
Kerry Dunbar, M.D., Ph.D.
Section Chief, Dallas Va Medical Center
Professor
Department Internal Medicine
Biography
Kerry Dunbar, M.D., Ph.D., is a Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine at UT Southwestern Medical Center, and a member of its Division of Digestive and Liver Diseases. She serves as staff physician and Section Chief of Gastroenterology at the Dallas VA Medical Center, and as an Associate Program Director for the UT Southwestern Internal Medicine residency program.
Her clinical and research interests include Barrett’s esophagus, gastroesophageal reflux disease, esophageal motility disorders, eosinophilic esophagitis, and novel endoscopic imaging technologies.
Certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine with a subspecialty in gastroenterology, she joined the UT Southwestern Faculty in 2011.
Originally from Texas, Dr. Dunbar holds a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry and cell biology from Rice University in Houston. She earned her medical degree from UT Southwestern, and completed internal medicine residency training, followed by a fellowship program in gastroenterology and hepatology, at Johns Hopkins University, where she also earned a Ph.D. in clinical investigation.
Dr. Dunbar’s research has resulted in more than 75 publications in peer-reviewed journals and contributions to book chapters. Additionally, she has presented her findings at scientific conferences throughout the United States and around the world.
Dr. Dunbar is active in several professional societies, including the American Gastroenterological Association, American Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, the American College of Gastroenterology, the American Neurogastroenterology and Motility Society, the Alliance for Academic Internal Medicine, and the American Foregut Society, where she serves as Senior Associate Editor of Foregut: Journal of the American Foregut Society.
She is also Councilor for the nonprofit American Gastroenterological Association Institute’s Esophageal, Gastric and Duodenal Disorders Section and Endoscopy, Technology, and Imaging Section.
D Magazine named her among Dallas's best doctors in 2020 and 2021.
Education
- Undergraduate
- Rice University (1995), Biochemistry
- Medical School
- UT Southwestern Medical Center (2000), Medicine
- Graduate School
- Johns Hopkins University (2012), Clinical Investigation
Research Interest
- Barrett's esophagus
- Eosinophilic esophagitis
- Esophageal motility disorders
- Gastroesophageal reflux disease
- Novel endoscopic imaging
Publications
Featured Publications
- ACG Clinical Guideline for the Diagnosis and Management of Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease.
- Katz PO, Dunbar KB, Schnoll-Sussman FH, Greer KB, Yadlapati R, Spechler SJ, Am J Gastroenterol 2022 01 117 1 27-56
- Randomized Trial of Medical versus Surgical Treatment for Refractory Heartburn.
- Spechler SJ, Hunter JG, Jones KM, Lee R, Smith BR, Mashimo H, Sanchez VM, Dunbar KB, Pham TH, Murthy UK, Kim T, Jackson CS, Wallen JM, von Rosenvinge EC, Pearl JP, Laine L, Kim AW, Kaz AM, Tatum RP, Gellad ZF, Lagoo-Deenadayalan S, Rubenstein JH, Ghaferi AA, Lo WK, Fernando RS, Chan BS, Paski SC, Provenzale D, Castell DO, Lieberman D, Souza RF, Chey WD, Warren SR, Davis-Karim A, Melton SD, Genta RM, Serpi T, Biswas K, Huang GD, N. Engl. J. Med. 2019 10 381 16 1513-1523
- Association of Acute Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease With Esophageal Histologic Changes.
- Dunbar KB, Agoston AT, Odze RD, Huo X, Pham TH, Cipher DJ, Castell DO, Genta RM, Souza RF, Spechler SJ JAMA 2016 May 315 19 2104-12
- A human Barrett's esophagus organoid system reveals epithelial-mesenchymal plasticity induced by acid and bile salts.
- Zhang Q, Bansal A, Dunbar KB, Chang Y, Zhang J, Balaji U, Gu J, Zhang X, Podgaetz E, Pan Z, Spechler SJ, Souza RF, Am J Physiol Gastrointest Liver Physiol 2022 06 322 6 G598-G614
- Itraconazole Exerts its Anti-Tumor Effect in Esophageal Cancer by Suppressing the HER2/AKT Signaling Pathway.
- Zhang W, Bhagwath AS, Ramzan Z, Williams TA, Subramaniyan I, Edpuganti V, Kallem RR, Dunbar KB, Ding P, Gong K, Geurkink SA, Beg MS, Kim J, Zhang Q, Habib AA, Choi SH, Lapsiwala R, Bhagwath G, Dowell JE, Melton SD, Jie C, Putnam WC, Pham TH, Wang DH, Mol Cancer Ther 2021 Aug
- In Barrett's epithelial cells, weakly acidic bile salt solutions cause oxidative DNA damage with response and repair mediated by p38.
- Huo X, Dunbar KB, Zhang X, Zhang Q, Spechler SJ, Souza RF, Am. J. Physiol. Gastrointest. Liver Physiol. 2020 03 318 3 G464-G478
- Efficacy of Prophylactic Hemoclips in Prevention of Delayed Post-Polypectomy Bleeding in Patients with Large Colonic Polyps.
- Feagins LA, Smith AD, Kim D, Halai A, Duttala S, Chebaa B, Lunsford T, Vizuete J, Mara M, Mascarenhas R, Meghani R, Kundrotas L, Dunbar KB, Cipher DJ, Harford WV, Spechler SJ, Gastroenterology 2019 May
- Aberrant p53 Immunostaining in Barrett's Esophagus Predicts Neoplastic Progression: Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses.
- Snyder P, Dunbar K, Cipher DJ, Souza RF, Spechler SJ, Konda VJA, Dig. Dis. Sci. 2019 05 64 5 1089-1097
- Beyond Dysplasia Grade: The Role of Biomarkers in Stratifying Risk.
- Dunbar KB, Souza RF Gastrointest. Endosc. Clin. N. Am. 2017 Jul 27 3 447-459
- Unique Clinical Features of Los Angeles Grade D Esophagitis Suggest That Factors Other Than Gastroesophageal Reflux Contribute to its Pathogenesis.
- Nguyen AD, Spechler SJ, Shuler MN, Souza RF, Dunbar KB J. Clin. Gastroenterol. 2017 Jun
Books
Featured Books
Confocal endomicroscopy. In Gastrointestinal Endoscopy in Practice
Dunbar KB (2011). Elsevier
Esophageal physiology, function tests, and endoscopic techniques. In Johns Hopkins Cardiothoracic Surgery, 2nd ed.
Jodorkovsky D, Clarke JO, Dunbar KB (2014). McGraw Hill Education
Honors & Awards
- D Magazine Best Doctors
Gastroenterology (2018) - Lyman E. Bilhartz, M.D. Memorial Teaching Award
UT Southwestern, Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Digestive and Liver Diseases (2013) - UT Southwestern LEAD Program Participant
UT Southwestern Leadership Program (2012) - World Endoscopy Organization Research Award
Awarded to young investiagor in gastroenterology for endoscopic research excellence (2011) - Women's Leadership Award
Johns Hopkins Women's Network, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions (2005) - Alpha Omega Alpha
Medical Honor Society (2000) - Ho Din Award of the Southwestern Medical Foundation
AWarded to outstanding medical school graduate from UT Southwestern Medical School (2000)
Professional Associations/Affiliations
- American Neurogastroenterology and Motility Society (2013)
- American College of Gastroenterology (2006)
- American Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (2004)
- American Gastroenterological Association (2003)