Skip to main content
Beth Karlan, MD, Obstetrics & Gynecology, Los Angeles, CA

Beth Karlan MD

Obstetrics & Gynecology•Los Angeles, CA

Gynecologic Oncology

David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA Vice Chair, Women's Health Research Director, Cancer Population Genetics

Join to view full profile

  • 100 UCLA Medical Plaza, Suite 383Los Angeles, CA 90095

  • Phone+1 310-794-7274

  • Fax+1 310-794-7436

Dr. Karlan is on Doximity

As a Doximity member, you’ll join more than three million U.S. healthcare professionals—including 85+% of physicians, and 2/3 of all NPs and PAs—in a private, secure network.

  • Gain access to free telehealth tools, such as our “call shielding” and one-way patient texting.
  • Connect with colleagues in the same hospital or clinic.
  • Read the latest clinical news, personalized to your specialty.
See Dr. Karlan's full profileAlready have an account?

Summary

  • Beth Karlan, MD, is an accomplished specialist in Obstetrics & Gynecology with a subspecialty in Gynecologic Oncology based in Los Angeles, CA. She completed her residency at Yale-New Haven Medical Center after earning her medical degree from Harvard Medical School. Dr. Karlan is Professor and Vice Chair in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. She holds the Nancy Marks endowed chair in Women’s Health Research and is the Director of Cancer Population Genetics at the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center. Dr. Karlan’s research focuses on improving outcomes for women with ovarian and other gynecologic malignancies as well as better characterizing inherited cancer susceptibility syndromes. She has authored over 500 peer-reviewed research publications. For more than ten years she was Editor-in-Chief of the journals Gynecologic Oncology and Gynecologic Oncology Reports and now serves as Editor Emeritus of both journals. She is an American Cancer Society Clinical Research Professor and has served in many national leadership roles including president of the Society of Gynecologic Oncology. She has helped train a generation of physicians and scientists who are making their own contributions to medicine. Dr. Karlan served on the National Cancer Advisory Board and is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and the National Cancer Policy Forum. Her contributions have been recognized by her peers with multiple awards including a Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Society of Gynecologic Cancer, a Director’s Service Award from the National Cancer Institute and a Giant of Cancer Care in Gynecologic Malignancies from OncLive.

Education & Training

  • Yale-New Haven Medical Center
    Yale-New Haven Medical CenterResidency, Obstetrics and Gynecology, 1982 - 1986
  • Harvard Medical School
    Harvard Medical SchoolClass of 1982
  • Harvard-Radcliffe College
    Harvard-Radcliffe CollegeB.A., Biochemical Sciences, Magna Cum Laude, 1978

Certifications & Licensure

  • CA State Medical License
    CA State Medical License 1986 - 2028
  • Obstetrics & Gynecology
    American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology Obstetrics & Gynecology
  • Gynecologic Oncology
    American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology Gynecologic Oncology

Awards, Honors, & Recognition

  • Lifetime Achievement Award International Gynecologic Cancer Society, 2021
  • Giants of Cancer Care, Gynecologic Malignancies OncLive, 2019
  • Director's Service Award National Cancer Institute, 2018

Clinical Trials

Publications & Presentations

PubMed

Journal Articles

  • Association of p16 Expression with Prognosis Varies Across Ovarian Carcinoma Histotypes: An Ovarian Tumor Tissue Analysis Consortium Study  
    Robert P Edwards, Beth Y Karlan, Andrew Berchuck, The Journal of Pathology: Clinical Research
  • Variants in Genes Encoding Small GTPases and Association with Epithelial Ovarian Cancer Susceptibility  
    Julie M Cunningham, Robert P Edwards, Elizabeth M Poole, Tanja Pejovic, Karen Lu, Kunle Odunsi, Beth Y Karlan, Christine S Walsh, Douglas A Levine, Andrew Berchuck, Da..., PLoS One
  • Functional Mechanisms Underlying Pleiotropic Risk Alleles at the 19p13.1 Breast–Ovarian Cancer Susceptibility Locus  
    Susan M Domchek, Beth Y Karlan, Katherine L Nathanson, Kenneth Offit, Banu K Arun, Andrew Berchuck, Patricia A Ganz, Douglas A Levine, Nature

Books/Book Chapters

  • Gynecologic Oncology: Clinical Practice and Surgical Atlas 
    Karlan BYEditors: Karlan BY, Bristow RE, Li AJ.McGraw-Hill Publishers, New York, NY2012
  • Surgery for Ovarian Cancer: Principles and Practice 
    Karlan BYEditors: Bristow RE, Karlan BY, Chi D.Taylor and Francis Publishing, United KingdomEdition 2nd,2010
  • Surgery for Ovarian Cancer Principles and Practice 
    Chapter: Advanced Cytoreductive Surgery Program Development: Building a Cytoreductive Team 
    Page 291 - 299Zivanovic O, Chi DS, Karlan BYEditors: Bristow RE, Karlan BY and Chi DS.Taylor & Francis Publishers, United KingdomEdition 2nd,2010

Abstracts/Posters

  • Morbidity of triplemodality therapy in the management of early stage cervical cancer.
    Park SK, Axtell AE, Hakimian B, Li A, Leuchter R, Karlan B, Rimel BJ, Walsh C, Cass I, Western Association of Gynecologic Oncologists Meeting, Truckee, CA, 6/25/2014
  • A KRAS hotspot mutation correlates with MLH1 methylation in endometrial carcinomas with microsatellite instability: A potential triage tool for Lynch Syndrome evaluation.
    Cohen J, Wiedemeyer R, Karlan B, Walsh C, Society of Gynecologic Oncology 45th Annual Meeting on Women's Cancer, Tampa, FL, 3/22/2014
  • Genomic characterization of grade 3 endometrial carcinoma.
    Cohen J, Goodman M, Karlan B and Walsh C, Society of Gynecologic Oncology 45th Annual Meeting on Women's Cancer, Tampa, FL, 3/22/2014

Lectures

  • The prognostic significance of ADAM metallopeptidase domain 12 in advanced stage serous ovarian cancer. 
    Truckee, CA - 6/25/2014
  • Occult and subsequent gynecologic cancers following risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomies (RRSO) in BRCA mutation carriers. 
    Truckee, CA - 6/25/2014
  • "The Mechanics of Writing and Publishing Great Papers: Perspecitive from the Editor-in-Chief of Gynecologic Oncology", Inaugural Lecturer 
    University of Alabama, Birmingham, AL - 11/15/2013

Other

  • "Interview for Lifescript.com" 
    Beth Young Karlan, MD
    1/1/2013
  • "Interview for Studio 11" 
    Beth Young Karlan, MD
    1/1/2013
  • CA-125: To monitor or not to monitor? 
    Rustin G, Karlan BY and Markman M
    http://www.medscape.com
    3/8/2012

Authored Content

  • Disappointing but Important: Cervical Cancer OUTBACK Trial’s Negative ResultsJune 2021

Press Mentions

  • Alex Parra, 24, Who Survived Cancer Twice, Says This One Thing Was the Scariest Part of His Cancer Journey: ‘I Was Living a Normal Life Without Knowing I Had Stage 4 Cancer’
    Alex Parra, 24, Who Survived Cancer Twice, Says This One Thing Was the Scariest Part of His Cancer Journey: ‘I Was Living a Normal Life Without Knowing I Had Stage 4 Cancer’September 5th, 2025
  • Genetic Testing Surges After Implementation of Virtual Counseling Technology
    Genetic Testing Surges After Implementation of Virtual Counseling TechnologyJanuary 15th, 2025
  • Researchers Finds How the Ovarian Cancer Can Develop in Women
    Researchers Finds How the Ovarian Cancer Can Develop in WomenJanuary 3rd, 2022

Grant Support

  • Patient Centered Outcomes Research Training in Urologic and Gynecologic Cancers (PCORT UroGynCan)UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES2020–2031

Professional Memberships

Viewing the full profile is available to verified healthcare professionals only.

Find your profile and take control of your online presence:

Dr. Beth Karlan, Dr. Beth Karlan, MD, Dr. B Karlan