Van Karlyle Morris, M.D.
Department of Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine
Present Title & Affiliation
Primary Appointment
Associate Professor, Department of Gastrointestinal (GI) Medical Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Assistant Professor, Department of Gastrointestinal (GI) Medical Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 2016 | University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, TX, USA, MS, Biomedical Sciences |
| 2008 | University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center, Memphis, TN, USA, MD, Doctor of Medicine |
| 2002 | University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA, BS, Chemistry |
Postgraduate Training
| 2014-2015 | Research Instructor, Department of Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology, University of Texas - MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX |
| 2011-2014 | Clinical Fellowship, Hematology / Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine, University of Texas - MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX |
| 2009-2011 | Clinical Residency, Internal Medicine, Duke University, Durham, NC |
| 2008-2009 | Clinical Internship, Internal Medicine, Duke University, Durham, NC |
Experience & Service
Institutional Committee Activities
Executive Committee Member, NCTN LAPS Committee, 2021 - Present
Chair, Translational Molecular Pathology - Clinical Research Group, 2021 - Present
Member, Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee, 2019 - Present
Chair, Colorectal Cancer Multidisciplinary Conference, 2019 - Present
Honors & Awards
| 2015 | Khalifa Scholar Award, MD Anderson Cancer Center |
| 2014 | Achievement in Clinical Investigation, MD Anderson Cancer Center |
| 2013 | ASCO Conquer Cancer Foundation Merit Award, American Society of Clinical Oncology |
| 2013 | Young Investigator Award, American Society of Clinical Oncology |
| 2010 | Barton Haynes Housestaff Research Award, Duke Department of Medicine |
| 2008 | Alpha Omega Alpha, University of Tennessee College of Medicine |
| 2008 | Robert L. Summit, M.D. Distinguished Student Achievement Award, University of Tennessee College of Medicine |
| 2008 | University of Tennessee Health Science Center Distinguished Student Service Award, University of Tennessee College of Medicine |
| 2002 | American Institute of Chemists Graduation Award, University of North Carolina |
| 2002 | Graduate with Highest Honors, University of North Carolina Department of Chemistry |
| 2001 | Phi Beta Kappa, University of North Carolina |
Professional Memberships
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Taku N, Yi-Qian YN, Chang GJ, Ludmir EB, Raghav KPS, Rodriguez-Bigas MA, Holliday EB, Smith GL, Minsky BD, Overman MJ, Messick C, Boyce-Fappiano D, Koong AC, Skibber JM, Koay EJ, Dasari A, Taniguchi CM, Bednarski BK, Morris VK, Kopetz S, Das P. Benchmarking Outcomes for Definitive Treatment of Young-Onset, Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer. Clin Colorectal Cancer 21(1):e28-e37, 2022. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 34794903.
- De B, Ludmir EB, Messick CA, Cagley MC, Morris VK, Das P, Minsky BD, Taniguchi CM, Smith GL, Koay EJ, Koong AC, Mohan R, Holliday EB. Prognostic impact of lymphopenia and neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio for patients with anal squamous cell carcinoma. J Gastrointest Oncol 12(5):2412-2422, 2021. PMID: 34790402.
- Verbus EA, Rossi AJ, Luna AJ, Iqbal A, Morris VK, Hernandez JM. Circulating Tumor DNA as a Predictive Biomarker in Adjuvant Chemotherapy for Patients with Stage 2A Colon Cancer (COBRA). Ann Surg Oncol 28(8):4095-4097, 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 33999346.
- Antonoff MB, Morris VK. Reply: Biology is king, but metastasectomy still has a role for properly selected patients. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 162(1):e136-e138, 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 33419552.
- Hester R, Advani S, Rashid A, Holliday E, Messick C, Das P, You YN, Taniguchi C, Koay EJ, Bednarski B, Rodriguez-Bigas M, Skibber J, Wolff R, Chang GJ, Minsky BD, Foo WC, Rothschild N, Morris VK, Eng C. CEA as a blood-based biomarker in anal cancer. Oncotarget 12(11):1037-1045, 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 34084278.
- Ludford K, Cohen R, Svrcek M, Foo WC, Colle R, Parc Y, Thomas JV, Morris VK, Kopetz S, Chang GJ, Overman M, Andre T. Pathological tumor response following immune checkpoint blockade for deficient mismatch repair advanced colorectal cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst 113(2):208-211, 2021. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 32294214.
- Kopetz S, Guthrie KA, Morris VK, Lenz HJ, Magliocco AM, Maru D, Yan Y, Lanman R, Manyam G, Hong DS, Sorokin A, Atreya CE, Diaz LA, Allegra C, Raghav KP, Wang SE, Lieu CH, McDonough SL, Philip PA, Hochster HS. Randomized Trial of Irinotecan and Cetuximab With or Without Vemurafenib in BRAF-Mutant Metastatic Colorectal Cancer (SWOG S1406). J Clin Oncol 39(4):285-294, 2021. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 33356422.
- Morris VK, Strickler JH. Use of Circulating Cell-Free DNA to Guide Precision Medicine in Patients with Colorectal Cancer. Annu Rev Med 72:399-413, 2021. PMID: 33502901.
- Henry JT, Coker O, Chowdhury S, Shen JP, Morris VK, Dasari A, Raghav K, Nusrat M, Kee B, Parseghian C, Pant S, Jeyakumar N, Zhu L, Nishioka Y, Fogelman D, Wolff RA, Hong D, Overman MJ, Vauthey J, Kopetz S, Johnson B. Comprehensive Clinical and Molecular Characterization of KRAS G12C-Mutant Colorectal Cancer. JCO Precis Oncol 5, 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 34250391.
- Dasari A, Morris VK , Allegra CJ, Atreya C, Benson AB, Boland P, Chung K, Copur MS, Corcoran RB, Deming DA, Dwyer A, Diehn M, Eng C, George TJ, Gollub MJ, Goodwin RA, Hamilton SR, Hechtman JF, Hochster H, Hong TS, Innocenti F, Iqbal A, Jacobs SA, Kennecke HF, Lee JJ, Lieu CH, Lenz HJ, Lindwasser OW, Montagut C, Odisio B, Ou FS, Porter L, Raghav K, Schrag D, Scott AJ, Shi Q, Strickler JH, Venook A, Yaeger R, Yothers G, You YN, Zell JA, Kopetz S. ctDNA applications and integration in colorectal cancer: an NCI Colon and Rectal-Anal Task Forces whitepaper. Nat Rev Clin Oncol 17(12):757-770, 2020. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 32632268.
- Morris VK, Bekaii-Saab T. Improvements in Clinical Outcomes for BRAFV600E-mutant Metastatic Colorectal Cancer. Clin Cancer Res 26(17):4435-4441, 2020. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 32253230.
- Clifton K, Rich TA, Parseghian C, Raymond VM, Dasari A, Pereira AA, Willis J, Loree JM, Bauer TM, Chae YK, Sherrill G, Fanta P, Grothey A, Hendifar A, Henry D, Mahadevan D, Nezami M, Tan B, Wainberg ZA, Lanman R, Kopetz S, Morris VK.. Identification of Actionable Fusions as an Anti-EGFR Resistance Mechanism Using a Circulating Tumor DNA Assay. JCO Precision Oncology, 2019. e-Pub 2019.
- Kopetz S, Grothey A, Yaeger R, Van Cutsem E, Desai J, Yoshino T, Wasan H, Ciardiello F, Loupakis F, Hong YS, Steeghs N, Guren TK, Arkenau HT, Garcia-Alfonso P, Pfeiffer P, Orlov S, Lonardi S, Elez E, Kim TW, Schellens JHM, Guo C, Krishnan A, Dekervel J, Morris VK , Calvo Ferrandiz A, Tarpgaard LS, Braun M, Gollerkeri A, Keir C, Maharry K, Pickard M, Christy-Bittel J, Anderson L, Sandor V, Tabernero J. Encorafenib, Binimetinib, and Cetuximab in BRAF V600E-Mutated Colorectal Cancer. N Engl J Med. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 31566309.
- Willauer AN, Liu Y, Pereira AAL, Lam M, Morris JS, Raghav KPS, Morris VK , Menter D, Broaddus R, Meric-Bernstam F, Hayes-Jordan A, Huh W, Overman MJ, Kopetz S, Loree JM. Clinical and molecular characterization of early-onset colorectal cancer. Cancer 125(12):2002-2010, 2019. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 30854646.
- Lee HM, Morris V, Napolitano S, Kopetz S. Evolving Strategies for the Management of BRAF-Mutant Metastatic Colorectal Cancer. Oncology (Williston Park) 33(6):206-11, 2019. PMID: 31219603.
- Parseghian CM, Loree JM, Morris VK, Liu X, Clifton KK, Napolitano S, Henry JT, Pereira AA, Vilar E, Johnson B, Kee B, Raghav K, Dasari A, Wu J, Garg N, Raymond VM, Banks KC, Talasaz AA, Lanman RB, Strickler JH, Hong DS, Corcoran RB, Overman MJ, Kopetz S. Anti-EGFR Resistant Clones Decay Exponentially After Progression: Implications for Anti-EGFR Re-challenge. Ann Oncol. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 30462160.
- Loree JM, Pereira AAL, Lam M, Willauer AN, Raghav K, Dasari A, Morris VK , Advani S, Menter DG, Eng C, Shaw K, Broaddus R, Routbort MJ, Liu Y, Morris JS, Luthra R, Meric-Bernstam F, Overman MJ, Maru D, Kopetz S. Classifying colorectal cancer by tumor location rather than sidedness highlights a continuum in mutation profiles and Consensus Molecular Subtypes. Clin Cancer Res 24(5):1062-1072, 2018. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 29180604.
- Morris VK, Salem ME, Nimeiri H, Iqbal S, Singh P, Ciombor K, Polite B, Deming D, Chan E, Wade JL, Xiao L, Bekaii-Saab T, Vence L, Blando J, Mahvash A, Foo WC, Ohaji C, Pasia M, Bland G, Ohinata A, Rogers J, Mehdizadeh A, Banks K, Lanman R, Wolff RA, Streicher H, Allison J, Sharma P, Eng C. Nivolumab for previously treated unresectable metastatic anal cancer (NCI9673): a multicentre, single-arm, phase 2 study. Lancet Oncol 18(4):446-453, 2017. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 28223062.
- Hong DS, Morris VK, El Osta B, Sorokin AV, Janku F, Fu S, Overman MJ, Piha-Paul S, Subbiah V, Kee B, Tsimberidou AM, Fogelman D, Bellido J, Shureiqi I, Huang H, Atkins J, Tarcic G, Sommer N, Lanman R, Meric-Bernstam F, Kopetz S. Phase IB Study of Vemurafenib in Combination with Irinotecan and Cetuximab in Patients with Metastatic Colorectal Cancer with BRAFV600E Mutation. Cancer Discov 6(12):1352-1365, 2016. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 27729313.
- Overman MJ, Morris,VK , Moinova H, Manyam G, Ensor J, Lee MS, Eng C, Kee B, Fogelman D, Shroff RT, LaFramboise T, Mazard T, Feng T, Hamilton S, Broom B, Lutterbaugh J, Issa JP, Markowitz SD, Kopetz S. Phase I/II study of azacitidine and capecitabine/oxaliplatin (CAPOX) in refractory CIMP-high metastatic colorectal cancer: evaluation of circulating methylated vimentin. Oncotarget. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 27542211.
- Overman MJ, Morris,VK, Kee B, Fogelman D, Xiao L, Eng C, Dasari A, Shroff R, Mazard T, Shaw K, Vilar E, Raghav K, Shureiqi I, Liang L, Mills GB, Wolff RA, Hamilton S, Meric-Bernstam F, Abbruzzese J, Morris J, Maru D, Kopetz S. Utility of a molecular prescreening program in advanced colorectal cancer for enrollment on biomarker-selected clinical trials. Ann Oncol 27(6):1068-74, 2016. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 27045102.
- Kopetz S, Desai J, Chan E, Hecht JR, O'Dwyer PJ, Maru D, Morris VK, Janku F, Dasari A, Chung W, Issa JP, Gibbs P, James B, Powis G, Nolop KB, Bhattacharya S, Saltz L. Phase II Pilot Study of Vemurafenib in Patients With Metastatic BRAF-Mutated Colorectal Cancer. J Clin Oncol 33(34):4032-8, 2015. e-Pub 2015. PMID: 26460303.
- Morris VK, Rashid A, Rodriguez-Bigas M, Das P, Chang G, Ohinata A, Rogers J, Crane C, Wolff RA, Eng C. Clinicopathologic Features Associated With Human Papillomavirus/p16 in Patients With Metastatic Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Anal Canal. Oncologist 20(11):1247-52, 2015. e-Pub 2015. PMID: 26382740.
- Pereira AA, Rego JF, Morris VK, Overman MJ, Eng C, Garrett CR, Boutin AT, Ferrarotto R, Lee M, Jiang ZQ, Hoff PM, Vauthey JN, Vilar E, Maru D, Kopetz S. Association between KRAS mutation and lung metastasis in advanced colorectal cancer. Br J Cancer 112(3):424-8, 2015. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 25535726.
- Morris VK, Lucas FA, Overman MJ, Eng C, Morelli MP, Jiang ZQ, Luthra R, Meric-Bernstam F, Maru D, Scheet P, Kopetz S, Vilar E. Clinicopathologic characteristics and gene expression analyses of non-KRAS 12/13, RAS-mutated metastatic colorectal cancer. Ann Oncol 25(10):2008-14, 2014. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 25009008.
- Morris VK, Overman MJ, Jiang ZQ, Garrett C, Agarwal S, Eng C, Kee B, Fogelman D, Dasari A, Wolff R, Maru D, Kopetz S. Progression-free survival remains poor over sequential lines of systemic therapy in patients with BRAF-mutated colorectal cancer. Clin Colorectal Cancer 13(3):164-71, 2014. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 25069797.
- Kopetz S, Morris VK, Parikh N, Overman MJ, Jiang ZQ, Maru D, Elvin P, Gallick G. Src activity is modulated by oxaliplatin and correlates with outcomes after hepatectomy for metastatic colorectal cancer. BMC Cancer 14:660, 2014. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 25208577.
- Morris VK, Kopetz S. Clinical biomarkers in colorectal cancer. Clin Adv Hematol Oncol 11(12):768-76, 2013. PMID: 24893280.
- Morris VK, Kopetz S. BRAF inhibitors in clinical oncology. F1000Prime Rep 5:11, 2013. e-Pub 2013. PMID: 23585929.
Invited Articles
- Morris V, Dasari A, Kopetz S. Can Circulating Tumor DNA in Early-Stage Colorectal Cancer Be More Than a Prognostic Biomarker?. JAMA Oncol. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 31070713.
- Morris VK, Eng C. Role of Immunotherapy in the Treatment of Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Anal Canal. J Natl Compr Canc Netw 16(7):903-908, 2018. PMID: 30006430.
Editorials
- Morris VK. Circulating Tumor DNA in Advanced Anal Cancer: A Blood Biomarker Goes Viral. Clin Cancer Res 25(7):2030-2032, 2019. PMID: 30655314.
Abstracts
- Morelli MP, Overman MJ, Dasari A, Kazmi SM, Mazard T, Vilar E, Morris VK, Lee MS, Herron D, Eng C, Morris J, Kee BK, Janku F, Deaton FL, Garrett C, Maru D, Diehl F, Angenendt P, Kopetz S. Characterizing the patterns of clonal selection in circulating tumor DNA from patients with colorectal cancer refractory to anti-EGFR treatment. Ann Oncol 26(4):731-6, 2015. e-Pub 2015. PMID: 25628445.
Book Chapters
- Morris VK. Colorectal Cancer. In: The MD Anderson Manual of Medical Oncology 3rd edition, 2016.
- Morris VK. Anal Cancer. In: The MD Anderson Manual of Medical Oncology 3rd edition, 2016.
Grant & Contract Support
| Title: | Therapeutic approaches for TGF-beta-enriched minimal residual disease in patients with colorectal cancer |
| Funding Source: | Cancer Prevention & Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | A Randomized Phase III Study of Immune Checkpoint Inhibition with Chemotherapy in Treatment-Naïve Metastatic Anal Cancer Patients |
| Funding Source: | ECOG-ACRIN Research Cancer Group |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | An open-label, multicenter, randomized phase 3 study of first-line encorafenib plus cetuximab with or without chemotherapy versus standard of care therapy with a safety lead-in of encorafenib and cetuximab plus chemotherapy in participants with metastatic braf v600e-mutant colorectal cancer |
| Funding Source: | Pfizer |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | First-in-Human, Phase 1/1b, Open-label, Multicenter Study of Bifunctional EGFR/TGFβ Fusion Protein BCA101 Alone and in Combination with Pembrolizumab in Patients with EGFR-Driven Advanced Solid Tumors |
| Funding Source: | Bicara Therapeutics, Inc |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | UT MD Anderson Cancer Center Network Lead Academic Participating Site (LAP) UG1 |
| Funding Source: | NIH/NCI |
| Role: | Co-Investigator |
| Title: | Targeting adaptive mutability as a novel therapeutic approach in BRAF mutant colorectal cancer |
| Funding Source: | Institutional Research Grant (IRG) – UT MD Anderson Cancer Center |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | Targeting adaptive mutability as a novel therapeutic approach for pMMR,BRAFV600E metastatic colorectal cancer |
| Funding Source: | The Andrew Sabin Family Foundation Fellowship Award FY22 – UT MD Anderson Cancer Center |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | An Open-Label, Multi-Center, Phase II Platform Study Evaluating the Efficacy and Safety of NIS793 and Other New Investigational Drug Combinations with Standard of Care (SOC) Anti-Cancer Therapy for the Second Line Treatment of Meta |
| Funding Source: | Novartis |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | Phase 2 Study of First-line Encorafenib and Cetuximab Plus Pembrolizumab in Participants With BRAF V600E-mutant, MSIH/ dMMR Metastatic Colorectal Cancer |
| Funding Source: | Pfizer Inc |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | Phase I/II Trial of Encorafenib, Cetuximab, and Nivolumab in Microsatellite Stable BRAFV600E Metastatic Colorectal Cancer |
| Funding Source: | Array |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | A multi-site, open-label, Phase II, randomized, controlled trial to compare the efficacy of RO7198457 versus watchful waiting in resected, Stage II (high risk) and Stage III colorectal cancer patients who are ctDNA positive following resection |
| Funding Source: | BioNTech RNA Pharmaceuticals GmbH |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | Phase II/III study of ctDNA as a predictive biomarker in adjuvant chemotherapy in patients with stage IIA colon cancer (NRG GI-005) |
| Funding Source: | NRG |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |