Peter J. Allen, MD, a nationally known surgical oncologist and leader in cancer care, has been named the new chair of the Department of Surgery in the School of Medicine, effective August 25, 2025.
The appointment was shared with the School of Medicine community today by Dean Mary E. Klotman, MD, Duke University’s executive vice president for health affairs, and Craig Albanese, MD, MBA, chief executive officer for Duke University Health System.
Allen is currently the David C. Sabiston Jr. Distinguished Professor of Surgery, chief of the Division of Surgical Oncology, and chief of surgery for the Duke Cancer Institute. He also serves as the Duke University Health System Vice President for Cancer Services, where he leads the Cancer Service line. Since joining Duke in 2018, he has brought deep experience and a collaborative spirit to his many roles.
He succeeds Allan D. Kirk, MD, who stepped down as chair of Surgery after more than a decade of service.
Allen received his medical degree from Dartmouth Medical School and began his surgical career in the military, completing his surgical residency and accepting his first faculty position at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. During his term of service in the United States Army, he was deployed to Iraq for one year, where he served on the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment’s forward surgical team. He joined the faculty at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in 2005 and served there for 14 years. He was associate director for clinical programs in the David Rubenstein Center for Pancreatic Cancer Research from 2013-2018, the Murray F. Brennan Endowed Chair in Surgery from 2014-2018, and vice chair of surgical services from 2014-2018.
Allen’s clinical and research interest is in pancreatic and hepatobiliary malignancies, and his research has received NIH funding for over a decade. As Surgical Oncology division chief, he oversees approximately 35 faculty members in the sections of breast, endocrine, melanoma, hepatobiliary, and colorectal surgery. He is committed to educating and mentoring new surgical oncologists and surgeon-scientists training at Duke, and his international reputation as a leader in his field has elevated Duke’s surgical oncology program.
Duke’s Department of Surgery has a long history of innovation and excellence and is considered one of the leading surgery programs in the world. The department provides world-class surgical care, education, and training and is an international leader in research. The department has ranked among the top 10 departments nationally in NIH funding for 25 consecutive years, and over the previous four years, the department has been the top-funded department of surgery in the country.
Klotman and Albanese welcomed Allen to his new role and expressed their gratitude to Kirk, whose leadership during his 11 years as chair of Surgery have elevated the department’s excellence and international standing.