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

Tartof SY, Xie F, Yadav R, Wernli KJ, Martin ET, Belongia EA, Gaglani M, Zimmerman RK, Talbot HK, Thornburg N, Flannery B, US Flu VE Network Investigators Prior SARS-CoV-2 Infection and COVID-19 Vaccine Effectiveness against Outpatient Illness during Widespread Circulation of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Variant, US Flu VE Network 2023 May;17(5):e13143. doi: 10.1111/irv.13143. PubMed

Price AM, Flannery B, Talbot HK, Grijalva CG, Wernli KJ, Phillips CH, Monto AS, Martin ET, Belongia EA, McLean HQ, Gaglani M, Mutnal M, Geffel KM, Nowalk MP, Tartof SY, Florea A, McLean C, Kim SS, Patel MM, Chung JR Influenza Vaccine Effectiveness Against Influenza A(H3N2)-Related Illness in the United States During the 2021-2022 Influenza Season 2023 Apr 17;76(8):1358-1363. doi: 10.1093/cid/ciac941. Epub 2022-12-12. PubMed

Lowry KP, Ichikawa L, Hubbard RA, Buist DSM, Bowles EJA, Henderson LM, Kerlikowske K, Specht JM, Sprague BL, Wernli KJ, Lee JM Variation in second breast cancer risk after primary invasive cancer by time since primary cancer diagnosis and estrogen receptor status 2023 Apr 15;129(8):1173-1182. doi: 10.1002/cncr.34679. Epub 2023-02-15. PubMed

Su YR, Buist DSM, Lee JM, Ichikawa L, Miglioretti DL, Bowles EJA, Wernli KJ, Kerlikowske K, Tosteson A, Lowry KP, Henderson LM, Sprague BL, Hubbard RA Performance of statistical and machine learning risk prediction models for surveillance benefits and failures in breast cancer survivors 2023 Apr 3;32(4):561-571. doi: 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-22-0677. Epub 2023-01-25. PubMed

Hood N, Flannery B, Gaglani M, Beeram M, Wernli K, Jackson ML, Martin ET, Monto AS, Zimmerman R, Raviotta J, Belongia EA, McLean HQ, Kim S, Patel MM, Chung JR Influenza Vaccine Effectiveness Among Children: 2011-2020 2023 Apr;151(4). doi: 10.1542/peds.2022-059922. PubMed

Ho TH, Bissell MCS, Lee CI, Lee JM, Sprague BL, Tosteson ANA, Wernli KJ, Henderson LM, Kerlikowske K, Miglioretti DL Prioritizing Screening Mammograms for Immediate Interpretation and Diagnostic Evaluation Based on Risk of Recall 2023 Mar;20(3):299-310. doi: 10.1016/j.jacr.2022.09.030. Epub 2022-10-20. PubMed

Jayasekera J, Zhao A, Schechter C, Lowry K, Yeh JM, Schwartz MD, O'Neill S, Wernli KJ, Stout N, Mandelblatt J, Kurian AW, Isaacs C Reassessing the Benefits and Harms of Risk-Reducing Medication Considering the Persistent Risk of Breast Cancer Mortality in Estrogen Receptor-Positive Breast Cancer 2023 Feb;41(4):859-870. doi: 10.1200/JCO.22.01342. Epub 2022-12-01. PubMed

Shafer L, Ahmed F, Kim S, Wernli KJ, Jackson ML, Nowalk MP, Bear T, Zimmerman RK, Martin ET, Monto AS, Gaglani M, Reis M, Chung JR, Flannery B, Uzicanin A Relationship between Telework Experience and Presenteeism during COVID-19 Pandemic, United States, March-November 2020 2023 Feb;29(2):278-285. doi: 10.3201/eid2902.221014. Epub 2023-01-04. PubMed

Conley CC, Wernli KJ, Knerr S, Li T, Leppig K, Ehrlich K, Farrell D, Gao H, Bowles EJA, Graham AL, Luta G, Jayasekera J, Mandelblatt JS, Schwartz MD, O'Neill SC Using Protection Motivation Theory to Predict Intentions for Breast Cancer Risk Management: Intervention Mechanisms from a Randomized Controlled Trial 2023 Feb;38(1):292-300. doi: 10.1007/s13187-021-02114-y. Epub 2021-11-23. PubMed

Tartof SY, Xie F, Yadav R, Wernli KJ, Martin ET, Belongia EA, Gaglani M, Zimmerman RK, Talbot HK, Thornburg N, Flannery B, Chung JR, US Flu VE Network Investigators Prior SARS-CoV-2 Infection and COVID-19 Vaccine Effectiveness against Outpatient Illness during Widespread Circulation of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Variant, US Flu VE Network 2023 Jan 11 doi: 10.1101/2023.01.10.23284397. Epub 2023-01-11. PubMed