Thomas J. Lynch, Jr, MD
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center recently announced that Thomas J. Lynch, Jr, MD, will become the center’s new President and Director. Dr. Lynch, a cancer expert in solid tumor research, precision medicine, and immuno-oncology, will join Fred Hutch on February 1. Dr. Lynch will become the sixth President and Director in Fred Hutch’s 45-year history. He is preceded by Drs. Gary Gilliland, Lawrence Corey, Nobel Laureate Lee Hartwell, Dr. Robert Day, and Fred Hutch Founder Dr. William Hutchinson.
Dr. Lynch has been a nationally recognized leader in academic medicine for more than 3 decades. He has served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Massachusetts General Physicians Organization, Director of Yale Cancer Center, Physician-in-Chief of Yale’s Smilow Cancer Hospital, Professor of Medicine at Yale School of Medicine, Chief of Hematology-Oncology at Massachusetts General Hospital, and Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.
Most recently, he was Chief Scientific Officer at Bristol-Myers Squibb, where he led the company’s research and development efforts in cancer, cardiovascular disease, fibrosis, and immunoscience. Dr. Lynch enhanced the company’s scientific depth, particularly in the area of translational immuno-oncology research, resulting in new therapies for patients with both solid tumors and hematologic malignancies.
Research Focus and Professional Training
While at Massachusetts General Hospital, Dr. Lynch was part of the research team that discovered how targeted therapies could dramatically change outcomes for patients with lung cancer with mutations in the EGFR gene. This discovery helped to ignite deeper understanding of how molecular profiling can be a key tool in the development of new medicines to treat patients with lung cancer. Dr. Lynch’s role at the forefront of precision medicine feeds his commitment to the role of scientific discovery in patient care.
Dr. Lynch’s career at Bristol-Myers Squibb, Yale, and Mass General has been dedicated to creating and nurturing collaborative interdisciplinary teams. His work has received team science awards from both the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) and the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer.
Dr. Lynch received his BS in biology from Yale College and his MD from Yale School of Medicine, both in New Haven, Connecticut. He completed his clinical training in internal medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital and his medical oncology training at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, both in Boston.
Dr. Lynch is a member of the AACR, ASCO, and the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer. He has published more than 100 original scientific papers and authored or coauthored more than 90 review articles and book chapters. ■
