Nine UF Health Cancer Center researchers were formally recognized as endowed chairs and professors in a ceremony this month, placing them in the ranks of the most accomplished faculty members in the University of Florida’s six health colleges.
The UF Health Cancer Center members, eight from the UF College of Medicine and one from the UF College of Dentistry, were honored with special gifts during the annual Celebrating Distinction ceremony on Nov. 16 at the Health Professions, Nursing & Pharmacy auditorium.
The faculty received specially engraved chairs as a symbol of their dedication to medical education, research and leadership. This year, the College of Medicine had the greatest number of endowed chairs and professors recognized at the ceremony, which also recognizes the donors who made the endowed positions possible.
“These UF Health Cancer Center members exemplify the breath and depth of scholarship that the UF Health Cancer Center is applying to the multifaceted problem of cancer pathogenesis, prevention and treatment,” said Jonathan D. Licht, M.D., director of the Cancer Center. “I am immensely proud of these colleagues, and I look forward to their continued contributions.”
Below are the UF Health Cancer Center members recently honored with a named professorship:
C. Parker Gibbs, M.D.
William F. Enneking, William E. Anspach and Orthopaedic Alumni Chair
Chair, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Sports Medicine, UF College of Medicine
Member, Cancer Targeting & Therapeutics research program, UF Health Cancer Center
Gibbs’ clinical research and practice revolves around limb salvage surgery for children and adults with bone and soft tissue sarcomas of the pelvis and extremities. He is one of fewer than 200 surgeons nationwide considered an expert in this field. Gibbs serves as chief of the division of musculoskeletal oncology at UF and has also held roles as deputy director of medical affairs for the UF Health Cancer Center and chaired numerous hospital and college committees. Most recently, he served as the chief medical officer for UF Health Shands and senior associate dean for clinical affairs in the College of Medicine.
David Iglesias, M.D.
Nell Bryant Kibler Professor in Ovarian Cancer Research
Chief, Division of Gynecologic Oncology, UF College of Medicine
Member, Cancer Targeting & Therapeutics research program, UF Health Cancer Center
Iglesias’ research focus is improving access to leading-edge clinical trials for patients with advanced or recurrent ovarian, endometrial and cervical cancers. He also has an interest in strategies to improve patient education and cancer survivorship.
Merry Jennifer Markham, M.D., FACP, FASCO
Robert E. and Roselee S. Wheeler Professor of Medicine
Chief, Division of Hematology and Oncology, UF College of Medicine
Associate Director for Medical Affairs, UF Health Cancer Center
Member, Cancer Targeting & Therapeutics research program, UF Health Cancer Center
Markham’s primary clinical focus is the care of women with gynecologic malignancies. Her research is focused on investigations of experimental therapeutics and prognostic factors for gynecologic malignancies. Markham is also involved in the study of quality of cancer care, quality improvement strategies and cancer survivorship. She is the research lead for the UF Health Cancer Center’s Gynecologic Cancers Disease Site Group. She is also the principal investigator for all chemotherapeutic and investigational therapy trials for gynecologic cancers and is site PI for all Gynecologic Oncology Group/NRG Oncology gynecologic cancer trials.
Cesar Migliorati, D.D.S., M.S., Ph.D.
Academy 100 Eminent Scholar Chair
Professor, Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Diagnostic Sciences, UF College of Dentistry
Member, Cancer Control & Population Sciences research program, UF Health Cancer Center
Migliorati’s current research collaborations focus on supportive care in cancer and the oral complications of cancer therapy. He previously served as associate dean for clinical affairs and quality at the UF College of Dentistry from 2017 until March 2021.
Zhijian Qian, Ph.D.
Pierre Chagnon Professor of Cancer Research, Division of Hematology and Oncology, UF College of Medicine
Co-leader, Mechanisms of Oncogenesis research program, UF Health Cancer Center
Qian’s laboratory aims to understand the mechanisms that underlie the development of blood cancer, with a focus on studying the genetic pathways that control the proliferation, survival and self-renewal of normal or leukemic hematopoietic stem cells. His lab aims to identify novel therapeutic strategies for treatment of myeloid malignant diseases.
Elias Sayour, M.D., Ph.D.
Stop Children’s Cancer/Bonnie R. Freeman Professor for Pediatric Oncology Research
Associate Professor of Neurosurgery and Pediatrics, UF College of Medicine
Co-leader, Immuno-Oncology and Microbiome research program, UF Health Cancer Center
Sayour is working to develop lipid nanoparticles to train the immune system to fight cancer. He has spearheaded new paradigm treatments currently being tested in canine (pet dog) patients with terminal brain cancer, and he also serves as principal investigator/study chair on first-in-human immunotherapy studies for children with aggressive brain cancers.
Li-Ming Su, M.D., FRCS
Pete and Carolyn Newsome Urologic Oncology Professor
Chair, Department of Urology, UF College of Medicine
Member, Cancer Control & Population Sciences research program, UF Health Cancer Center
Su’s clinical interests include minimally invasive laparoscopic and robotic surgery for prostate cancer, kidney cancer, adrenal tumors and urothelial cancer of the kidney. His research focus is on exploring advanced imaging as applied to urologic surgery.
Ramon C. Sun, Ph.D.
Anne and Oscar Lackner Eminent Scholar Chair
Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, UF College of Medicine
Member, Cancer Targeting & Therapeutics research program, UF Health Cancer Center
Sun is a leading expert in spatial metabolism whose research interests include cancer metabolism. His lab focuses on understanding the molecular events connecting complex carbohydrates to cellular metabolism, signaling and physiology, with a strong emphasis on disease etiology of neurological disorders.
Maria Zajac-Kaye, Ph.D.
Haskel Hess Professor in Anatomy and Cell Biology, UF College of Medicine
Member, Cancer Targeting & Therapeutics research program, UF Health Cancer Center
Zajac-Kaye’s long-term research interests focus on understanding mechanisms of oncogenic transformation. Her lab has recently studied the role of thymidylate synthase in tumorigenesis. Zajac-Kaye also serves as coordinator of the Cancer Biology Advanced Concentration, one of eight advanced concentrations leading to the Ph.D. degree under the auspices of the Graduate Program in Biomedical Sciences in the UF College of Medicine.
