UAMS Cancer Institute Director Michael J. Birrer, M.D., Ph.D. Inducted into American Academy of Sciences and Letters
| Michael J. Birrer, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute at the University of Medical Sciences (UAMS), has been invested as a member of the American Academy of Sciences and Letters, recognizing his outstanding scholarly achievement and leadership in cancer research.
Birrer was among more than 60 distinguished scholars inducted during a ceremony Nov. 12 at the historic Decatur House in Washington, D.C. The event was led by Academy President Donald W. Landry, M.D., Ph.D., interim president of the University of Florida, and Sanjeev R. Kulkarni, Ph.D., of Princeton University, chair of the Academy’s board.
“The Academy is delighted to honor Dr. Birrer for distinguished contributions to biomedical science,” said Landry. “Throughout a career in research, clinical care and leadership at the National Institutes of Health, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard and now as director of the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, Dr. Birrer is an exemplar for academic excellence in his chosen field of gynecologic oncology. Further, and of great interest to the Academy, he stood for academic excellence at a time when it was under threat.”
Founded to honor exceptional scholarship and intellectual courage in the arts, sciences and learned professions, the American Academy of Sciences and Letters counts among its members renowned figures such as Salman Rushdie, Nicholas Christakis, Henry Louis Gates Jr., Jonathan Haidt and Steven Pinker, as well as Nobel laureates Jennifer Doudna, Arieh Warshel and Sir David W.C. MacMillan.
This year’s class of Academy members includes leading researchers, university presidents and scholars from across the United States, representing fields from medicine and engineering to law, economics and philosophy.
“It is a tremendous privilege to join such a distinguished group of scholars and innovators,” Birrer said. “This recognition reflects not only my work, but also the dedication of my colleagues at the Cancer Institute who are advancing science to improve cancer outcomes for patients in Arkansas and beyond.”
“This honor recognizes Dr. Birrer’s extraordinary scientific leadership and his international reputation as a pioneer in gynecologic cancer research,” said C. Lowry Barnes, UAMS interim chancellor and professor and chair of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Rehabilitation. “His vision continues to elevate UAMS and the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute to national prominence.”
A medical oncologist and internally recognized expert in ovarian cancer genomics, Birrer has published hundreds of scientific papers and book chapters. He is a recipient of the Claudia Cohen Foundation Prize for Outstanding Gynecologic Cancer Research and has been continuously funded by the National Institutes of Health for three decades.
Before joining UAMS in 2019, Birrer spent 20 years at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), where he directed the molecular mechanisms section of the NCI’s Center for Cancer Research, and later served nearly a decade on the faculty at Harvard Medical School, where he led the Gynecologic Cancer Program at Massachusetts General Hospital.
For more information on the American Academy of Sciences and Letters and the complete list of new members, visit academysciencesletters.org.