On October 29, 2025, leaders from Temple University, Fox Chase Cancer Center, and Temple Health gathered at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine to celebrate the investiture of Jay Simhan, MD, FACS, as the inaugural holder of the Carol and Louis Della Penna Chair in Urologic Cancer Survivorship.
The ceremony marked both a personal milestone for Simhan and a broader affirmation of the integrated, system-wide approach to urologic care that now defines the Fox Chase–Temple Urologic Institute, which Simhan co-leads with Alexander Kutikov, MD, FACS, Chair of Urology at Fox Chase Cancer Center.
“Ultimately, I see this honor not as a reflection of my accomplishments alone, but as a reflection of the Fox Chase–Temple Urologic Institute as a whole, including the many providers and trainees who have been part of it,” said Simhan. “This day was a celebration not just for me and my family, but for all of us.”
Endowed chairs represent one of the highest honors in academic medicine, recognizing distinguished achievement while ensuring sustained support for innovation, research, and education. As Kutikov noted in his opening remarks, endowed chairs “distinguish honored faculty members, validate impressive careers, and invest in the promise of future professional achievement—while serving as a lasting tribute to our donors and our institution.”
A Chair Firmly Seated in Survivorship and Philanthropy
Established in 2025, the Della Penna Chair reflects the generosity and vision of Carol and Louis Della Penna, longtime supporters of Fox Chase Cancer Center whose philanthropy was shaped by personal experience with cancer. The chair is dedicated to advancing care for patients living beyond cancer—particularly those facing long-term functional and quality-of-life challenges following treatment.
“The establishment of the new Della Penna Chair highlights the importance of restoring function and dignity for the increasing number of patients living beyond cancer,” said Robert Uzzo, MD, MBA, FACS, President and CEO of Fox Chase and Executive Vice President for Cancer Services at Temple University Health System. “This endowed chair is particularly unique in that it spans our strengths as a nationally recognized cancer center, a major academic medical school, and a unified health system within a world-class university.”
Amy J. Goldberg, MD, FACS, the Marjorie Joy Katz Dean of the Lewis Katz School of Medicine shared, “As we celebrate the appointment of Jay Simhan as the inaugural holder of the Carol and Louis Della Penna Chair in Urologic Cancer Survivorship, I am reminded of how moments like this demonstrate what’s possible when excellence in clinical care, research, and education come together.”
That integration is central to this endowed chair’s mission. Survivorship care, once an under-recognized dimension of urology, has become an essential component of comprehensive cancer treatment—one that addresses not only survival, but the physical, emotional, and functional recovery of patients.
“Jay has dedicated his career to improving quality of life for patients following cancer treatment,” Uzzo said. “His work directly supports the physical and emotional recovery of survivors, reinforcing survivorship care as an essential part of the care continuum.”
“About 15 years ago, when I decided to pursue reconstructive urology, many people thought it was an unusual path,” Simhan said. “At the time, most academic centers did not fully appreciate how many patients undergoing cancer therapy would be left with long-term quality-of-life consequences. I felt there was a major unmet need, and that those patients deserved focused, dedicated care.”
According to Simhan, he feels fortunate that this impact has translated into institutional support, made possible through the extraordinary philanthropic efforts of the Della Penna family.
“The Della Penna family has been extraordinarily generous, not only financially, but personally, over many years,” Simhan said. “I’ve had the privilege of getting to know Mr. Della Penna as this vision has taken shape, and his generosity will have a lasting impact on our patients, on education, and on the training of future leaders in our field.”
A Leader Shaped by Temple
For Simhan, the investiture represented both recognition and a homecoming. A graduate of the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, he completed his urology residency at Temple University Hospital and Fox Chase Cancer Center, including serving as chief resident in urologic oncology at Fox Chase before pursuing advanced fellowship training in trauma, genitourinary reconstruction, and prosthetics at UT Southwestern.
“I trained at Temple, and I am proudly Temple-made,” Simhan reflected. “That experience shaped how I practice urology and built relationships that extend far beyond any one institution. It felt like a true homecoming to see so many former co-residents and colleagues there to celebrate, not just this recognition, but what we believe Temple already is and what we know it can become.”
Since joining Temple Health in 2022, Simhan served as Vice Chair of Urology at Fox Chase Cancer Center and Director of Reconstructive Urology, and as Fellowship Director led the integration of the Temple and Fox Chase reconstructive urology fellowships into a unified Fox Chase–Temple Urologic Institute Fellowship. In January 2025, he was named Professor and Chair of the Department of Urology at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine and now serves as Co-Executive Director of the Fox Chase–Temple Urologic Institute.
An internationally recognized reconstructive urologist, Simhan leads one of the most comprehensive genitourinary reconstruction programs in the world. Under his leadership, the program offers high-volume expertise in urethral reconstruction, prosthetic urology, complex abdominal reconstruction, gender-affirming surgery, and urologic trauma management. The program is distinguished not only by its breadth, but by its depth, with multiple dedicated reconstructive surgeons rather than a single-surgeon model.
The Evolution of Urology at Temple
The investiture also provided an opportunity to reflect on the long arc of urology at Temple, a program that has steadily evolved over decades into a national training and clinical powerhouse.
According to Jack H. Mydlo, MD, MBA, FACS, who served as Chair of Urology at Temple’s Lewis Katz School of Medicine until 2024, the department’s foundations were laid in the mid-20th century and have been strengthened through successive generations of clinician-scientists who have emphasized both surgical excellence and academic inquiry. Leaders such as Richard Kendall, MD, who took on the role of chair in the 1970s, brought a renewed interest in research and training at Temple. This continued under the leadership of Philip Hanno, MD, MPH, who reinforced the principle that “urologists are scientists who should advance the field.”
“Temple was often described as an unpolished jewel,” Mydlo observed. “But there has always been something special here, a scrappy, hardworking culture focused on excellent patient care and making a real dent in the universe.”
Over time, Temple’s urology program expanded in scope and sophistication, with the growth of robotic surgery and a deepening partnership with Fox Chase Cancer Center. In 2012, the residency expanded to three residents per year, and following Simhan’s arrival in 2022, the program expanded again to four residents per year. It has since been approved to expand to five residents per year, placing it among the largest training programs in the country.
“Temple’s Department of Urology has built a strong national reputation over many years through excellent clinical care, research, and training,” said Dean Goldberg. “Programs only reach this point with strong, steady leadership. I’m deeply grateful to Dr. Mydlo for guiding the department to where it is today and for making this next step possible.”
One Institute, One Vision
That expanding partnership directly led to the creation of the Fox Chase–Temple Urologic Institute, building on the original vision of Robert Uzzo, MD, MBA, FACS, and advanced under the shared leadership of Simhan and Kutikov. The Institute unites urologists across Temple Health and Fox Chase into a single, integrated clinical and academic enterprise spanning multiple hospitals and subspecialties.
“Historically, Fox Chase and Temple urology shared similarities, but not a unified strategy,” Simhan said. “The Institute is our effort to eliminate silos and ensure that patients are matched with the provider best equipped to care for their specific condition, in the setting and geography that best serves them.”
Kutikov emphasized the national implications of that model. “Since joining Temple Health, Jay has been pivotal in shaping the Institute, helping establish it as a national leader in reconstructive urology,” he said. “Together, we’ve eliminated partitions between Temple and Fox Chase Urology. We operate as one integrated unit.”
“Alex is a phenomenal partner, colleague, and friend, and he is nationally and internationally recognized in his own right,” said Simhan. “With the two of us co-leading the Institute, I believe this is already a program with a national reputation and one that will only continue to grow.”
Looking Forward
As the inaugural holder of the Della Penna Chair, Simhan joins a distinguished group of endowed faculty at Fox Chase and Temple Health while also holding the only endowed chair that spans Fox Chase Cancer Center, Temple Health, and the Lewis Katz School of Medicine, helping define the future of urologic cancer survivorship.
“The investiture was a culmination of many things for me, and it was a very special moment,” Simhan said. “I was deeply honored that it represented organizational recognition, not just of me, but of the effort that has gone into the Fox Chase–Temple Urologic Institute over these past few years.”
With institutional support, philanthropic partnership, and a shared commitment to excellence, the Della Penna Chair stands as both a recognition of progress and a promise of what lies ahead: a future in which cancer survivors live longer, better lives.