Richard Pestell

Richard G. Pestell
Born	Perth, Western Australia
Residence	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Citizenship	United States, Australia
Fields	Oncology, Endocrinology
Institutions	Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Thomas Jefferson University (Current) Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University Medical Center Albert Einstein Cancer Center at Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Alma mater	New York University (MBA) Massachusetts General Hospital (Postdoctoral Clinical and Research Fellow in Medicine) Harvard Medical School (Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Medicine) University of Melbourne (M.D., Ph.D.) University of Western Australia (M.B.B.S.)
Notable awards	Doctorus Honorus Causa, University of Melbourne (2016) Eric Sussman Prize (2015) Biotechnology Award, Advance Global Australian Awards (2014) Elected Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science (2011) RD Wright Medallion, University of Melbourne (2010) Susan G. Komen for the Cure "Light of Life" Award (2010) Doctor Honoris Causa, University of Western Australia (2008) Elected Fellow, Royal Society of Medicine (2007) Francis L. and Charlotte Gragnani Endowed Chair (2002-2005)

Richard G. Pestell, MD, PhD, FACP, FRACP, MBA is an oncologist and endocrinologist who most recently served as Executive Vice President at Thomas Jefferson University, Director of the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Chairman of the Department of Cancer Biology, and Associate Dean of Cancer Programs at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.^[1][2][3]

Education and early career

A native of Perth, Western Australia, Pestell attended Christ Church Grammar School on an academic and sporting scholarship. He attended the Medical School of the University of Western Australia, on a Commonwealth Scholarship, receiving his M.B.B.S. in 1981. He received the Craven Perpetual Trophy as best distance runner, the University Full Blue for Athletics and the St Georges Award for best grades. During Medical School, in the summer vacation, he worked in the iron ore mines in the North West of Australia.

He subsequently conducted clinical training in Internal Medicine, Oncology and Endocrinology, and was awarded the Fellow of the Royal Australian College of Physicians (FRACP) in 1993. He received a Ph.D. (1991) and M.D. (thesis 1997), from the University of Melbourne.[4] As the recipient of the Neal Hamilton Fairley Fellowship, and Winthrop Fellowship he became a Postdoctoral Clinical and Research Fellow in Medicine at the Massachusetts General Hospital and a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Medicine at Harvard Medical School, from 1991 to 1993.[1][3]

Pestell was recruited as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Molecular Medicine at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, Illinois from 1993 to 1996. In 1996, he became an Associate Professor, and 2001 Professor, in the Departments of Medicine and Developmental and Molecular Biology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York, New York. Pestell served as Chair of the Division of Endocrine-Dependent Tumor Biology at the Albert Einstein Cancer Center from 2000 to 2002.^[4]

In 2002, Dr. Pestell was named Director of the Lombardi Cancer Center and the Francis L. and Charlotte Gragnani Endowed Chair and Chairman of the Department of Oncology at the Georgetown University Medical Center. During this tenure, he also served as Associate Vice President of the Georgetown University Medical Center, and the Francis L. and Chairman of the Department of Oncology at the Georgetown University School of Medicine.^[1] While serving as Director of the Lombardi Cancer Center, Pestell led the effort for renewal of its National Cancer Institute designation,^[5] and founded the Capital Breast Care Center with Andrea Jung of the Avon Foundation.^[6] In 2005, he was named President of the USA branch of the International Network for Cancer Treatment and Research, and held that position until 2010. The INCTR assists developing countries by supporting research collaboration, education and training in oncology with the aim of increasing survival rates and building infrastructure(http://www.inctr.org).Pestell was the founding Director for the Delaware Valley Institute for Clinical and Translational Science, an integrated research organization between comprehensive universities (University of Delaware, Nemours, Thomas Jefferson University, Christiana Care (2008 to 2010).[8]^[7]

Dr. Pestell with First Lady Laura Bush, Andrea Jung, and Kathleen Walas of Avon Products, Inc.

http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/1593959/newly_formed_institute_to_transform_how_research_becomes_patientrelevant_pract

Research

Pestell's research has included contributions to understanding cell cycle regulation and the aberrations that can lead to cells turning cancerous in breast and prostate cancer .[8][9]

First, Pestell showed that nuclear receptors (estrogen and androgen) are acetylated, and that this event is rate-limiting in hormone signaling and growth control- thus a new target for cancer therapy. His laboratory demonstrated this was a general mechanism conserved among nuclear receptors that affect diverse biological processes.[8]

Second, in the cell cycle field, his research has shown the discovery that cyclins are direct transcriptional targets of oncogenic and tumor suppressor signals. That cyclin expression is rate-limiting for oncogene-induced breast tumor growth in vivo and that cyclin D1 regulates diverse function including cellular migration, mitochondrial metabolism, angiogenesis, and nuclear receptor function in vivo.[8][9]

Third, Pestell defined key target genes required for breast cancer stem cell expansion in vivo including p21Cip1, c-Jun, the canonical NF-κB pathway, and the cell fate determination pathway protein DACH1.[8]

Pestell is the author of over 500 original publications, 36 books and chapters and over 200 published abstracts. He has been a member of 13 editorial boards and scientific journals. His work is highly cited, with more than 45,900 citations and an H-index of 115 .[8][10][11]

Pestell is the founder of two biotechnology companies (ProstaGene and LightSeed) and holds many patents in the areas of cancer diagnostics, therapeutics and technologies.

Pestell has been, or is a member of 14 Journal Editorial Boards, more than 20 advisory or scientific review boards and funding agencies (UK, USA, Australia, Israel, Holland, Czech, Italy, Poland, France), and the advisory board of domestic (7 NCI Cancer Centers), and international research and clinical institutes, (Breakthrough Breast Cancer Research Unit (UK), Institute of Bio-organic Chemistry (Russia).

In 1984 Pestell had the peculiar distinction of winning the State running (5,000 meters track, 10,000 meters road) and walking championships (5,000m, 20K and 50K). Pestell has two children, Timothy and Alex.

Professional Activities

Pestell has been or is a member of the advisory board of domestic and international research and clinical institutes, including Breakthrough Breast Cancer Research Unit (UK), Institute of Bio-organic Chemistry (Russia).

Select publications

• Fan, S., Wang, J., Yuan, R., Ma, Y., Meng, Q., Erdos, M.R., Pestell, R.G., Yuan, F., Auborn, K.J., Goldberg, I.D., and Rosen, E.M., BRCA1 inhibition of estrogen receptor signaling in transfected cells. Science. 1999 May 21; 284(5418): p. 1354-6.
• Bromberg, J.F., Wrzeszczynska, M.H., Devgan, G., Zhao, Y., Pestell, R.G., Albanese, C., and Darnell, J.E., Jr., Stat3 as an oncogene. Cell. 1999 Aug 6; 98(3): p. 295-303.
• Tazebay, U.H., Wapnir, I.L., Levy, O., Dohan, O., Zuckier, L.S., Zhao, Q.H., Deng, H.F., Amenta, P.S., Fineberg, S., Pestell, R.G., and Carrasco, N., The mammary gland iodide transporter is expressed during lactation and in breast cancer. Nat Med. 2000 Aug; 6(8): p. 871-8.
• Tanaka, H., Matsumura, I., Ezoe, S., Satoh, Y., Sakamaki, T., Albanese, C., Machii, T., Pestell, R.G., and Kanakura, Y., E2F1 and c-Myc potentiate apoptosis through inhibition of NF-κB activity that facilitates MnSOD-mediated ROS elimination. Mol Cell. 2002 May; 9(5): p. 1017-29.
• Huang, E., Ishida, S., Pittman, J., Dressman, H., Bild, A., Kloos, M., D'Amico, M., Pestell, R.G., West, M., and Nevins, J.R., Gene expression phenotypic models that predict the activity of oncogenic pathways. Nat Genet. 2003 Jun; 34(2): p. 226-30.
• Genander, M., Halford, M.M., Xu, N.J., Eriksson, M., Yu, Z., Qiu, Z., Martling, A., Greicius, G., Thakar, S., Catchpole, T., Chumley, M.J., Zdunek, S., Wang, C., Holm, T., Goff, S.P., Pettersson, S., Pestell, R.G., Henkemeyer, M., and Frisen, J., Dissociation of EphB2 signaling pathways mediating progenitor cell proliferation and tumor suppression. Cell. 2009 Nov 13; 139(4): p. 679-92.

Awards and recognitions

Notes

External links

• Interview with Dr. Richard Pestell