James A. Fagin, MD Elected to Board of Directors of the American Thyroid Association

Newswise — James A. Fagin, MD of New York, NY, has been elected as a director on the board of the American Thyroid Association (ATA). He will serve a four-year term of office (2008"2012).

Kenneth D. Burman, M.D., recently installed ATA President said today "It is my sincere privilege to welcome the newly elected leadership to the ATA Board of Directors." "Dr. Fagin is a dedicated ATA member, exceptionally qualified to serve as a strong advocate for people with thyroid disease and the clinicians and researchers who work tirelessly on their behalf."

Dr. James Fagin is Chief of the Endocrine Service and a Member of the Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and a Professor of Medicine at Weill Medical College of Cornell University. He was formerly the James Heady Professor of Medicine and Director of the Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.

Dr. Fagin obtained his MD from the University of Buenos Aires, completed his residency in the UK, and endocrinology fellowships at the VA Wadsworth and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. He has had a long standing interest in the pathogenesis of thyroid neoplasms, and his laboratory focuses on thyroid cancer genetics, on the development of mouse models to understand the biology of these tumors, and on the identification of specific therapies directed at key oncoproteins that drive the disease. He also has a keen clinical interest in the care of patients with advanced thyroid cancer.

He has served the ATA in the following capacities: Chair of the Annual Meeting Scientific Program Committee in 1996, member and later Chair of the ATA Research Committee (2002-2006), and Co-Chair of the ATA Meeting, "Frontiers in Thyroid Cancer," in 2005.

He was a member and then chair of the NIH Endocrinology Study Section (1998-2002). In addition to serving on a number of editorial boards, he is a former Associate Editor of Endocrinology, former Editor (Americas) for Clinical Endocrinology (Oxford), and the present Editor-in-Chief of Endocrine-Related Cancer. He served as faculty and then Chair of the yearly Molecular and Cellular Research Course of the Endocrine Society, and was the co-organizer of the Endocrine Society Genomics and Proteomics Conference. Dr. Fagin is a member of the American Society of Clinical Investigation and the Association of American Physicians. He was the recipient of the Abbott Thyroid Research Clinical Fellowship Mentor Award of the Endocrine Society, the Merck Prize of the European Thyroid Association and is this year's recipient of the ATA Sidney Ingbar Distinguished Lectureship Award.

In his candidate statement, Dr. Fagin expressed his determination to "act affirmatively to strengthen the participation of investigators and clinicians working in the other major fields of thyroidology, which is essential to maintain the vitality of our organization."

About the American Thyroid Association (ATA)The American Thyroid Association (ATA) is the lead organization in promoting thyroid health and understanding thyroid biology. The ATA values scientific inquiry, clinical excellence, public service, education, collaboration, and collegiality.

A non-profit medical society founded in 1923, the ATA fulfills its mission through supporting excellence and innovation in research, clinical care, education, and public health. ATA members are physicians and scientists who work to enhance the understanding of thyroid physiology and pathophysiology, improve the diagnosis and treatment of thyroid diseases, and promote the education of physicians, patients, and the public about thyroid disorders.

Thyroid diseases are among the most common disorders of the endocrine system, affecting almost 13 million Americans alone. The ATA has extensive online information for patients on thyroid disease (in English and Spanish) serving the clinician as a resource for patients and the public who look for reliable information on the internet.

To learn more about the ATA, visit: http://www.thyroid.org.