Robert John Schweitzer

1923 - 2016

Dr. Robert J. Schweitzer

Mar 17, 1923 - Dec 15, 2016

Dr. Robert John Schweitzer, past president of the American Cancer Society and renowned surgical oncologist, passed away peacefully in Oakland on December 15, 2016, surrounded by his family. He was 93. He helped to develop surgical oncology residencies in the United States to train generations of cancer surgeons. He advocated to fund Breast Cancer Education and Prevention Centers before congress and the President.

Dr Schweitzer recognized in the 1950's and 60's the importance of specialty cancer surgery training to improve outcomes and survival for cancer patients. He worked with physicians across all specialties to develop guidelines for the training of cancer surgeons. This concept is still in use today.

Dr Schweitzer moved to Oakland, California in 1956 to establish his surgical oncology practice. He was on the clinical faculty at UCSF Medical Center and lectured throughout the state, and later throughout the country. In 1972, Dr Schweitzer and Dr David Dugan founded the Bay Area Tumor Institute in Oakland, CA, a community oncology program providing cancer consultation and clinical trials to an underserved population.

During his career, he lectured, performed, and demonstrated complicated cancer surgical techniques around the world. Dr Schweitzer was a visiting professor at the National Cancer Institute, Javeriana Medical School in Bogota, Colombia and the General Hospital in Mexico City. He authored 24 book chapters and 46 medical publications of surgical oncology. Dr Schweitzer served as President of the American College of Surgeons and the Society of Surgical Oncology. While building and maintaining his busy practice for 47 years, he became the first physician in private practice to be named president of the American Cancer Society. In the 1970s he was joined in his practice by his longtime surgical oncology partner, Dr Lionel Schour, and later, during the last decade of his career, by his daughter, Dr Laurie Schweitzer and her husband, Dr Jai Balkissoon.

Dr Schweitzer was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to Dr. George John Schweitzer and Anna O'Donnell Schweitzer. He attended Marquette University and Marquette College of Medicine (now Medical College of Wisconsin). He enlisted in the Navy in 1942 for WWII service during medical school. After completing his surgical internship and residency at Boston City Hospital, he was drafted into the army during the Korean War, serving his active duty as a surgeon. Dr Schweitzer completed a fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering in cancer surgery in 1955.

Dr Schweitzer loved to travel with his wife, Audrey. He was an avid golfer, hunter, world traveller, food and wine aficionado.

Dr Schweitzer is preceded in death by his wife of 67 years, Audrey Kalweit Schweitzer. He is survived by his five children: Jennifer Schweitzer (Paul Brickman) of Montecito, CA, Christine Ruppe (Roger) of Santa Rosa, CA, Robert Schweitzer Jr ( Mary Imig) of Monte Sereno, CA, Laurie Schweitzer (Jai Balkissoon) of Piedmont, CA, and Marc Schweitzer (Ceris) of San Jose, CA, along with seven granddaughters, five grandsons and two great grandchildren.