The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) recently awarded Andrew T. Chan, MD, MPH, with the 2019 AACR–Waun Ki Hong Award for Outstanding Achievement in Translational and Clinical Cancer Research during the 2019 AACR Annual Meeting. Dr. Chan is recognized for his work on the molecular mechanisms of aspirin in both the prevention and treatment of colorectal cancer. His research has influenced current clinical guidelines for chemoprevention and played a major role in recognizing and developing the concept of precision chemoprevention.
Andrew T. Chan, MD, MPH
Dr. Chan was the first to report that reduced colorectal cancer risk associated with aspirin intake was limited to cancers with COX-2 overexpression. In addition, he later showed that aspirin use after diagnosis was associated with improved colorectal cancer–specific survival, leading to the development of at least four phase III clinical trials exploring the use of aspirin for colorectal cancer treatment. These discoveries and subsequent research helped inform the 2016 U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommendation for the use of low-dose aspirin in the prevention of cardiovascular events and colorectal cancer.
The AACR established the AACR–Waun Ki Hong Award for Outstanding Achievement in Translational and Clinical Cancer Research to recognize a cancer researcher who has conducted translational and clinical cancer research anywhere in the world and who has not yet reached 51 years of age at the time of the award presentation. The award was established in 2017, in recognition of Waun Ki Hong, MD, FAACR, for his contributions toward advancing cancer research, cancer care, and cancer prevention during his career as a physician-scientist. Dr. Hong passed away on January 2, 2019.
Professional Experience and Education
DR. CHAN currently serves as Chief of the Clinical and Translational Epidemiology Unit and Vice Chair for the Division of Gastroenterology at Massachusetts General Hospital. He is also Co-Leader of the Cancer Epidemiology Program at the Dana-Farber/ Harvard Cancer Center.
He received his medical degree from Harvard Medical School and a Master of Public Health from Harvard School of Public Health. He is an elected fellow of the American Gastroenterological Association and an elected member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation. ■
