Theresa Yeo

Theresa Pluth Yeo (Nurs ’83) was named the 2021 Advanced Oncology Certified Nurse Practitioner of the Year. The annual award is presented by the Oncology Nursing Certification Corporation. Yeo’s passion for nursing—caring for patients and advancing the profession through teaching and discovery—informs everything she does. Her professional activities and achievements are too many to list, but notable highlights include the vital part she plays in the Jefferson Pancreatic Cancer and Related Diseases Patient Symposium.

She provides classroom lectures on the pathology and biology of cancer in staff-development and nurse-orientation courses, and continuing education classes for advanced nurse practitioners. Her groundbreaking program on Advanced Practice Oncology Nursing for Diverse and Underserved Populations offered nurse practitioners not only exceptional oncology education but training for culturally competent patient care.

Terry is the principal investigator in numerous studies evaluating quality of life for pancreas cancer patients, and co-investigator in studies aimed at understanding and ameliorating symptoms related to pancreatic cancer and surgery. Her research has expanded our knowledge and promoted exemplary care of cancer patients at Jefferson. And her ongoing work on the Survivor Survey from the Jefferson Pancreas Tumor Registry—for which she is co-director—is an invaluable source of data about risk factors, gene mutations, family screenings, and the lived experience of people with pancreatic and related cancers. In presentations, Terry refers to the survey’s “precious data,” keenly aware that behind the numbers are people and their stories of pain and courage.