Dr. Peter E. Schwartz

Dr. Peter E. Schwartz
Dr. Peter E. Schwartz, the John Slade Ely Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Yale University School of Medicine, passed away peacefully at Yale – New Haven Hospital on October 20, 2024 after a prolonged illness. He leaves behind his beloved wife of 58 years, Arlene, his cherished family including sons Bruce (Anne), Andy (Kelly), Ken ( Jamie) and grandsons, Paul, Josh, Toby, Judah, and Guy, sister Marjorie, brother in law, Mike (Betty), nephews, nieces, as well as many friends and colleagues. Peter was predeceased by his parents, Bernard and Marcia Schwartz and his brother-in-law Joseph Rosenstreich.
Dr. Schwartz, a pioneer in the field of gynecologic oncology and neoadjuvant chemotherapy, was passionate about practicing medicine and felt it was a privilege to care for patients. Peter was born in New York City, grew up in Laurelton, Queens, attended Brooklyn Technical High School (1958), Union College (1962) and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine (1966). Following a surgical internship at the University of Kentucky Healthcare Center (1967), a residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology (1971) at Yale New Haven Hospital, and two years of service in the United States Air Force, he completed a two-year Fellowship in Gynecologic Oncology at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas (1975). Dr. Schwartz then returned to New Haven and spent the next 49 years of his professional career as a faculty member and professor emeritus at the Yale University School of Medicine. Dr. Schwartz was division chief of Gynecologic Oncology from 1978 - 2005 and Vice Chairman of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Dr. Schwartz was most recently the John Slade Ely Professor Emeritus in the Department of Obstetrics Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at Yale University. He attended meetings and tumor board reviews up until a few weeks before his passing.
Dr. Schwartz was grateful to have extraordinary mentors, collaborators, co-workers, and colleagues, all of whom helped him to have a long and distinguished career researching and advancing the treatment of female reproductive cancers. To that end he has co-authored over 360 peer-reviewed articles in a range of journals including the New England Journal of Medicine, 35 case reports, 126 chapters and served as a reviewer for Gynecologic Oncology and related journals. Dr. Schwartz received numerous honors for his academic achievements including being elected the President of the Felix Rutledge Society, the New England Association of Gynecologic Oncologists, and the Society of Gynecologic Oncologists. He is the recipient of the Yale Cancer Center Life-Time Achievement Award and the Yale Medicine Distinguished Clinical Career Award. Dr. Schwartz was recognized numerous times in America's Best Doctors Awards. In 2006 Governor Jodi Rell declared November 18th as Dr. Peter E. Schwartz Day for his years of service to Yale University and the State of Connecticut.
Dr. Schwartz was especially proud of his contributions to improving women's health, training a new generation of physicians in the field of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and his contributions to Yale and the New Haven area. He established the Yale Gynecologic Oncology Division (1978), the Yale Gynecologic Oncology Fellowship Training Program (1980) and subsequently the Discovery to Cure Program at Yale. (2001). He trained many fellows in the specialty of Gynecologic Oncology who have gone on to careers in academic medicine at Yale, throughout the country, and abroad.
In May of 2023, Discovery to Cure had a tribute dinner in his honor at which Dr. Schwartz learned that the Program has been renamed to bear his name - the Peter E. Schwartz, MD Discovery to Cure Program. Peter was the first to establish a role for neoadjuvant chemotherapy in the initial treatment of women with advanced ovarian cancer. Peter treated the first person with neoadjuvant chemotherapy in 1979 and reported the first series of patients (1979-1990) treated in this manner in 1990. This method of treatment is a standard of care for women with advanced ovarian cancer now in the United States, Europe and throughout the world.
Peter was an early leader in the field of chemotherapy in management of patients with germ cell ovarian malignancies (a very deadly disease occurring mostly in teenagers). He focused on curing his patients and preserving fertility, including in women with advanced stage disease. He was a pioneer in the field of selective arteriography and transcatheter techniques in controlling massive hemorrhage in gynecologic oncology patients and then in the field of massive post-partum hemorrhage. He established a standard of care for the treatment of early stage (Stage I and Stage II) uterine serous cancer using adjuvant chemotherapy and vaginal radiation therapy that became a nationally accepted standard of care for what was an extremely deadly disease. Soon after joining the Yale faculty, Peter worked with Yale investigators and identified the presence of estrogen receptor proteins in ovarian cancer. This led to the first prospective randomized trial incorporating hormonal therapy in the initial treatment of women with advanced ovarian cancer. Peter was also an early investigator in detecting and utilizing circulating tumor markers in the diagnosis and management of ovarian cancer.
When not working, Dr. Schwartz most enjoyed being with family. He loved traveling with Arlene, hiking and skiing in the USA, Canada and Europe. He was especially proud to have skied with Arlene, their sons and grandsons. He liked going fast downhill but admitted he had no form doing it. Dr. Schwartz enjoyed dinners with friends and family, especially with the Gourmet Club. His most favorite time was the annual Schwartz Thanksgiving dinner and the family football game that preceded it.
Dr. Schwartz was often asked by young people whether they should pursue a career in medicine. He would often reply that "becoming a physician is the greatest honor society can bestow on a mere human being."
The Schwartz family would like to thank all of the outstanding physicians, nurses, physical therapists, colleagues at Yale and the many others who cared for Peter. They extended his life, allowing Dr. Schwartz to have 14 precious years that he never otherwise would have been able to have.
Funeral services will be held at Congregation Or Shalom, 205 Old Grassy Hill Road in Orange, CT on Tuesday October 22nd (TODAY) at 11:00 O'Clock with internment services to follow at Beth Israel Cemetery, Derby-Milford Road, Orange. Funeral arrangements in care of Robert E. Shure & Son Funeral Home. Shiva will be held on Tuesday evening from 7:00-9:00 p.m. at the Schwartz home.
Contributions in Dr. Schwartz's memory can be made to the Peter Edward Schwartz Endowment Fund to support research in gynecologic oncology. Check donations to the Peter E. Schwartz Endowment Fund should be sent to the address below. Please make the check payable to Yale School of Medicine and on the memo line write in the Peter E. Schwartz Endowment Fund.
Yale School Of Medicine
Office of Development
PO Box 7611
New Haven, CT 06519
Online donations to the Endowment Fund can be made by going to the link below:
https://tinyurl.com/yckdu3pv
Contributions can also be made to the Peter E. Schwartz Discovery to Cure Program. Checks must be made out to Yale University and in memo line on check write PES – DTC. The mailing address is:
c/o Peter E. Schwartz Discovery to Cure
Yale School of Medicine
Dept of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences
PO Box 208063
New Haven, CT 06520
Online donations can be made at the following link:
https://bit.ly/3t6gFJH