Biography of Dr. Jerome E. Groopman

Dr. Groopman holds the Dina and Raphael Recanati Chair of Medicine at
the Harvard Medical School and is Chief of Experimental Medicine at the Beth Israel
Deaconess Medical Center. He received his B.A. from Columbia College summa cum laude
and his M.D. from Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York. He served his
internship and residency in internal medicine at the Massachusetts General Hospital.
Following that, his specialty fellowships in hematology and oncology were performed at
the University California and the Children's Hospital/Sidney Farber Cancer Center,
Harvard Medical School in Boston. Dr. Groopman served on the Advisory Council to the
National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute for AIDS-related matters, as Consultant for the
Center for Biological Evaluation and Research at FDA, and a member of the Food and Drug
Administration's Senior Biomedical Service Credentials Committee. He also was Chairman
of the Advisory Committee to the FDA for Biological Response Modifiers, and was an
original member of the Institute of Medicine/National Academy of Sciences Committee on
AIDS. He serves on many scientific editorial boards and has published more than 150
scientific articles.

Dr. Groopman's research has focused on the basic mechanisms of cancer and AIDS. He did
seminal work on identifying growth factors which may restore the depressed immune
systems of AIDS patients and on treatment for AIDS-related neoplasms, particularly
Kaposi's sarcoma and lymphoma. He performed the first clinical trials utilizing
recombinant colony stimulating factors and erythropoietin to augment blood cell
production in immunodeficient HIV-infected patients. He has been a major participant in
the development of many AIDS-related therapies including AZT, ddI, ddC, d4T, 3TC and
most recently the protease inhibitors. His basic laboratory research involves
understanding how blood cells grow and communicate ("signal transduction"), and how
viruses cause immune deficiency and cancer. He is active in regional and national
education activities in AIDS and cancer medicine, and the training and education of
young scientists in these fields.

Recently, Dr. Groopman has extended the research infrastructure in genetics and cell
biology to studies in breast cancer and neurobiology. The Laboratory has discovered a
gene called CHK which appears to oppose the growth of breast cancer cells. A concerted
research program has developed to both exploit this discovery and create new therapies
for breast cancer as well as search for other genes which may influence breast cancer
growth and spread.

In neurobiology, the Laboratory has identified a new gene family in the brain which
appears to regulate the growth of neurons. Research is ongoing to understand how these
genes may be deranged in degenerative neurological diseases like multiple sclerosis, Lou
Gehrig's disease, and Alzheimer's.

Dr. Groopman also has established a large and innovative program in clinical research
and clinical care at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, an institution which
provides specialized medical services to people with AIDS and cancer. He has also been
active in community education projects, fostering AIDS awareness among teenagers and
young adults. He has authored several editorials on policy issues in The New Republic,
the Washington Post and the New York Times. His first popular book, "The Measure of Our
Days," published in October, 1997 by Viking Penguin, explores the spiritual lives of
patients with serious illness, and the opportunities for fulfillment they sometimes
find. It was serialized in The New Yorker and in The Boston Globe Sunday Magazine. In
1998, he became a staff writer in medicine and biology to The New Yorker. His second
book entitled "Second Opinions: Stories of Intuition and Choice in the Changing World of
Medicine," was published in February 2000. The "Anatomy of Hope," is his third book.

Beginning in October 2000, a new television series called
Gideon's Crossing , based on The
Measure of Our Days and Second Opinions will appear on ABC. To learn more
about the series visit the TV Series
section of Dr. Groopman's site.

Visit the Experimental Medicine website

To Contact Dr. Groopman, Click here
NOTE: Because of the very large volume of E-Mail that Dr. Groopman receives, a reply cannot be assured; however we thank you for your interest and comments.

© Copyright 2000-2007 Jerome Groopman, M.D.