Edward Nelson, MD is an investigator in Huntsman Cancer Institute’s breast cancer program, and professor and chief of the General Surgery Division in the Department of Surgery at the University of Utah School of Medicine.

Nelson has been a University of Utah leader in all aspects of the surgical management of cancer. He was a founding member in the development of the Women’s Breast Care Center, now housed at the Madsen Health Clinic. At Huntsman Cancer Institute, Nelson has been a leader in the multidisciplinary approach to breast cancer therapy, including his role in helping establish a bi-weekly joint case conference specifically for breast cancer. He is the principal investigator at the University of Utah for three National Cancer Institute-sponsored studies for sentinel node identification in breast cancer: the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project B-32 Study, and the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group Z0010 and Z0011 studies.

Other major interests and focuses of Nelson’s research include surgical management of hematologic cancer requiring splenectomy, sentinel lymph node identification, and surgical treatment for melanoma.