It’s incredibly meaningful to be recognized in this way—an unexpected dream come true, really.
Steven D. Leach, MDSteven D. Leach, MD, Director of the Dartmouth Cancer Center and the Preston T. and Virginia R. Kelsey Distinguished Chair in Cancer at Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine, has been elected to the prestigious National Academy of Medicine (NAM).
Election to the National Academy of Medicine is considered one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievement and commitment to service. With its 100 new members (including 10 international members) announced this week at its annual meeting in Washington, DC, the NAM now has more than 2,500 members.
“It’s incredibly meaningful to be recognized in this way—an unexpected dream come true, really,” says Leach, who is also a Professor of Molecular and Systems Biology, Surgery, and Medicine at Geisel and serves as Associate Dean for Cancer Programs.
“As much as I feel honored, I’m also very humbled when I think of all the people who contributed to this—from early role models to my mentors and colleagues, and especially the more than 30 graduates of the Leach Laboratory who did so much of the work that’s being honored by my election.”
Leach was elected to the National Academy of Medicine for being an international leader in pancreatic cancer research, having made seminal research contributions in pancreatic cancer surgery, biology, genomics, and therapy over the past three decades. His research has run the gamut from very basic studies of pancreatic development using mouse and zebrafish, to more recent studies of human pancreatic cancer and how pancreatic cancer mutations engage the host immune system.
NAM’s new members are elected by current members through a process that recognizes individuals who have made major contributions to the advancement of the medical sciences, healthcare, and public health. A diversity of talent among NAM’s membership is assured by its Articles of Organization, which stipulate that at least one-quarter of the membership is selected from fields outside the health professions—for example, from such fields such as law, engineering, social sciences, and the humanities.
“It is my honor to welcome this truly exceptional class of new members to the National Academy of Medicine,” says NAM President Victor J. Dzau. “Their contributions to health and medicine are unparalleled, and their leadership and expertise will be essential to helping the NAM tackle today’s urgent health challenges, inform the future of healthcare, and ensure health equity for the benefit of all around the globe.”
Prior to joining Dartmouth Cancer Center, New Hampshire’s only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, Leach held the David M. Rubenstein Chair and was the inaugural director of the Rubenstein Center for Pancreatic Cancer Research at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City.
Among his many scientific contributions and professional honors, Leach was named a Fellow of the American Academy for the Advancement of Science in 2018, and was elected to the Board of the Association of American Cancer Institutes in 2022. He has also served as chair of the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network’s Scientific and Medical Advisory Board and as a member of the Princeton University Board of Trustees.
Leach earned his AB in Biology at Princeton University and his medical degree from Emory University. He completed his residency in general surgery and a postdoctoral research fellowship at Yale University, followed by a surgical oncology fellowship at MD Anderson Cancer Center.
About Dartmouth Cancer Center
Since 1972, Dartmouth Cancer Center (DCC) has combined groundbreaking and advanced cancer research at Dartmouth and the Geisel School of Medicine with award-winning, personalized, compassionate, patient-centered cancer care and clinical trials. At its flagship location at Dartmouth Health’s Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, with 14 locations across New Hampshire and Vermont, DCC is one of fewer than 60 National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers nationally. Each year, DCC manages 74,000 appointments, treats more than 4,500 newly diagnosed patients, and currently offers more than 240 active clinical trials. DCC remains committed to excellence, outreach and education. DCC strives to create new knowledge and impact, accelerate integrated and collaborative research to prevent and cure cancer, enhance survivorship and promote cancer-related health equity. Learn more at cancer.dartmouth.edu.
About Dartmouth Health
Dartmouth Health, New Hampshire’s only academic health system and largest private employer, serves patients across New England. Dartmouth Health provides access to more than 2,300 providers in nearly every area of medicine, delivering care at its flagship hospital, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) in Lebanon, NH. Its network of hospitals, outpatient centers, clinics and home care facilities, spans a broad geographical area. Year after year, DHMC is named the #1 hospital in New Hampshire by U.S. News & World Report, and is consistently recognized for high performance in numerous clinical specialties and procedures. Dartmouth Health includes Dartmouth Cancer Center, northern New England’s only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers and one of less than than 60 total nationally; Dartmouth Health Children’s, which includes the state’s only children’s hospital (Children’s Hospital at DHMC/CHaD) and more than 20 locations around the region; eight member hospitals in Lebanon, Keene, Claremont, Hampstead, and New London, NH, and Windsor and Bennington, VT; Dartmouth Health Home Care; Dartmouth Health Connected Care Center for Telehealth, serving patients as far away as Texas; and more than 30 primary and multi-specialty clinics across New Hampshire and Vermont. Through its partnership with Dartmouth College, Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine and the White River Junction VA Medical Center, Dartmouth Health trains nearly 400 medical residents and fellows annually and performs cutting-edge research and clinical trials with international impact. Dartmouth Health and its more than 16,000 employees are committed to serving the healthcare needs of everyone in the communities it serves and to providing every patient with exceptional, state-of-the-art, personalized care. Learn more at dartmouth-health.org.