Supported by the Irving Weinstein Foundation, this AACR Lectureship was established to recognize and present outstanding science that has the potential to inspire new thinking and perspectives on the etiology, progression, and prevention of cancer.
This Lectureship is selected by the AACR President, and is not open to nomination.
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2009 Lectureship Recipient
James R. Heath, Ph.D.
Elizabeth W. Gilloon
Professor of Chemistry
California Institute of Technology
Pasadena, CA
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Dr. James R. Heath (center) delivered his lecture entitled, "Approaches Towards Unraveling the Paradoxical Relationship between Cancer and the Immune System," at the 100th AACR Annual Meeting 2009 in Denver, CO. He received his Award from AACR President, Dr. Raymond N. DuBois (left) and Dr. Steven Lipkin of the Irving Weinstein Foundation (right).
- View the list of all past Lectureship recipients.
Dr. James R. Heath is a world-renowned leader in nanoscience and nanomaterials. He has investigated quantum phase transitions, and developed architectures, devices, and circuits for molecular electronics.
His group has more recently been applying efforts toward addressing problems in cancer. These approaches include a focus on nanotechnologies, microfluidics, and chemical techniques as applied to in vitro diagnostics and cancer biology.
One example of the potential application of his work is in the development of a new "blood barcode chip" which shows potential for revolutionizing diagnostic medical testing. Dr. Heath was the lead researcher among a group of scientists at Caltech who worked in conjunction with Dr. Leroy Hood to develop the Integrated Blood-Barcode Chip, or IBBC. This diagnostic tool can measure the concentrations of dozens of blood-based protein biomarkers, including cancer markers, from a fingerprick, and in about 5 minutes. Advanced early-diagnostic methods such as these, may contribute in vitro molecular measurements that will inform the design of new intervention strategies and effective therapeutics, initiated at earlier stages of disease progression.
Dr. Heath received his B.Sc. in Chemistry from Baylor University in 1984 and his M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Physics and Chemistry in 1988 from Rice University, where he was the principal graduate student involved in the discovery of C60 molecules and the other fullerenes. He subsequently served as Miller Research Fellow at University of California, Berkeley, then joined the IBM T.J. Watson Research Laboratory as Research Staff Member. He was appointed Assistant Professor at University of California in 1994, then rose through the ranks to Professor in 1997. He then founded the California NanoSystems Institute in 2000 and served as its Director until moving to Caltech. Dr. Heath currently is the Elizabeth W. Gilloon Professor and Professor of Chemistry at Caltech, Professor of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology at UCLA, and Director of the National Cancer Institute's NSB Cancer Center.
He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society, and has been a recipient of several awards, including the Spiers Medal from the Royal Society, a Public Service Commendation from California Governor Gray Davis, the Sackler Prize in the Physical Sciences, and the Feynman Prize in Nanotechnology. In 2001, his work on molecular circuitry was highlighted in the journal Science as the 'Breakthrough of the Year.'
He has founded or co-founded several companies including NanoSys, Momentum Biosciences, and Integrated Diagnostics. He also serves on the Board of Scientific Advisors of the National Cancer Institute.