Colorado State Veterinary Medicine Professor Recognized for Outstanding Achievement

Dr. Stephen Withrow, professor of surgical oncology and director of the Animal Cancer Center at Colorado State University, recently has received three recognitions for his outstanding work in the veterinary medical field.

Withrow was named a Hero in Medicine by the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine, he was honored with one of the most prestigious awards made by Washington State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, the John E. McCoy Award, and he received the Bourgelat Award from the British Small Animal Veterinary Association.

Withrow’s work in surgical limb-sparing earned him the recognition. The alternative treatment to amputation removes cancerous bones in the limbs of cats and dogs and replaces them with healthy bones from another animal. The treatment has had a high success rate and recently it has crossed into human medicine. The procedure has been adopted by cancer treatment centers across the nation and has been highly successful in preventing amputations in children diagnosed with osteosarcoma.

The John E. McCoy Award is granted to a recipient who shows outstanding work in the veterinary medical field. The award was enacted to remember Washington State University veterinarian John E. McCoy and his contributions to internal animal medicine. McCoy taught at the university for 23 years and served as the chair of the WSU Veterinary Clinic and dean of the veterinary school.

The Bourgelat award is presented annually by BSAVA as the primary recognition for outstanding international contributions to the field of small animal practice. The award was established in 1965 and is awarded to international veterinary surgeons.

Withrow has been with the Colorado State Veterinary Teaching Hospital since 1978. He was recently named the director of the CSU Academic Cancer Supercluster and the chief scientific officer of NeoTrex, the enterprise arm of the Supercluster. He also is a Colorado State Distinguished Professor and is also the only veterinarian admitted as a member of the Musculoskeletal Tumor Society. He also recently was the Jacque Jenny Key Note lecturer at the Veterinary Orthopaedic Society’s annual meeting in Breckenridge, Colo.

Withrow has authored more than 250 scientific articles and has compiled a textbook on clinical oncology in small animals. His clinical work has focused on comparative oncology, surgical oncology and musculoskeletal biology. During his time at Colorado State, he has focused his research on both bone cancer and pet cancer as a model for human diseases.

-30-