Antoni Ribas, MD, PhD, Elected AACR President-Elect
The members of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) have elected Antoni Ribas, MD, PhD, as their President-Elect for 2019–2020. He will officially become President-Elect at the AACR Annual Meeting 2019 and he will assume the presidency in April 2020 at the AACR Annual Meeting in San Diego.
Dr. Ribas is Professor of Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA); Director of the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center Tumor Immunology Program; and Director of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy Center at UCLA. He is a physician and scientist whose translational and clinical research focuses on developing new therapeutic options for patients with malignant melanoma.
As AACR President-Elect, Dr. Ribas will work with the Board of Directors and the AACR membership, which includes more than 42,000 members in 120 countries, to further the Association’s mission to prevent and cure all cancers through research, education, communication, collaboration, funding for cancer research, and advocacy.
“It is a great honor to be elected by my peers as the President-Elect of the AACR,” said Dr. Ribas. “In this time of remarkable and rapid advancement in our understanding of cancer, we have made great strides in improving treatments, but it is not enough. I believe the AACR has to continue to advocate for public policy and funding to support cancer research and the development of new treatments, which is the best investment we can make in our future. I look forward to working with researchers, clinicians, policymakers, patient advocates, caregivers, and patients to pursue the common goal of defeating cancer.”
“Dr. Ribas is a highly distinguished physician [and] scientist whose pioneering research has had an enormous impact on the discovery and development of new and effective treatments for malignant melanoma,” said Margaret Foti, PhD, MD (hc), Chief Executive Officer of the AACR. “He is also a dynamic leader of the cancer research community, and we are delighted that he has been elected to serve as the 2019–2020 AACR President-Elect and our 2020–2021 President. His dedication to accelerating the pace of discovery and its translation to the clinic will be invaluable as he leads our organization toward its goal of markedly reducing cancer incidence, morbidity, and mortality, while improving quality of life for all.”
Dr. Ribas has been recognized with honors and awards throughout his career, including the AACR-CRI Lloyd J. Old Award in Cancer Immunology (2018) and the AACR Richard and Hinda Rosenthal Memorial Award (2016).
Ribas received his doctorate from the Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain, and his medical degree from the University of Barcelona. After serving as an intern and resident at the University Hospital Vall d’Hebron in Barcelona, he moved to UCLA, joining the faculty in 2001.
Dr. Ribas has been an AACR member since 1999.
The content in this post has not been reviewed by the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Inc. (ASCO®) and does not necessarily reflect the ideas and opinions of ASCO®.
