Names & News

Posted: June 2017 Steven M. Keller has been appointed Senior Principal Scientist, Oncology Clinical Research, at Merck, Kenilworth, US. Previous to this appointment, Dr. Keller was Director, Thoracic Surgery, Weiler Hospital; Professor of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine; and faculty member, Montefiore Lung Cancer Preceptorship Program, New York, US.

Posted: June 2017 Robert J. Cerfolio has been appointed chief of clinical thoracic surgery at NYU Langone Medical Center, New York, US. Dr. Cerfolio also will serve as director of the new Lung Cancer Center at NYU Langone’s Perlmutter Cancer Center. Prior to his appointment, Dr. Cerfolio served as chief of the section of thoracic oncology…

Posted: April 2017 By Waun Ki Hong, MD Charles M. LeMaistre (1924–2017) Charles A. LeMaistre, MD, past president of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and a pioneer in cancer prevention and a strong advocate against tobacco use, passed away on January 28, 2017, in Houston at the age of 92. LeMaistre came…

Thomas J. Lynch Jr was appointed executive vice president and chief scientific officer of Bristol- Myers Squibb. Previous to this appointment, Dr. Lynch served as chairman and chief executive officer of Massachusetts General Physicians Organization and as a member of the MGH Board. Prior to that Dr. Lynch was the director of Yale Cancer Center and…

Mary Hesdorffer will retire as Executive Director of the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation (Meso Foundation) in July 2017. Prior to being Executive Director, Ms. Hesdorffer held several roles with the Mesothelioma Foundation since its inception and following her retirement will continue in an advisory role. She also will also continued to serve on a number of…

Shirish M. Gadgeel has been appointed Professor, Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan as of May 1, where he will be Leader of the Thoracic Oncology Research Program. Dr. Gadgeel will hold the Mary Lou Kennedy Research Professorship in Thoracic Oncology. Previous to this appointment, Dr. Gadgeel was Professor and Leader of…

Vinicius Ernani has been appointed Assistant Professor at the Fred and Pamela Buffett Cancer Center of the University of Nebraska, Omaha, NE. Previous to this appointment, Dr. Ernani completed a hematology/oncology fellowship at Emory University, Atlanta, US.

Posted: February 2017 Sumitra Thongprasert received the 2016 IASLC Merit Award, which is given to lung cancer specialists who have made extraordinary contributions to the IASLC’s development. Dr. Thongprasert is Professor Emeritus, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University; Senior Consultant in Oncology, Bangkok Hospital Chiang Mai; and Director, Bangkok Hospital Chiang Mai Center of Excellence in…

Posted: February 2017 Gerard A. Silvestri is the 79th President of the American College of Chest Physicians, effective November 2017. Dr. Silvestri is Hillenbrand Professor of Thoracic Oncology and Vice-Chair of Medicine for Faculty Development at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, US.

Posted: February 2017 John C. Ruckdeschel has been appointed Director, University of Mississippi Medical Center Cancer Institute, Jackson, MS. Previous to this appointment, Dr. Ruckdeschel was Medical Director, Oncology Program and Services, Intermountain Healthcare, Greater Salt Lake City Area, US.