Anthony Letai Has Been Appointed the 18th Director of the National Cancer Institute

Professional Background and Contributions

Dr. Anthony Letai: Professional Background and Contributions

• A Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and a medical oncologist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
• Research focus: Understanding how cancer cells evade death, work that directly informed the development of venetoclax, a BCL-2 inhibitor that has transformed treatment for certain blood cancers.
• Promoted the use of predictive biomarkers, helping clinicians tailor therapies to individual patients and improve outcomes in both hematologic and solid tumors.
• Earned his MD and PhD from the University of Chicago.
• Trained in internal medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and completed a hematology/oncology fellowship at Dana-Farber, joining its faculty in 2004.
• Built a research program that bridges laboratory science and clinical application, focusing on translating molecular insights into actionable treatments.
• Recognized with the NCI Outstanding Investigator Award, among other major honors, reflecting the impact of his work on both research and patient care.
• Mentored early-career investigators, cultivating a generation of scientists who are contributing to advances in cancer biology and therapy.
• Combines rigorous science with practical clinical insight, a balance that will guide his stewardship of NCI.

Leading the National Cancer Institute

As NCI Director, Dr. Letai inherits an institute with a broad mandate, from funding basic cancer research to overseeing large-scale clinical trials, prevention programs, and cancer epidemiology studies.

• Vision: Precision oncology, immunotherapy, and genomic research.
• Addressing health equity and access.
• Prioritizing research that can directly improve patient outcomes and extending innovations to underserved populations.

Previous NCI Leaders

The role of NCI Director is one of immense responsibility, overseeing an organization that is instrumental in shaping the landscape of cancer research and treatment globally.

• W. Kimryn Rathmell 2023-2025
• Monica M. Bertagnolli 2022-2023
• Norman E. Sharpless 2017-2022
• Harold E. Varmus 2010-2015
• John E. Niederhuber 2006-2010
• Andrew C. von Eschenbach 2002-2006
• Richard D. Klausner 1995-2001
• Samuel Broder 1988-1995
• Vincent T. DeVita, Jr. 1980-1988
• Arthur Canfield Upton 1977-1980
• Frank Joseph Rauscher, Jr. 1972-1976
• Carl Gwin Baker 1970-1972
• Kenneth Millo Endicott 1960-1969
• John Roderick Heller 1948-1960
• Roscoe Roy Spencer 1943-1947
• Carl Voegtlin 1938-1943