University of Pittsburgh Scientist Honored for Major Accomplishments in Clinical Cancer Research

WASHINGTON, D.C., March 29 – Merrill J. Egorin, MD, professor of medicine and pharmacology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, has been awarded the Joseph H. Burchenal Clinical Research Award by the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) for his work in developing and refining the clinical use of a broad spectrum of cancer chemotherapy agents. The award will be presented at AACR's 97 th Annual Meeting at a ceremony that begins at 8 am, April 5 in Ballroom A-B at the Washington Convention Center.

The award, established in 1996 and named after Dr. Burchenal, a pioneer of cancer chemotherapy and past president of the AACR, is bestowed annually to recognize outstanding achievements in clinical cancer research. Dr. Egorin, co-director of the molecular therapeutics and drug discovery program at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute (UPCI), carries on in the tradition of the award by striving to find new ways to develop and use drugs to treat and manage cancer.

Dr. Egorin's findings have led to new paradigms for the use of chemotherapy agents based on their specific pharmacologic features and toxicity profiles. His ability to capture the essential features of chemotherapy agents has resulted in the discovery of practical dosing recommendations for several drugs that would otherwise have been too difficult to use in the clinic. He currently serves as principal investigator on a National Cancer Institute (NCI)-funded contract evaluating the pharmacokinetics, metabolism and pharmacodynamics of anti-tumor agents being considered for clinical trials. He also is the co-principal investigator of another NCI-funded cooperative agreement for conducting Phase I studies at UPCI.

Dr. Egorin received his medical degree and training in internal medicine from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Hospital. Early in his career, he joined the Baltimore Cancer Research Center, then part of the NCI. In 1981, he became a staff physician at the University of Maryland Hospital, where he rose to the position of professor of medicine, pharmacology and experimental therapeutics and oncology. Dr. Egorin was recruited to UPCI in 1998 to lead its clinical and preclinical pharmacology activities.

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UPMC News Bureau