George Vande Woude, Ph.D. (Photo courtesy of Jeff Dykehouse)
Editor’s Note: This article was adapted from a press release and biographical information from the Van Andel Research Institute’s website: http://www.vai.org/en/NewsRoom/press-release-01-28-14.aspx.
George Vande Woude, Ph.D., Van Andel Institute’s founding director of research, recently received the Fellowship Award in Biological Science from the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). The AAAS bestows this annual award to a select number of scientists who are honored for their meritorious efforts to advance science or its applications.
Vande Woude joined the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in 1972 as head of the Human Tumor Studies and Virus Tumor Biochemistry sections. He was appointed chief of the Laboratory of Molecular Oncology in 1980. From 1983 until 1998, he served as director of the Advanced Bioscience Laboratories–Basic Research Program at NCI’s Frederick Cancer Research and Development Center. In 1995, Vande Woude first served as special advisor to the director, and then as director for the Division of Basic Sciences at NCI.
In 1999, Vande Woude was appointed as the first director of Van Andel Research Institute. In 2009, he stepped down as director and assumed the title of Distinguished Scientific Fellow, retaining his role as head of the Laboratory of Molecular Oncology.
Vande Woude is responsible for discovering the human MET oncogene, a groundbreaking therapeutic target utilized in personalized therapies for many virulent cancers.
The AAAS is a nonprofit organization with the mission of promoting cooperation among scientists, encouraging scientific responsibility, and supporting education and outreach initiatives that directly impact human health. It is the world’s most prestigious general scientific society.