Leadership of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) inducted Frank McCormick, PhD, FRS, DSc (hon), as President of the society during the AACR Annual Meeting held earlier this month
Dr. McCormick is the Director of the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center. He holds the E. Dixon Heise distinguished professorship in oncology and the David A. Wood distinguished professorship of tumor biology and cancer research at UCSF. Additionally, he is the Associate Dean of the UCSF School of Medicine and a distinguished professor in residence in the department of microbiology and immunology as well as in the department of biochemistry and biophysics.
Dr. McCormick succeeds Judy E. Garber, MD, MPH, Director of the Center for Cancer Genetics and Prevention at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Associate Professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and Associate Physician of medicine and Attending Physician of medical service at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.
Dr. Garber served with distinction as AACR president for the 2011 to 2012 term and will assume the role of Past-President (2012-2013).
Charles L. Sawyers, MD, Named President-elect
The members of the AACR have elected Charles L. Sawyers, MD, as their President-elect for 2012-2013. Dr. Sawyers is Chair of the Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator. Additionally, he is a Professor in the Cell and Developmental Biology Program and the Department of Medicine at the Joan & Sanford Weill Graduate School of Medical Sciences of Cornell University, New York.
Renewed Commitment to Research Funding
“I am deeply honored to serve as President-elect of the AACR,” said Dr. Sawyers. “We are in the midst of a transformative decade in cancer research, with many new therapies emerging from our work that are improving the lives of cancer patients around the world. Yet we are at risk of failing to realize this full vision due to the economic challenges faced by our nation. Now is not the time to cut our investment in cancer research. I will work with the outstanding staff of the AACR to get this important message to the leadership in Washington.”
AACR Members Elected to Board of Directors
In addition, the members of AACR have elected five distinguished scientists to serve on the AACR Board of Directors for the 2012 to 2015 term: Kenneth C. Anderson, MD, PhD (hon.); Lewis C. Cantley, PhD; Michelle M. Le Beau, PhD; Benjamin G. Neel, MD, PhD; and Karen H. Vousden, PhD.
Kenneth C. Anderson, MD, PhD (hon), is the Kraft Family Professor of Medicine, Vice Chair of the Joint Program in Transfusion Medicine and Research Associate of the Center for Blood Research at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Anderson is also the Director of the Lebow Institute for Myeloma Therapeutics, Director of the Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center, Medical Director of the Blood Component Laboratory, Attending Physician of the Bone Marrow Transplantation Service, Associate Professor of Medicine at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Associate Medical Director at Brigham and Women’s Hospital Blood Bank and Associate Physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston.
Lewis C. Cantley, PhD, is Director of the Beth Israel Deaconess Cancer Center in Boston, Professor of Systems Biology at Harvard Medical School and Chief of the Division of Signal Transduction at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.
Michelle M. Le Beau, PhD, is the Arthur and Marian Edelstein Professor in the department of medicine, section of hematology/oncology, Director of the University of Chicago Comprehensive Cancer Center and Director of the Cancer Cytogenetics Laboratory at the University of Chicago.
Benjamin G. Neel, MD, PhD, is Director of the Ontario Cancer Institute at University Health Network, which includes The Campbell Family Cancer Research Institute at Princess Margaret Hospital. He is also Professor in the department of medical biophysics at the University of Toronto and holds a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in signal transduction and disease.
Karen H. Vousden, PhD, is Director of the Beatson Institute for Cancer Research in Glasgow, Scotland. ■
