Richard Kenneth Yang, MD, PhD

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Get to know Pathologist Dr. Richard Kenneth Yang, who serves patients in Houston, Texas.

Dr. Yang is an Assistant Professor of Molecular and Gynecologic Surgical Pathology within the Department of Pathology, Division of Pathology/Lab Medicine at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. 

He has extensive training regarding the techniques employed within the CLIA certified Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory at MD Anderson. This includes data analysis of next generation sequencing panels for tumor somatic mutation testing, methylation and copy number variant arrays. 

Along with many others, his primary interest is in cancer immunotherapy, which Dr. Yang believes is the most promising field of cancer therapy with a unique potential for long-term recurrence free survivals. Recent FDA approval of several immune checkpoint inhibitors for myriad indications including increased tumor mutational burden has convinced him that cancer immunotherapies will contribute to an increasing proportion of cancer therapy regimens going forward. It seems inevitable that there will be increasing demand for in-house testing of biomarkers for immunotherapy, including methylation and copy number variant assays, with increasing utilization by oncologists. Dr. Yang plans to be a part of this expansion into immunotherapy testing in the future.

Graduating with his Bachelor of Science degree in Microbiology from the University of Kansas in 2006, he went on to earn his Doctor of Philosophy degree in Clinical Investigations, Tumor Immunology from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health in 2012. 

Two years later, in 2014, Dr. Yang graduated with his medical degree from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. He then furthered his training with a residency in anatomic and clinical pathology at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics in 2018, and a fellowship in selective cancer biomarker pathology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in 2019. He also completed an additional fellowship in molecular genetic pathology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in 2020.

Following his training, the doctor attained board certification in anatomic and clinical pathology & molecular genetic pathology through the American Board of Pathology. Its mission is to serve the public and advance the profession of pathology by setting certification standards and promoting lifelong competency of pathologists.

A part of a member-based physician organization, Dr. Yang is a Fellow of the College of American Pathologists.

Pathology is a branch of medical science that involves the study and diagnosis of disease through the examination of surgically removed organs, tissues, bodily fluids, and in some cases, the whole body. Pathologists are physicians who specialize in the diagnosis and management can help your primary care doctors make a diagnosis about your medical condition. 

On a more personal note, Dr. Yang speaks English, Chinese (Mandarin), and Spanish.

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