AACR Congratulates José Baselga, M.D., Ph.D., for Receiving the Queen Sofia Spanish Institute Gold Medal

PHILADELPHIA — The American Association for Cancer Research congratulates José Baselga, M.D., Ph.D., recipient of the 2010 Queen Sofía Spanish Institute’s Gold Medal. Baselga was selected for this prestigious award for representing Spain’s leadership in the area of cancer research.

“This incredible honor is testament to the international impact Dr. Baselga’s research has had on the field,” said AACR Chief Executive Officer Margaret Foti, Ph.D., M.D. (h.c.). “But more so, it spotlights Dr. Baselga’s leadership in the global effort to eradicate cancer. Through his work in Spain and at Massachusetts General Hospital, as well as with the AACR, he unites researchers worldwide and encourages collaborative efforts that move the field forward.”

Since 1978, the Queen Sofía Spanish Institute’s Gold Medal has been awarded annually to Americans and Spaniards in recognition of their contributions to the betterment of relations between the United States and Spain. Past winners have included President William Jefferson Clinton, Dr. Henry Kissinger, New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, signer Julio Iglesias, and actress Penelope Cruz.

Baselga is founding editor-in-chief of the AACR’s newest journal Cancer Discovery along with Lewis C. Cantley, Ph.D. He is chief of the division of hematology/oncology and associate director of the Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center, and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. Baselga was previously the director of medical oncology, hematology and radiation oncology and chairman of medical oncology service at Vall d’Hebron University Hospital. He was also the director of the Vall d’Hebron Oncology Research Institute and a professor of medicine at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona in Spain.

Baselga’s research focuses on the clinical development of novel, molecular-targeted agents for the therapy of cancer, particularly breast cancer. He conducted the initial clinical trials with the monoclonal antibodies cetuximab and trastuzumab and has been involved in the clinical development of several new agents including pertuzumab and PI3K inhibitors. His main focus in the laboratory and clinic is in the area of novel anti-HER2 agents and in the identification of mechanisms of resistance to anti-HER2 agents.

Baselga has served the AACR in many key capacities. He is a member of the Board of Directors and has served on the Council of Scientific Advisors. He was co-chairperson for the 2009 Annual Meeting Education Committee, chairperson of the Landon Foundation-AACR INNOVATOR Award for International Collaboration in Cancer Research Committee, and has served as a Senior Editor for Clinical Cancer Research.

The Queen Sofía Spanish Institute was founded as The Spanish Institute in 1954 to promote greater awareness and understanding of the culture of the Spanish-speaking world in the United States, and was renamed in November 2003 to recognize the support given to the Institute through the years by Her Majesty Queen Sofía of Spain.

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The mission of the American Association for Cancer Research is to prevent and cure cancer. Founded in 1907, the AACR is the world’s oldest and largest professional organization dedicated to advancing cancer research. The membership includes 32,000 basic, translational and clinical researchers; health care professionals; and cancer survivors and advocates in the United States and more than 90 other countries. The AACR marshals the full spectrum of expertise from the cancer community to accelerate progress in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer through high-quality scientific and educational programs. It funds innovative, meritorious research grants, research fellowships and career development awards. The AACR Annual Meeting attracts more than 18,000 participants who share the latest discoveries and developments in the field. Special conferences throughout the year present novel data across a wide variety of topics in cancer research, treatment and patient care. Including Cancer Discovery, the AACR publishes seven major peer-reviewed journals: Cancer Research; Clinical Cancer Research; Molecular Cancer Therapeutics; Molecular Cancer Research; Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention; and Cancer Prevention Research. AACR journals represented 20 percent of the market share of total citations in 2009. The AACR also publishes CR, a magazine for cancer survivors and their families, patient advocates, physicians and scientists.

Media Contact:
Michele Sharp
(267) 646-0622
michele.sharp@aacr.org

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