Gary K Schwartz, MD

I am a board-certified medical oncologist and internist and chief of Columbia University Medical Center's Division of Hematology and Oncology. I am actively involved in translational and clinical research. The lab, which I direct, focuses on the identification of new targeted agents for cancer therapy, especially in the treatment of sarcoma and melanoma. However, these agents are not disease specific and hold promise in the treatment of all solid-tumor malignancies. These laboratory studies allow for a bridge between the laboratory and the clinic, and many of these drugs that originated in the lab are now being evaluated in clinical trials. My research studies have been supported by the National Cancer Institute, the Lustgarten Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer, the Department of Defense for Breast Cancer Research, the Byrne Foundation, and the Food and Drug Administration.

I am active in a number of professional organizations, including ALLIANCE for Clinical Trials in Oncology, the American Association of Cancer Research, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and Radiotherapy Oncology Group. For several years, I have worked closely with the National Institutes of Health and served on a number of NIH review committees. Over the course of my career, I have received many awards, including the Lustgarten Foundation for Pancreatic Research, Jeannik M. Littlefield-AACR Award in Metastatic Colon Cancer and the New York State Teaching Award in the Empire Clinical Research Investigator Program. I have also been awarded a K12 award from the NCI for the training of the next generation of physician-scientists in cancer therapy. I am involved in the teaching and mentorship of junior faculty and fellows, and I take great pride in my active participation in patient care.

I have served on the editorial boards of a number of scientific journals, and I serve as associate editor on both the Journal of Clinical Oncology and Clinical Cancer Research. I am the author of nearly 200 papers and 17 book chapters.