This award, UT Southwestern’s highest honor in clinical care, recognizes a UT Southwestern clinician who exemplifies excellence in patient care and is a leader in advancing clinical innovation. It honors a faculty member who has had a profound impact on patients, students, trainees, and colleagues through the quality of their clinical work.

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Kevin Courtney, M.D., Ph.D.

Professor of Internal Medicine
Division of Hematology and Oncology
Director, Genitourinary Medical Oncology
Co-leader of the Genitourinary Oncology Disease-Oriented Team
Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center

As a medical oncologist, Dr. Kevin Courtney finds inspiration and motivation across all aspects of the cancer mission at UT Southwestern and the Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Every day, he sits across from patients and families facing some of life’s hardest moments – many with advanced cancers and uncertain futures – and he is inspired by their grace, dignity, and determination. That’s what motivates him to lead cutting-edge clinical trials and research to find answers where there seem to be none.

“In oncology, you get this opportunity to have a real impact,” Dr. Courtney said. “And you really get to see people at their best rising to a challenge. I feel honored to help them through that process.”

As co-leader of the Genitourinary (GU) Oncology Disease-Oriented Team, he provides multidisciplinary care to patients with prostate, kidney, bladder, testicular, and other GU cancers. He also conducts clinical and translational research, holds multiple leadership positions, and has received numerous awards for clinical care – including the Leaders in Clinical Excellence Patient and Family Recognition Award in 2020.

“Dr. Courtney’s clinical practice represents an exceptional example of patient-centered quality care, effectiveness, and compassion while always offering the latest advances beyond the standard of care to his patients,” his nominator wrote.

A Professor of Internal Medicine and member of the Division of Hematology and Oncology, Dr. Courtney organized and leads the Simmons Cancer Center’s GU Oncology Tumor Board. In part because of his strong leadership, his nominator said, the GU team has consistently led the enrollment of patients in clinical trials in the center. Dr. Courtney has served as site Principal Investigator in over 40 trials.

Patients and colleagues praise his empathy and his intellect. “I’ve never experienced the level of care and concern that I have with Dr. Courtney and his nursing staff,” one patient said.

“He is down to earth, listens to me, and truly cares about me and my care. I am so lucky to have him as my oncologist,” said another patient.

Raised by two teachers, Dr. Courtney learned early the value of listening closely and explaining complex ideas clearly – hallmarks of his clinical approach.

“I love seeing patients, being able to explain and discuss and empower them with the information they need to make decisions,” he said. “I’m not a proceduralist. I don’t do surgeries. I can’t make an instant impact from that skill standpoint. What I can do is provide them with as much knowledge as possible.”

Dr. Courtney first had the chance to do cancer research as an undergrad at Dartmouth College, and that’s when he chose to pursue an M.D./Ph.D. in hopes of having a career that bridged scientific advances and hands-on patient care.

At UT Southwestern, Dr. Courtney decided to focus his research pursuits on prostate cancer and kidney cancer. He would go on to play a key role in the design and execution of a phase one trial with several colleagues involving the HIF-2α inhibitor PT2385 in the treatment of patients with advanced clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC), the most common form of kidney cancer. This ultimately led to development of the HIF-2α inhibitor belzutifan, approved by the Food and Drug Administration for treatment of refractory metastatic ccRCC, von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) syndrome tumors, and advanced pheochromocytoma/paraganglioma. The work was the culmination of decades of discoveries by UT Southwestern scientists and physicians, including Steven McKnight, Ph.D., David Russell, Ph.D., Richard Bruick, Ph.D., Kevin Gardner, Ph.D., and James Brugarolas, M.D., Ph.D.

“The collaborative environment at UT Southwestern between basic science and clinical investigators and clinicians and bringing to bear years of work – to me, that’s an incredible story,” Dr. Courtney said. “And I feel privileged to have played a small part in that.”

In addition, his nominator said, as a nationally recognized expert in the care of patients with prostate cancer, Dr. Courtney has been a key contributor to the development of UTSW’s new prostate cancer care center. He is also a gifted educator and one of the highest-rated mentors by clinical fellows and junior faculty.

His efforts and dedication are routinely recognized.

In 2013, Dr. Courtney was named a Clinical Research Scholar by the UTSW Department of Clinical Sciences. In 2015, he received the Golden Pager Award from the UTSW nursing staff. The Moncrief Cancer Institute awarded him the 2017 Wheels for Wellness Classic Hero Award of Gratitude for his clinical and research efforts in prostate cancer. In 2024, Dr. Courtney was one of the inaugural recipients of the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) Clinical Investigator Award, a prestigious multiyear grant to fund his clinical research efforts and mentorship of junior clinical investigators.

The Watson Award celebrates his many contributions to the UTSW mission.

“It’s a privilege to be able to work with expert clinical colleagues across disciplines and scientific colleagues who are so dedicated to advancing patient care,” Dr. Courtney said. “This is a special environment to work in, and a special place to help our patients as they face cancer.”

Dr. Courtney earned his medical degree and a doctorate in molecular cancer biology at Duke University. He completed a residency in internal medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, and received advanced training in medical oncology through a fellowship at the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center. He also holds a master’s degree in clinical sciences from UT Southwestern.

Dr. Courtney joined the UTSW faculty in 2012 after serving as an Instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School.