The University of Alabama at Birmingham names cancer center director
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Barry Paul Sleckman, MD, has been appointed director of O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at The University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Sleckman — who currently serves as associate director of Meyer Cancer Center at Weill Cornell Medicine — will begin his new role on Jan. 6.
“UAB is a phenomenal institution and a rapidly growing research powerhouse, fueled in part by the more than 400 talented physician-scientists and researchers at the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center,” Sleckman said in a press release. “Their groundbreaking research and treatments have far-reaching and transformational impact on cancer research and patient care in Alabama and beyond every day. It’s an honor to have an opportunity to lead a cancer center that is recognized as among the nation’s best.”
Sleckman’s research focuses on understanding how DNA double strand breaks are generated and repaired.
His laboratory was the first to show that the cellular response to DNA double strand breaks can regulate cell type-specific pathways involved in normal cellular functions. These pathways can be disrupted among patients with cancer who receive radiation or other genotoxic therapies.
“Dr. Sleckman will continue to build upon our established research and clinical capabilities and help us meet the challenges all cancer centers face — specifically the way we can best serve our communities and compete in the marketplace,” Selwyn Vickers, MD, dean of the School of Medicine at UAB, said in the release.
During his time at Weill Cornell Medicine, Sleckman also served as professor of pathology and laboratory medicine, as well as professor of microbiology and immunology. He previously spent 10 years as associate director of Siteman Cancer Center at Washington University in St. Louis.
When Sleckman joins UAB, Ravi Bhatia, MD — who has served as interim director of O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center — will resume his role as deputy director of the center and director of the division of hematology-oncology.