Deborah Watkins Bruner

Deborah Watkins Bruner, RN, PhD, FAAN, is Senior Vice President for Research, Emory University, Atlanta, GA. Dr. Bruner is also Professor and Robert W. Woodruff Chair in Nursing, Professor of Radiation Oncology, and a member and past Associate Director for Mentorship at Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University. She is an internationally renowned researcher and clinical trialist with a focus on patient reported outcomes (PROs), symptom management, and comparative effectiveness of radiotherapy modalities. Her most current research is focused on the role of the human microbiome in carcinogenesis and cancer treatment outcomes.

Her global work includes a project to assist in preparing for opening the first modern radiotherapy in Ethiopia through 3D treatment planning and quality assurance. She is past chair of the advisory board for the Emory University School of Nursing-Addis Ababa University (AAU) partnership in developing AAUs first doctoral program in nursing and serves on dissertation committees for AAU nurses. Dr. Bruner serves on the board of the Center for Global Health Innovation, Atlanta, GA, and on the Georgia advisory committee of the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition.

Dr. Bruner’s leadership, especially in the National Cancer Institute (NCI) sponsored National Clinical Trials Network (NCTN) transcends disciplines and has led to improved health and quality of life and decreased cost outcomes for those treated for cancer. Recognition of her work led to her appointment by President Obama to one of only two National Institutes of Health Presidential appointed committees, the National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Cancer Advisory Board, on which she still serves. She is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and has co-authored several reports including most recently, Radioactive Sources: Applications and Alternative Technologies, and has served as a consultant to the Division of Human Health at the International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna, Austria. 

Dr. Bruner has worked for almost three decades with the NCTN and is the first and only nurse to ever lead a national clinical trials cooperative group, first as the Principal Investigator (PI) of the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) Community Clinical Oncology Program (CCOP), and currently as multi-PI of the NRG Oncology group National Community Oncology Research Program (NCORP). NRG Oncology was formed by the historic merger of The National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Prostate (NSABP), the RTOG, and the Gynecologic Oncology Group (GOG) in March 2014. NRG is a consortium of over 1900 institutions and involving over 3,000 physicians, nurses, physicists, and statisticians, in the U.S. and Canada. The NCORP focuses on symptom amelioration, quality of life and comparative effectiveness trials in community settings, where most cancer care is delivered. Dr. Bruner's pioneering leadership in the NCTN led to a paradigm shift from a historically medically dominated focus on survival and toxicity, to a patient-centered bio-behavioral focus that includes patient reported outcomes (PROs) and has changed clinical practice. She also currently serves on NRG Oncology’s Executive Committee.

Dr. Bruner has been continuously funded since 1998 from sponsors including the American Cancer Society, Department of Defense, Oncology Nursing Society, State of Pennsylvania, National Institute of Nursing Research, National Cancer Institute, and the National Institutes of Health. This has culminated in her ranking among the top 5% of all NIH funded investigators in the world since 2012, according to the Blue Ridge Institute.