Born in Chicago, Charles Kilo has been an integral member of the Washington University community since the early 1950’s. Upon discharge from the United States Air Force in 1952, he enrolled as an undergraduate at Washington University studying chemical engineering and continued his studies as a graduate student, earning an M.D. in 1959.
After internship and residency at St. Luke’s Hospital in St. Louis, he returned to the University in 1961 for a fellowship in the Department of Preventive Medicine and the Division of Metabolism, training under Drs. Lillian Recant, William Daughaday, David Kipnis, and Paul Lacy. Appointed in 1963 as Instructor in Preventive Medicine, he was promoted to Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine in 1970, Associate Professor in 1978, and Professor in 1993.
Together with collaborator Dr. Joseph Williamson, Dr. Kilo contributed to the demonstration that diabetic complications are related to the duration of diabetes and the degree of blood sugar control.
Consequently, Dr. Kilo was an early advocate for aggressive physician and patient self-monitoring and the normalization of blood glucose, practices now accepted as standards of care.
In 1972, Drs. Kilo and Williamson founded the Kilo Diabetes & Vascular Research Foundation, a philanthropic organization focused on research and education. Committed to finding a cure for Type 1 diabetes and understanding the effects of diabetes on the vascular system, the Foundation annually supports the Kilo Diabetes and Vascular Research Laboratory and the Charles Kilo Chair for Type 2 Diabetes and Nutrition at the University.
The Kilo Foundation also annually sponsors the Kilo Diabetes Symposium, a national forum for thought leaders to educate the medical community about research findings and good clinical practice in diabetes, endocrinology, and cardiovascular diseases.
Board certified in internal medicine, Dr. Kilo was a recipient of numerous awards and a member of many professional organizations. He served as a Fellow of the American College of Physicians and the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE), for which he served as Chair of the Missouri chapter. In 2008, the St. Louis Academy of Science honored him with the Monsanto Award for his leadership with the development of young scientists and the advancement of science in the St. Louis region. In 2010 AACE honored him with its Outstanding Clinical Endocrinologist Award.
A member of the American Diabetes Association, Dr. Kilo has delivered more than 870 lectures throughout the world, including North America, Europe, India, Australia, and China. He has authored five books and 250 abstracts and articles.
Washington University recognized the many contributions of Dr. Charles Kilo with its 2nd Century Award in 1998.