Kathleen K. Christians, MD

Professor

Request an Appointment

Location

Cancer Center - Froedtert Hospital
8800 West Doyne Ave.
Milwaukee, WI 53226

Specialties

Surgical Oncology

Established Patient Appointments

(414) 955-1438

New Patient Appointments

(414) 805-6849

Overview

Diseases and Conditions

Biliary Cancer
Bile Duct Cancer
Gallbladder Cancer
Gastrointestinal Cancer
Liver Cancer
Pancreatic Cancer
Pancreatitis
Sarcoma
Benign Pancreatic Disease
Gallbladder Disease
Benign Liver Tumors

Treatments and Services

Advanced Laparoscopy
Robotic Assisted Surgery
Virtual Visit

Patients Ages Seen

Adult
Senior

Languages

English

Hospital Affiliations

Froedtert Hospital – Milwaukee
Zablocki VA Medical Center – Milwaukee

Board Certifications

Surgical Critical Care
Surgery

Clinic Locations

Cancer Center - Froedtert Hospital

8800 West Doyne Ave.
Milwaukee, WI 53226
(866) 680-0505
Get Directions

General Surgery - Froedtert Hospital

900 N. 92nd St.
Milwaukee, WI 53226
(414) 805-5800
Get Directions

Biography

Dr. Kathleen Christians specializes in surgical oncology and minimally invasive surgery (robotic and laparoscopic), with special emphasis on treatment of malignant and benign diseases of the liver, pancreas, biliary tree and gastrointestinal tract. Dr. Christians is Service Chief of Surgical Oncology GI Service, Co-director of the HPB Fellowship Program and her research interests focus on personalized cancer care and outcomes research in cancer.

Education and Training

Hepato-pancreato-biliary Fellowship - University of Hong Kong (2002-2003)
Fellowship in Surgical Critical Care - Medical College of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, WI (1998-1999)
Residency - Medical College of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, WI (1993-1998)
Doctor of Medicine - University of Iowa - Iowa City, IA (1993)

Median arcuate ligament release at the time of pancreaticoduodenectomy or total pancreatectomy.

(Ward EP, Vincent-Sheldon S, Tolat P, Kulkarni N, Aldakkak M, Budithi R, Clarke CN, Tsai S, Evans DB, Christians KK.) Surgery. 2024 May;175(5):1386-1393 PMID: 38413302 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85186348752 02/28/2024
Transcriptomic-Based Microenvironment Classification Reveals Precision Medicine Strategies for Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma.

(George B, Kudryashova O, Kravets A, Thalji S, Malarkannan S, Kurzrock R, Chernyavskaya E, Gusakova M, Kravchenko D, Tychinin D, Savin E, Alekseeva L, Butusova A, Bagaev A, Shin N, Brown JH, Sethi I, Wang D, Taylor B, McFall T, Kamgar M, Hall WA, Erickson B, Christians KK, Evans DB, Tsai S.) Gastroenterology. 2024 May;166(5):859-871.e3 PMID: 38280684 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85188891214 01/28/2024
Characterization of an oligometastatic state in patients with metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma undergoing systemic chemotherapy.

(de Ortiz de Choudens S, Visotcky A, Banerjee A, Aldakkak M, Tsai S, Evans DB, Christians KK, Clarke CN, George B, Shreenivas A, Kamgar M, Chakrabarti S, Dua KS, Khan AH, Madhavan S, Erickson BA, Hall WA.) Cancer Med. 2024 Jan;13(1):e6582 PMID: 38140796 PMCID: PMC10807686 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85180644976 12/23/2023
Biliary Adverse Events During Neoadjuvant Therapy for Pancreatic Cancer.

(Thalji SZ, Fernando D, Dua KS, Madhavan S, Chisholm P, Smith ZL, Aldakkak M, Christians KK, Clarke CN, George B, Kamgar M, Erickson BA, Hall WA, Evans DB, Tsai S.) Ann Surg. 2023 Dec 01;278(6):e1224-e1231 PMID: 37078282 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85176508848 04/20/2023
Patterns of Unnecessary Insurer Prior Authorization Denials in a Complex Surgical Oncology Practice.

(Merrill JR, Flitcroft MA, Miller T, Beichner B, Clarke CN, Maduekwe UN, Wang TS, Dream S, Christians KK, Gamblin TC, Evans DB, Kothari AN.) J Surg Res. 2023 Aug;288:269-274 PMID: 37037166 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85151667989 04/11/2023
Automated machine learning (AutoML) can predict 90-day mortality after gastrectomy for cancer.

(SenthilKumar G, Madhusudhana S, Flitcroft M, Sheriff S, Thalji S, Merrill J, Clarke CN, Maduekwe UN, Tsai S, Christians KK, Gamblin TC, Kothari AN.) Sci Rep. 2023 Jul 08;13(1):11051 PMID: 37422500 PMCID: PMC10329647 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85164146540 07/09/2023
Neoadjuvant chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer: Quality over quantity.

(Thalji SZ, Aldakkak M, Christians KK, Clarke CN, George B, Kamgar M, Erickson BA, Hall WA, Chisholm P, Kulkarni N, Doucette S, Evans DB, Tsai S.) J Surg Oncol. 2023 Jul;128(1):41-50 PMID: 36960919 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85152449940 03/25/2023
CA19-9 Response to First-Line Neoadjuvant FOLFIRINOX and Second-Line Gemcitabine/Nab-Paclitaxel for Patients with Operable Pancreatic Cancer.

(Thalji SZ, Kamgar M, George B, Aldakkak M, Christians KK, Clarke CN, Erickson BA, Hall WA, Tolat PP, Smith ZL, Evans DB, Tsai S.) Ann Surg Oncol. 2023 May;30(5):3013-3021 PMID: 36788189 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85147934173 02/15/2023
Automated machine learning (AutoML) can predict 90-day mortality after gastrectomy for cancer

(SenthilKumar G, Madhusudhana S, Flitcroft M, Sheriff S, Thalji S, Merrill J, Clarke CN, Maduekwe UN, Tsai S, Christians KK, Gamblin TC, Kothari AN.) Scientific Reports. December 2023;13(1) SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85164146540 12/01/2023
Effects of a Sound Intervention on Physical and Emotional Well-Being in Patients with Cancer: A Prospective Randomized Trial.

(Hohneck A, Meissner R, Reyser C, Heinemann L, Christians K, Merx K, Weingärtner S, Mavratzas A, Schulte N, Burkholder I, Hofmann WK, Hofheinz RD.) Oncol Res Treat. 2023;46(1-2):1-10 PMID: 36657417 PMCID: PMC10015753 01/20/2023
Palliative Cytoreductive Surgery With or Without Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy for Peritoneal Carcinomatosis: Is It Safe and Effective?

(Strong EA, Livingston A, Gracz M, Peltier W, Tsai S, Christians K, Gamblin TC, Kersting K, Clarke CN.) J Surg Res. 2022 Oct;278:31-38 PMID: 35588572 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85130316020 05/20/2022
Updates and new directions in the use of radiation therapy for the treatment of pancreatic adenocarcinoma: dose, sensitization, and novel technology.

(Hall WA, Kamgar M, Erickson BA, Ponce SB, Tsai S, Nevalainen MT, Christians KK, George B, Dua KS, Khan AH, Evans DB, Azmi AS.) Cancer Metastasis Rev. 2021 Sep;40(3):879-889 PMID: 34611794 PMCID: PMC8767496 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85116412346 10/07/2021