Georgetown Lombardi Recruits Michael B. Atkins, M.D. as Deputy Director
Posted in News Release
WASHINGTON — Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center announces that Michael B. Atkins, M.D. will join the center as its deputy director effective April 1.
In announcing the appointment, Louis M. Weiner, M.D., director of Georgetown Lombardi, aptly described Atkins as “an internationally recognized authority in the areas of cancer immunotherapy, angiogenesis, kidney cancer and melanoma who has played a major role in translational research, drug development and career development efforts in each of these fields.”
As deputy director, Atkins will enhance Georgetown-Lombardi’s strategic vision and support the center’s operational direction by working to strengthen and grow clinical and translational research activities and increase its funding base.
In addition, he will lead the expansion of the clinical and research activities in the areas of melanoma and kidney cancer as well as facilitate multidisciplinary disease specific program development at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital and across the MedStar Health Network.
In describing his move Atkins said, “I am excited to be joining the Georgetown Lombardi and MedStar Health communities and to work with Dr. Weiner and the many talented scientists, clinicians and administrators to help strengthen existing cancer research programs and expand clinical and translational research efforts. Georgetown Lombardi is clearly poised for growth and I am delighted to have the opportunity to be part of it.”
Weiner added, “We are exceptionally pleased to welcome Dr. Atkins to Georgetown Lombardi. With his addition, we have another powerful weapon to combat cancer through pioneering research, expert and compassionate patient care, teaching, and service to the community.”
Atkins comes to Georgetown Lombardi from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) in Boston and Harvard Medical School, where he was professor of medicine and deputy chief of the division of hematology/oncology and associate director for clinical research for the Beth Israel Deaconess Cancer Center. He both established and led the BIDMC cutaneous oncology and biologic therapy programs and the cancer clinical trials office, as well as the kidney cancer program of the Dana Farber/Harvard Cancer Center (DFHCC).
He also has directed the DFHCC Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE) in kidney cancer and served as co-principal investigator of the Harvard skin cancer SPORE since their inceptions. (SPOREs are a cornerstone of the National Cancer Institute’s efforts to promote collaborative, interdisciplinary translational cancer research.)
Atkins is married to Susan Crockin, an attorney who is nationally recognized for her expertise in reproductive technology law and policy. Crockin will be teaching at Georgetown Law Center and will also be affiliated with the Law Center’s O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law.
About Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center
Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of Georgetown University Medical Center and MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, seeks to improve the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of cancer through innovative basic and clinical research, patient care, community education and outreach, and the training of cancer specialists of the future. Georgetown Lombardi is one of only 40 comprehensive cancer centers in the nation, as designated by the National Cancer Institute, and the only one in the Washington, DC, area. For more information, go to http://lombardi.georgetown.edu.
About Georgetown University Medical Center
Georgetown University Medical Center is an internationally recognized academic medical center with a three-part mission of research, teaching and patient care (through MedStar Health). GUMC’s mission is carried out with a strong emphasis on public service and a dedication to the Catholic, Jesuit principle of cura personalis — or “care of the whole person.” The Medical Center includes the School of Medicine and the School of Nursing & Health Studies, both nationally ranked; Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, designated as a comprehensive cancer center by the National Cancer Institute; and the Biomedical Graduate Research Organization (BGRO), which accounts for the majority of externally funded research at GUMC including a Clinical Translation and Science Award from the National Institutes of Health. In fiscal year 2010-11, GUMC accounted for 85 percent of the university’s sponsored research funding.