ESMO, the European professional organisation for medical oncology, has appointed Professor Jean-Yves Douillard as its first Chief Medical Officer.
The creation of this new role reflects the rapid growth of ESMO in both breadth and scale, as well as the pace of progress across medical oncology as a whole.
Lugano, Switzerland-based ESMO represents more than 13,000 members worldwide. It announced last year that it would organise an annual Congress in Europe from 2016 and held its first Asia Congress in December 2015.
The Society is also opening its membership to all professionals working in cancer research, diagnosis, treatment, advocacy and care so that it can take an integrated and global approach.
For a fixed two-year term the CMO will lead the development of ESMO’s scientific strategy and activities and will also play an important part in expanding the Society’s educational programmes.
In a career spanning more than 30 years, Prof Douillard has achieved international recognition as a leading expert in lung cancer and gastrointestinal oncology, holding a number of leadership positions.
At the University of Nantes, he was Professor in Medical Oncology, while at the Integrated Centers of Oncology (ICO) Rene Gauducheau, also in Nantes, he was Head of the Medical Oncology Department and later Director of Clinical and Translational Research. In addition, he spent a total of four years working in the US, initially at the National Cancer Institute and later at the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, part of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Throughout his career, Prof Douillard has led clinical trials in relation to lung cancer and GI tumours and investigated targeted therapies, publishing his work in leading scientific journals. He has also held senior ESMO positions, serving as Educational Committee Chair and as a member of the Executive Board.
