Andrew von Eschenbach, M.D
Elected at the Board’s August 4 meeting, von Eschenbach has the distinction of being the only person to have led both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the National Cancer Institute at the National Institutes of Health. In 2006, Time
magazine named him among the “100 most influential people to shape the world.”
During his tenure as FDA Commissioner from 2005 to 2009, von Eschenbach focused on modernizing the agency, emphasizing innovation and enhancing its ability to protect and promote public health. At the Cancer Institute, where he served as Director from 2001 to 2005, he sought to accelerate and integrate the discovery-development-delivery continuum to eliminate suffering and death due to cancer. Von Eschenbach also took steps to ensure that emerging technologies such as nanotechnology, genomics, proteomics and bioinformatics were used in developing new cancer treatments.
“We are honored to welcome Dr. von Eschenbach to our Board of Directors,” said Foundation Chairman Neal Kassell, M.D. “His long-standing commitment to serving the public good by accelerating the availability of innovative medical treatments is well matched to the mission and goals of this organization. We look forward to benefitting from his vast experience, transformative perspective and eminent leadership.”
Stressing his support for the Foundation’s work, von Eschenbach said that he looked forward to helping it “achieve its goals and bring new noninvasive therapies to patients.”
“Like the Foundation,” he added, “I am committed to accelerating the development and adoption of innovative treatments that save and improve lives.”
Before entering public service, von Eschenbach had a long association with the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center at the University of Texas in Houston. This began with a fellowship in urologic oncology in 1976, followed by a succession of appointments, including Chair of the Department of Urology, founding Director of the Prostate Cancer Research Program, director of the Genitourinary Cancer Center, Distinguished Chair in Urologic Oncology and Executive Vice President and Chief Academic Officer.
He served as president of the American Cancer Society and was a founding member of the National Dialog on Cancer. In addition to being included on Time’s “100 most influential people” list, he was selected in both 2007 and 2008 as one of the Modern Healthcare/Modern Physician’s “50 Most Powerful Physician Executives in Healthcare.”
A cancer survivor himself, von Eschenbach says that it was his father’s prostate cancer that drove him in the early years of his work. Since then he has written 300 scientific articles and publications, burnishing his reputation as a cancer researcher and clinician.
Currently von Eschenbach serves as Senior Director for Strategic Initiatives at the Center for Health Transformation and as an Adjunct Professor at University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.
