Paul F. Engstrom, award-winning pioneer in cancer prevention and control at Fox Chase Cancer Center, has died at 89
He compiled clinical care guidelines for cancer doctors and hospitals around the world, and established one of the country’s first cancer prevention and control programs in Philadelphia.
Paul F. Engstrom, 89, formerly of Ambler, Montgomery County, celebrated pioneer in cancer prevention, education, and treatment, former chair and professor emeritus of the hematology and oncology department at Fox Chase Cancer Center, retired vice president of cancer control and senior adviser to the president at Fox Chase, Army veteran, and mentor, died Friday, Dec. 26, of Parkinson’s disease at Normandy Farms Estates in Blue Bell.
The son of a small-town doctor, Dr. Engstrom accompanied his father on house calls in Minnesota when he was young and assisted sometimes on routine procedures. Later, after earning his medical degree at the University of Minnesota, he excelled at identifying cancer-related health problems and creating solutions.
Starting in the 1960s and ’70s, Dr. Engstrom noticed large gaps in cancer prevention programs and treatment strategies. So he compiled comprehensive clinical care guidelines for cancer doctors and hospitals around the world, forged sustainable oncology research networks and community education partnerships, and established one of the country’s first cancer prevention and control programs at Fox Chase.
“Most doctors and oncologists in the 1970s were training to treat cancer, not necessarily to prevent it,” former Fox Chase colleague Carolyn Fang said in a 2018 story for Fox Chase’s Forward magazine. “He was one of the first to recognize that prevention was important.”
In 1991, Dr. Engstrom told the Daily News: “Changing the behavior of the public is only part of my job. We must change the physicians, too.” In 2000, he told The Inquirer: “Nowadays, the trend is toward identifying high-risk individuals and treatments we can give to prevent cancer from ever starting.”
Dr. Engstrom was adept at organization and collaboration, former colleagues said in online tributes. He recruited other cancer experts to Fox Chase and established cutting-edge programs for cancer screening, smoking cessation, and education at hospitals, schools, private companies, and other organizations.
He taught clinical science classes, secured vital grants from the National Cancer Institute and other groups, and made seminal clinical trials available to many more patients. “He was really aware of the need to integrate the community into this work.” Fang said in 2018.
Dr. Engstrom joined the old American Oncologic Hospital in Philadelphia in 1970 and oversaw its merger with the Institute for Cancer Research in 1974 to become the Fox Chase Cancer Center. He was named vice president of cancer control and continuing education in 1984, and head of community cancer program activities in 1989.
He was also vice president for population science and held the Samuel M.V. Hamilton endowed chair in cancer prevention. He specialized in treating gastrointestinal cancers and neuroendocrine tumors. He retired in 2018 but continued as a special adviser to the Fox Chase president.
He cofounded the National Comprehensive Cancer Network and was a fellow of the American College of Physicians and longtime member of the American Association of Cancer Research and other groups. He served on many boards and earned a clinical care achievement award in 2013 from the Association of Community Cancer Centers.
In 2016, Dr. Engstrom and his wife, Janet, were honored by Fox Chase colleagues for their combined 80 years of service to the center. In 2020, colleagues published a series of articles about his career in the journal Cancer Prevention Research. In 2023, friends, colleagues, patients, and his family established the Paul F. Engstrom professorship in oncology at Fox Chase.
Dr. Engstrom edited, wrote, or cowrote hundreds of research papers and lectured around the world. He was drafted into the Army in 1967, rose to the rank of major, and served three years as head of hematology and oncology at Tripler Army Hospital in Honolulu.
“Medicine is a great career,” he said in 2018. “It is still the most satisfying and the best opportunity to do well, but most importantly to do good.”
Paul Frederick Engstrom was born May 28, 1936, in St. Cloud, Minn. He played football and basketball, ran track, played trombone in the high school band, and sang in the school chorus.
His father was the only doctor in Belgrade, Minn., and Dr. Engstrom knew early he was going to be a doctor, too. He earned a bachelor’s degree at St. Olaf College in Minnesota and completed a public health fellowship at the California Department of Health during medical school.
He met nurse Janet Johnson during a procedure in a Minnesota hospital in 1960, and they married in 1961. They lived in Hawaii while he served in the Army and in Ambler until recently, and had daughters Karin and Maria, and a son, David.
Dr. Engstrom and his wife enjoyed the orchestra, ballet, and theater in Philadelphia. He liked to garden, read, and travel. He was thrifty, his wife said.
He followed many of the local college and professional sports teams, especially the Eagles, and sang in the choir at Christ’s Lutheran Church in Oreland. He survived prostate cancer and remained a lifelong learner.
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“He liked being a student,” his wife said. “He was quiet. He was persistent.”
His family said in a tribute: “He cherished every moment spent with his wife, children, and grandchildren.”
In addition to his wife and children, Dr. Engstrom is survived by eight grandchildren, a brother, and other relatives. A brother died earlier.
A celebration of his life was held earlier.
Donations in his name may be made to the Fox Chase Cancer Center, 333 Cottman Ave., Philadelphia, Pa. 19111; and Christ’s Lutheran Church, 700 E. Pennsylvania Ave., Oreland, Pa. 19075.