The American Society of Hematology (ASH) recently announced the election of four new members to its Executive Committee for terms beginning after the 2016 ASH Annual Meeting, December 3–6, in San Diego.
Roy L. Silverstein, MD
Robert A. Brodsky, MD
John C. Byrd, MD
Cynthia E. Dunbar, MD
Roy L. Silverstein, MD, will serve a 1-year term as Vice President followed by successive terms as President-Elect and President. Robert A. Brodsky, MD, will serve a 4-year term as Secretary, and John C. Byrd, MD, and Cynthia E. Dunbar, MD, will each serve 4-year terms as Councilors.
“ASH plays an important role in providing high-quality training, education, and research. All of these attributes require support and strong leadership to develop and grow,” said 2016 ASH President Charles S. Abrams, MD, of the University of Pennsylvania. He added “Drs. Silverstein, Brodsky, Byrd, and Dunbar have demonstrated impressive commitment to hematology and to the Society through their years of service as editors, program leaders, and mentors. These experiences, coupled with their breadth of knowledge in hematology, will shape the future of the field.”
Incoming Leadership
Dr. Silverstein is Chairman of the Department of Medicine at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, where he also serves as Associate Director for the Medical College of Wisconsin Cancer Center. Dr. Silverstein is also Senior Investigator for the Blood Research Institute at the Blood Center of Wisconsin. His research interests include clinical nonmalignant hematology, translational research on the molecular, cellular, and genetic causes of thrombosis, angiogenesis, and atherosclerosis.
As Vice President of ASH, Dr. Silverstein will aim to engage the Society’s members to examine hematology training and develop innovative pathways for clinicians and researchers to successfully enter the field. He plans to lead ASH as a forceful advocate for continuing to invest in hematology research and in support of training and practice. Dr. Silverstein has been an ASH member for more than 30 years and has served in various leadership roles in virtually all aspects of the Society.
Dr. Brodsky is Professor of Medicine and Oncology and Director of the Division of Hematology at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, where he is also Director of the T32 Training Program in Hematology, Director of the Physician-Scientist Pathway for the Osler Residency Program, and a member of the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center. Dr. Brodsky’s research interests include bone marrow failure states, bone marrow transplantation for nonmalignant diseases, complement and complement-related disorders, paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria, atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome, and antiphospholipid antibody syndrome. Dr. Brodsky has chaired the ASH Scientific Committee on Bone Marrow Failure and has served the Program Committee since 2014, including co-chairing the 2016 Scientific Program.
Dr. Byrd is Distinguished University Professor of Medicine, Pharmaceutics, and Veterinary Bioscience; D. Warren Brown Chair of Leukemia Research, and Director of the Division of Hematology at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center–Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC-James) in Columbus, Ohio. He also serves as Co-Leader of the OSUCCC–James Leukemia Research Program and is Principal Investigator on multiple grants from the National Cancer Institute related to his work in leukemia. Dr. Byrd’s research interests include preclinical and clinical targeted therapy development in chronic lymphocytic leukemia, acute myeloid leukemia, and molecular and immune pharmacology. Dr. Byrd was the 2015 recipient of the 2015 William Dameshek Prize for his contributions to the development of transformative treatments for chronic lymphocytic leukemia.
Dr. Dunbar is Section Head and Senior Investigator for the Hematology Branch, Division of Intramural Research at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Dunbar’s research interests include laboratory research on hematopoiesis, pluripotent stem cell biology, hematopoietic stem cell gene therapy, congenital and acquired bone marrow failure syndromes, stem cell mobilization and engraftment, and stem cell transplantation. Dr. Dunbar has served on the ASH Nominating Committee, the Program Committee, and has participated in several Society task forces and awards study sessions. She is also the former Editor-in-Chief of Blood. ■
