed by two research fellowships in photobiology and immunobiology of the skin at the Wellman Laboratories of Photomedicine (MGH/Harvard Medical School) and the Ludwig-Boltzmann Institute (University of Münster, Germany), respectively. She subsequently completed her dermatology residency and a skin cancer fellowship through the combined Boston University/Tufts program.

Dr. Curiel served as Co-Director of the Cutaneous Oncology Program at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston for several years before joining UA, where she led the establishment of the UACC Skin Cancer Institute and the multidisciplinary Cutaneous Oncology Program.