Loretta A. Williams, PhD, APRN, MSN, BSN, BA
Department of Symptom Research, Division of Internal Medicine
About Dr. Williams
Lori Williams is interested in the measurement of symptoms, the use of qualitative research methods in the development of patient-reported outcomes measures, the biological mechanisms of symptom production, the effects of genetics on symptoms, and the effects of symptoms on family caregivers of cancer patients. She has studied the effects of serum cytokine levels on symptoms in patients with acute myeloid leukemia or myelodysplastic syndrome undergoing allogeneic stem cell transplantation and in patients with lung and gastrointestinal tract cancers undergoing concurrent chemoradiation. She studied the experience of cancer-related fatigue with a grant from Cephalon, Inc.
With funding from the Oncology Nursing Society Foundation, Dr. Williams developed a symptom assessment tool for patients with chronic graft-versus-host disease. She also developed a symptom assessment tool for patients with chronic myeloid leukemia and is developing a symptom assessment tool for patients with gastointestinal stromal tumors, both with grants from Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation. She is developing an assessment tool for the dermatological symptoms of cancer and cancer therapies.
Dr. Williams is an Advanced Oncology Certified Nurse and has worked in oncology nursing for more than 30 years. She is actively involved in leadership with the national Oncology Nursing Society (ONS). She was recently elected to the Board of Directors of ONS as a Director at Large. She was the chairperson of the 2009-2010 ONS Foundation Fellowship and Small Grant Review Teams and is a regular reviewer for Oncology Nursing Forum. She is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board for the Patient Advocate and National Patient Advocate Foundations. She was an NIH fellow in 2002 at the National Institute of Nursing Research Summer Genetics Institute. She was the recipient of an American Cancer Society Scholarship for doctoral study in oncology nursing.
Present Title & Affiliation
Primary Appointment
Assistant Professor, Department of Symptom Research, Division of Internal Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Dual/Joint/Adjunct Appointment
Adjunct Assistant Professor, The University of Texas School of Nursing, Houston, TX
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 2005 | The University of Texas School of Nursing, Houston, TX, USA, PhD, Nursing |
| 1988 | The University of Texas School of Nursing, Houston, TX, USA, MSN, Oncology Nursing CNS |
| 1980 | St. Mary of the Plains College, Dodge City, KS, USA, BSN, Nursing |
| 1970 | University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, USA, BA, Psychology |
Board Certifications
| 1996 | Oncology Nursing Certification Corporation Advanced Oncology Certified Nurse |
Experience & Service
Academic Appointments
Instructor, Department of Symptom Research, Division of Internal Medicine, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2005 - 2010
Honors & Awards
| 1969 | Phi Beta Kappa, Alpha of Kentucky Chapter |
Professional Memberships
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Khoury HJ, Williams LA, Atallah E, Hehlmann R. Chronic myeloid leukemia: what every practitioner needs to know in 2017. Am Soc Clin Oncol Educ Book 37:468-479, 2017. PMID: 28561719.
- Williams LA, Bohac C, Hunter S, Cella D. Patient and health care provider perceptions of cancer-related fatigue and pain. Support Care Cancer 24(10):4357-63, 2016. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 27207616.
- Wang XS, Shi Q, Williams LA, Komaki R, Gomez DR, Lin SH, Chang JY, O'Reilly MS, Bokhari RH, Cox JD, Mohan R, Cleeland CS, Liao Z. Prospective study of patient-reported symptom burden in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer undergoing proton or photon chemoradiation therapy. J Pain Symptom Manage 51(5):832-8, 2016. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 26891607.
- Shah N, Shi Q, Williams LA, Mendoza TR, Wang XS, Reuben JM, Dougherty PM, Bashir Q, Qazilbash MH, Champlin RE, Cleeland CS, Giralt SA. Higher stem cell dose infusion after intensive chemotherapy does not improve symptom burden in older patients with multiple myeloma and amyloidosis. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant 22(2):226-31, 2016. e-Pub 2015. PMID: 26253006.
- Wang XS, Shi Q, Dougherty PM, Eng C, Mendoza TR, Williams LA, Fogelman DR, Cleeland CS. Prechemotherapy touch sensation deficits predict oxaliplatin-induced neuropathy in patients with colorectal cancer. Oncology 90(3):127-35, 2016. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 26882477.
- Mendoza TR, Wang XS, Williams LA, Shi Q, Vichaya EG, Dougherty PM, Thomas SK, Yucel E, Bastida CC, Woodruff JF, Cleeland CS. Measuring therapy-induced peripheral neuropathy: preliminary development and validation of the Treatment-induced Neuropathy Assessment Scale (TNAS). J Pain 16(10):1032-43, 2015. e-Pub 2015. PMID: 26210041.
- Wang XS, Shi Q, Williams LA, Shah ND, Mendoza TR, Cohen EN, Reuben JM, Cleeland CS, Orlowski RZ. Longitudinal analysis of patient-reported symptoms post-autologous stem cell transplant and their relationship to inflammation in patients with multiple myeloma. Leuk Lymphoma 56(5):1-7, 2015. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 25248883.
- Meyer LA, Nick AM, Shi Q, Wang XS, Williams L, Brock T, Iniesta MD, Rangel K, Lu KH, Ramirez PT. Perioperative trajectory of patient reported symptoms: a pilot study in gynecologic oncology patients. Gynecol Oncol 136(3):440-5, 2015. e-Pub 2015. PMID: 25647455.
- Wang XS, Shi Q, Shah ND, Heijnen CJ, Cohen EN, Reuben JM, Orlowski RZ, Qazilbash MH, Johnson VE, Williams LA, Mendoza TR, Cleeland CS. Inflammatory markers and development of symptom burden in patients with multiple myeloma during autologous stem cell transplantation. Clin Cancer Res 20(5):1366-74, 2014. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 24423611.
- Williams LA, Agarwal S, Bodurka DC, Saleeba AK, Sun CC, Cleeland CS. Capturing the patient's experience: using qualitative methods to develop a measure of patient-reported symptom burden: an example from ovarian cancer. J Pain Symptom Manage 46(6):837-45, 2013. e-Pub 2013. PMID: 23615044.
- Williams LA, Yucel E, Cortes JE, Cleeland CS. Measuring symptoms as a critical component of drug development and evaluation in hematological diseases. Clin Invest 3(12):1127-38, 2013.
- Williams LA, Garcia Gonzalez AG, Ault P, Mendoza TR, Sailors ML, Williams JL, Huang F, Nazha A, Kantarjian HM, Cleeland CS, Cortes JE. Measuring the symptom burden associated with the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia. Blood 122(5):641-7, 2013. e-Pub 2013. PMID: 23777764.
- Cleeland CS, Sloan JA, Cella D, Chen C, Dueck AC, Janjan NA, Liepa AM, Mallick R, O'Mara A, Pearson JD, Torigoe Y, Wang XS, Williams LA, Woodruff JF, CPRO (Assessing the Symptoms of Cancer Using Patient-Reported Outcomes) Multisymptom Task Force. Recommendations for including multiple symptoms as endpoints in cancer clinical trials : A report from the ASCPRO (Assessing the Symptoms of Cancer Using Patient-Reported Outcomes) Multisymptom Task Force. Cancer 119(2):411-20, 2013. e-Pub 2012. PMID: 22930243.
- Wang XS, Shi Q, Williams LA, Mao L, Cleeland CS, Komaki RR, Mobley GM, Liao Z. Inflammatory cytokines are associated with the development of symptom burden in patients with NSCLC undergoing concurrent chemoradiation therapy. Brain Behav Immun 24(6):968-74, 2010. e-Pub 2010. PMID: 20353817.
- Wang XS, Williams LA, Eng C, Mendoza TR, Shah NA, Kirkendoll KJ, Shah PK, Trask PC, Palos GR, Cleeland CS. Validation and application of a module of the M. D. Anderson Symptom Inventory for measuring multiple symptoms in patients with gastrointestinal cancer (the MDASI-GI). Cancer 116(8):2053-63, 2010. e-Pub 2010. PMID: 20166216.
- Lee SJ, Williams LA. Patient-reported outcomes for acute graft-versus-host disease prevention and treatment trials. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant 16(3):295-300, 2010. e-Pub 2009. PMID: 19747556.
- Loberiza FR, Lee SJ, Freytes CO, Giralt SA, Van Besien K, Kurian S, del Cerro P, Toro JJ, Williams LA, Ketelsen SW, Navarro WH, Rizzo JD. Methodological and logistical considerations to study design and data collection in racial/ethnic minority populations evaluating outcome disparity in hematopoietic cell transplantation. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant 15(8):903-9, 2009. PMID: 19589479.
- Wang XS, Shi Q, Williams LA, Cleeland CS, Mobley GM, Reuben JM, Lee BN, Giralt SA. Serum interleukin-6 predicts the development of multiple symptoms at nadir of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Cancer 113(8):2102-9, 2008. PMID: 18792065.
- Krimmel T, Williams LA. Hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Oncol Nurs Forum 35(1):37-9, 2008. PMID: 18192151.
- Williams LA. Whatever it takes: informal caregiving dynamics in blood and marrow transplantation. Oncol Nurs Forum 34(2):379-87, 2007. PMID: 17573302.
- Cohen MZ, Williams L, Knight P, Snider J, Hanzik K, Fisch MJ. Symptom masquerade: understanding the meaning of symptoms. Support Care Cancer 12(3):184-90, 2004. e-Pub 2004. PMID: 14735337.
- Williams LA. Informal caregiving dynamics with a case study in blood and marrow transplantation. Oncol Nurs Forum 30(4):679-86, 2003. PMID: 12861327.
- Weiss RB, Rifkin RM, Stewart FM, Theriault RL, Williams LA, Herman AA, Beveridge RA. High-dose chemotherapy for high-risk primary breast cancer: an on-site review of the Bezwoda study. Lancet 355(9208):999-1003, 2000. PMID: 10768448.
Invited Articles
- Whitley E, Valverde P, Wells K, Williams L, Teschner T, Shih YC. Establishing common cost measures to evaluate the economic value of patient navigation programs. Cancer 117(15 Suppl):3618-25, 2011. PMID: 21780096.
- Williams LA. Clinical management of symptom clusters. Semin Oncol Nurs 23(2):113-20, 2007. PMID: 17512438.
- Galbizo E, Williams LA. Chronic graft-versus-host disease. Oncol Nurs Forum 33(5):881-3, 2006. PMID: 16986223.
- Williams L, Ostwald SK. Family caregivers: a vital resource. Nurse Investigator 6(30):56-65, 2005.
Abstracts
- Williams LA, Giralt SA, Mendoza TR, Anderson KO, Gary M Mobley GM, Saliba RM, Qazilbash MH, Campagnaro EL, Cleeland CS. Larger stem cell dose is associated with decreased symptom severity after autologous stem cell transplantation for multiple myeloma. European Hematology Association 13th Congress, Copenhagen, Denmark. Haematologica 93(S1):317-318, 2008.
- Wang XS, Shi Q, Williams LA, Mobley GM, Reuben JM, Lee BN, Cleeland CC, Giralt SA. The role of serum cytokines in the development of acute-GVHD–related symptom burden after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. European Hematology Association 13th Congress, Copenhagen, Denmark. Haematologica 93(S1), 2008.
Book Chapters
- Giralt SA, Williams LA.. High-dose therapy and posttransplantation symptom burden: striking a balance. In: Cancer Symptom Science: Measurement, Mechanisms, and Management. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge UK, 224-36, 2011.
- Williams LA, Syrjala KL. Psychosocial issues in chronic graft versus host disease. In: Chronic Graft Versus Host Disease: Interdisciplinary Management. Cambridge University Press: New York, 314-25, 2009.
- Williams L. The theory of caregiving dynamics. In: Middle Range Theory for Nursing. 2nd. Springer Publishing Company: New York, 261-76, 2008.
- McCarthy P, Williams L, Holmes M. Stem cell transplantation: past, present, and future. In: Stem Cell Transplantation: A Clinical Textbook. Oncology Nursing Press, Inc: Pittsburgh PA, 1.1-1.20, 2000.