Newswise — WASHINGTON—The Endocrine Society today announced it has chosen 13 leading endocrinologists as winners of its prestigious 2022 Laureate Awards, the top honors in the field.
Endocrinologists are scientists and medical doctors who specialize in unravelling the mysteries of hormone disorders to care for patients and cure diseases. These professionals have achieved breakthroughs in scientific discoveries and clinical care benefiting people with hundreds of conditions, including diabetes, thyroid disorders, obesity, hormone-related cancers, growth problems, osteoporosis and infertility.
Established in 1944, the Society’s Laureate Awards recognize the highest achievements in the endocrinology field, including groundbreaking research and innovations in clinical care. The Endocrine Society will present the awards to the winners at ENDO 2022, the Society’s annual meeting.
The Endocrine Society’s 2022 Laureate Award winners are:
- Henry M. Kronenberg, M.D. – Fred Conrad Koch Lifetime Achievement Award. The Society’s highest honor, this annual award recognizes lifetime achievements and exceptional contributions to the field of endocrinology. Kronenberg has been Chief of the Endocrine Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Mass., for over 32 years and is a Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Mass. His research group studies the actions of parathyroid hormone and parathyroid hormone-related protein, with a particular emphasis on bone development, bone biology, calcium homeostasis, and the roles of osteoblast-lineage cells in hematopoiesis. His biggest accomplishment is bringing molecular biology to the bone and mineral field with the cloning of the parathyroid hormone. Kronenberg's laboratory in recent years has used several genetically altered strains of mice to establish the role of signaling by the PTH/PTHrP receptor in bone. Kronenberg was President of the Endocrine Society in 2016-2017 and has served on many other Society Committees over the years, most notably as Vice President, Basic Science and as the Endocrine Society's representative on the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) Board of Directors.
- Terry J. Smith, M.D. – Gerald D. Aurbach Award for Outstanding Translational Research. This annual award recognizes outstanding contributions to research that accelerate the transition of scientific discoveries into clinical applications. Smith is the Frederick G.L. Huetwell Professor in Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences and Professor of Internal Medicine at the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor, Mich. He has studied Graves’ disease, its ocular manifestations and related autoimmune diseases for over 35 years. His laboratory group was the first to describe the unique molecular attributes of tissue surrounding the eye that make the orbit susceptible to immune activation and inflammation in Graves’ disease. He and his colleagues have mapped the mechanisms involved in tissue remodeling occurring in thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy (TAO), a disfiguring and potentially blinding disease. They identified the insulin-like growth factor-I receptor as a therapeutic target for TAO and their work has culminated in the creation of teprotumumab—the first FDA approved drug to treat thyroid eye disease.
- Lourdes Ibáñez, M.D., Ph.D. – International Excellence in Endocrinology Award. This award is presented to an endocrinologist who has made exceptional contributions to the field in geographic areas with underdeveloped resources for hormone health research, education, clinical practice, or administration. Ibáñez is a pediatric endocrinologist at Sant Joan de Déu Barcelona Hospital and Chairman of Pediatrics, Chair of Clinical Research in Endocrinology at the University of Barcelona in Barcelona, Spain. She is a worldwide leader in the field of PCOS who pioneered the use of combined, low-dose insulin sensitization for the treatment of the disease - a novel therapeutic approach directed to the pathophysiology of the disorder. Ibáñez started the Fellowship Program in Pediatric Endocrinology & Diabetes of the University of Barcelona back in 2002 and has mentored 22 fellows from Latin America.
- Karel Pacak, M.D., Ph.D., D.Sc. – Outstanding Clinical Investigator Award. This annual award honors an internationally recognized clinical investigator who has contributed significantly to understanding the pathogenesis and therapy of endocrine and metabolic diseases. Pacak is Chief of the Section on Medical Neuroendocrinology and Head of the Developmental Endocrinology, Metabolism, Genetics and Endocrine Oncology Affinity Group of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the Intramural NIH Research Program in Bethesda, Md. He is an extraordinary clinician whose translational research has provided novel understanding of and treatments for patients with neuroendocrine tumors, especially pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma. Pacak established the International Symposia on Pheochromocytoma, the most internationally recognized meeting in this field. He was part of the Endocrine Society’s 2014 Pheochromocytoma Task Force and currently serves as a member of The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism’s Editorial Board.
- David W. Harris M.D. – Vigersky Outstanding Clinical Practitioner Award. This annual award recognizes extraordinary contributions by a practicing endocrinologist to the endocrine and/or medical community. Harris is a full-time practicing endocrinologist at the Warren Clinic Diabetes Center in Tulsa, Okla., where he has provided exemplary care for over 30 years. He is a tireless advocate for equal access to care and affordable diabetes medications. He led the glycemic management committee at Saint Francis Hospital to ensure consistent treatment protocols for hospitalized patients. Harris has been instrumental in providing scholarships for medical and high school students in need. He is a member of the Endocrine Society’s Hormone Health Network Committee and previously served on the Scientific and Educational Programs Core Committee.
- Kathryn A. Martin, M.D. – Outstanding Educator Award. This annual award recognizes exceptional achievement as an educator in the discipline of endocrinology and metabolism. Martin, an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, has been a faculty member and practicing clinician in the Reproductive Endocrine Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Mass., since 1989. In addition to her clinical practice, she has an active teaching role and is involved in the training and supervision of junior faculty members and endocrine fellows. Martin is also the Senior Deputy Editor for Endocrinology and Patient Education at UpToDate, an online clinical reference for physicians. Martin is an outstanding clinician and teacher with a remarkable skill at synthesizing even the most complex clinical and basic literature. She is an internationally recognized authority in women’s health who has contributed significantly to the field’s current status as a data-driven medical science. She’s contributed to several Endocrine Society Clinical Practice Guidelines and Scientific Statements on women’s health.
- John Wass, M.D., M.A., F.R.C.P. – Outstanding Leadership in Endocrinology Award. This annual award recognizes outstanding leadership in fundamental or clinical endocrinology. Wass is a highly accomplished clinical researcher and educator at Oxford University in Oxford, England. His contributions have had a significant effect on patients with pituitary disease. His early observations about the importance of single-surgeon expertise for acromegaly outcomes paved the way many years later for adoption of criteria for pituitary centers of excellence, while his early recognition of the need to minimize neurological sequelae in pituitary apoplexy paved the way for studies—still ongoing—to establish best practices for this difficult-to-manage disorder. In these areas, as well as in PCOS, Addison’s disease and obesity, Wass’s leadership has enabled endocrinologists to adopt new approaches to improve patient outcomes. Wass has trained multiple endocrinologists who are well recognized globally for their own leading contributions to endocrinology research and practice.
- Jane E.B. Reusch M.D. – Outstanding Mentor Award. This annual award recognizes a career commitment to mentoring and a significant positive impact on mentees’ education and career. Reusch is a Professor of Medicine and Biochemistry at the University of Colorado Denver and Denver VAMC and Associate Director of the Center for Women’s Health Research in Denver, Colo. Her professional mission has been to extend her experience and expertise to train the next generation of diabetes researchers. Reusch has mentored 77 trainees through her research program ranging from students to senior faculty. At the University of Colorado, Reusch continues to actively mentor pre- and post-doctoral fellows and directs the University of Colorado Pilot and Feasibility Program to fund diabetes researchers. She is a leader in the university’s Women in Medicine and Science Leadership Training Program and Center for Women’s Health Research career development series. Reusch represented the Endocrine Society as chair of the FASEB Science Policy Clinical Research sub-committee focused on career development.
- Rita Rastogi Kalyani, M.D., M.H.S. - Outstanding Public Service Award. This annual award is presented to an individual who best demonstrates dedication to public awareness or public service in support of the field of endocrinology, and the patients who suffer from endocrine disorders. Kalyani is an Associate Professor of Medicine in the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes & Metabolism at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Md. She is a clinician-scientist who has led statewide public awareness initiatives, chaired national clinical practice guideline committees and spearheaded the development of international programs for diabetes care. Kalyani is currently the Co-Leader of the Maryland Diabetes Quality Task Force and previously served on the Board of Directors for Diabetes Sisters. An author or coauthor of more than 125 peer-reviewed publications, her research focuses on diabetes and aging. She participated in Endocrine Society Hill Days and served as a Society spokesperson on insulin affordability. Kalyani currently serves on multiple Endocrine Society committees, including the Clinical Practice Guideline Task Force and the EndoCares Steering Team. She was previously a member of the Society’s Research Affairs Core Committee.
- Ken K.Y. Ho, M.D., F.R.A.C.P., F.R.C.P., F.A.H.M.S. – Outstanding Scholarly Physician Award. This annual award recognizes outstanding contributions to the practice of clinical endocrinology in academic settings. Professor Ho is Emeritus Professor at the Garvan Institute, University of New South Wales and Honorary Consultant Endocrinologist, St. Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney, Australia. As a globally recognized pituitary medicine expert and a leader in academic clinical endocrinology, he has developed therapeutic guidelines and advocated for regulatory agency decisions geared toward improving patient outcomes. He established a gold-standard diagnostic test for growth hormone (GH) deficiency and developed standards for use of GH replacement therapy in adults. He has published over 250 peer-reviewed studies that directly impact clinical practice. He currently serves as Associate Editor for the Journal of the Endocrine Society and as a member of the Society’s Nominating Committee.
- Shingo Kajimura, Ph.D. – Richard E. Weitzman Outstanding Early Career Investigator Award. This annual award recognizes an exceptionally promising young clinical or basic investigator. As an investigator at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston Mass., Kajimura has made pioneering contributions to the field of endocrinology and metabolism by identifying the key determinants of adipose tissue development and function. Kajimura's work transformed our fundamental understandings of how brown/beige fat controls energy homeostasis in physiology and disease and further provides a blueprint for rewiring adaptive pathways to improve metabolic health. His studies led to the new but now well-appreciated notion that the role of brown/beige fat is far beyond thermogenesis. His discoveries have the potential to influence new therapies for diseases including obesity, NASH and type 2 diabetes. He’s currently a member of the Endocrine Society’s Basic Science Strategy Advisory Group.
- Michael W. Schwartz, M.D. – Roy O. Greep Award for Outstanding Research. This annual award recognizes meritorious contributions to research in endocrinology. Schwartz holds the Robert H. Williams Chair in Medicine at the University of Washington in Seattle, Wash., where he has been on faculty since 1996. He’s published over 260 peer-reviewed studies that have shaped our understanding of how the brain regulates energy balance and glucose homeostasis. His work investigating the central actions of leptin on energy balance and glucose metabolism over the last two decades has provided a novel avenue for developing weight-loss therapeutics. His lab currently focuses on the anti-diabetic effects of members of the FGF family, including FGF19, FGF21 and FGF1. A key long-term goal of these studies is to translate the findings into novel approaches for treating T2D.
- Simon J. Rhodes, Ph.D. – Sidney H. Ingbar Distinguished Service Award. This award recognizes distinguished service to the Endocrine Society and the field of endocrinology. Rhodes was appointed as the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville, Fla. in 2019. Over the last 15 years, Rhodes has reached trainees and early career investigators around the world and given special attention to diversity, equity and inclusion. He’s been engaged in the Endocrine Society’s Future Leaders Advancing Research in Endocrinology (FLARE) program since its inception and served as a program presenter and mentor for eight years. He was also co-chair of the Endocrine Society’s Trainee and Career Development Core Committee and a member of the Minority Affairs Committee. He currently serves on the Society’s Finance & Audit Committee and the Global Leadership Academy Planning & Advisory Task Force.
Nominations are being accepted for the 2023 awards cycle until December 31, 2021. Any submissions received after December 31 will be considered for the following year.
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Endocrinologists are at the core of solving the most pressing health problems of our time, from diabetes and obesity to infertility, bone health, and hormone-related cancers. The Endocrine Society is the world’s oldest and largest organization of scientists devoted to hormone research and physicians who care for people with hormone-related conditions.
The Society has more than 18,000 members, including scientists, physicians, educators, nurses and students in 122 countries. To learn more about the Society and the field of endocrinology, visit our site at www.endocrine.org. Follow us on Twitter at @TheEndoSociety and @EndoMedia.
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