David R. Parkinson, MD, Honored With the 2026 AACR Outstanding Achievement Award for Service to Cancer Science and Medicine
SAN DIEGO – The 2026 AACR Outstanding Achievement Award for Service to Cancer Science and Medicine will be presented to David R. Parkinson, MD, during the AACR Annual Meeting 2026, to be held April 17-22 at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, California. Parkinson will accept the award and deliver remarks during the meeting’s Opening Ceremony on Sunday, April 19.
Parkinson serves as principal, drug discovery at the Ellison Medical Institute in Los Angeles, California. He is being recognized for extraordinary leadership and unwavering dedication to advancing lifesaving cancer therapeutics, strengthening national cancer research and regulatory initiatives, providing scientific and fiduciary oversight of AACR Project GENIE® (Genomics Evidence Neoplasia Information Exchange), and spearheading major biopharmaceutical innovations that have and continue to transform cancer patient care.
“Dr. Parkinson is a trusted and impactful expert in cancer drug discovery whose contributions have led to the development of several lifesaving therapeutics. His leadership in both the public and private sectors has truly moved the field forward, providing cancer patients with more treatment options and more hope,” said Margaret Foti, PhD, MD (hc), chief executive officer of the AACR. “Further, we are very grateful for Dr. Parkinson’s dedication to the AACR over the years, including as a member of the Board of Directors and various working group steering committees. His sage guidance as chair of the AACR Project GENIE External Advisory Board since 2015 has helped to establish AACR Project GENIE as an essential tool for researchers around the world who are working to unravel the mysteries of cancer and advance precision medicine. Dr. Parkinson is richly deserving of this prestigious award.”
Parkinson is a highly regarded leader in the biopharmaceutical and healthcare industries, with extensive experience in major scientific, clinical, development, regulatory, business, and management roles. Early in his career, he worked at the National Cancer Institute, serving as chief of the Investigational Drug Branch and then as acting associate director of the Cancer Therapy Evaluation Program. Later, he led oncology clinical development at Novartis, Amgen, and Biogen Idec. He served in major leadership roles at Zyngenia, Inc., Nodality, Inc., and, most recently, ESSA Pharma Inc. before joining the Ellison Medical Institute.
Over the course of his career, Parkinson has overseen the successful clinical development of numerous cancer therapeutics, including imatinib (Gleevec), zoledronic acid (Zometa), letrozole (Femara), and panitumumab (Vectibix). He also has served as chair of the U.S. Food & Drug Administration’s (FDA) Biologics Advisory Committee, a member of the FDA Science Board, and cochair of the Cancer Steering Committee of the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health Biomarkers Consortium.
In 2015, the AACR launched AACR Project GENIE, a public cancer registry of real-world clinico-genomic data assembled through data sharing among leading cancer centers. Parkinson has served as chair of the AACR Project GENIE External Advisory Board since the project’s inception, contributing to the remarkable growth and impact of the registry. Over the past 10 years, the number of participating institutions has increased from eight to 20, and AACR Project GENIE has grown to include data from more than 200,000 patients, making it the world’s largest public registry of real-world clinico-genomic cancer data.
Parkinson became a member of the AACR in 1989. In addition to his invaluable service to AACR Project GENIE, he has been a member of the AACR Oncology Development Fund Review Committee since 2022. He served on the AACR Board of Directors from 2006 to 2009 and was chair of the AACR Finance and Audit Committee from 2001 to 2016. He has served as a member of the AACR Pediatric Cancer Working Group Steering Committee (2011-2013), AACR Tumor Microenvironment Working Group Steering Committee (2010-2013), AACR Cancer Immunology Working Group Steering Committee (2010-2013), AACR Science Policy and Government Affairs Committee (2010-2013), and AACR Regulatory Science and Policy Subcommittee (2010-2013). He has served on the selection committees for several AACR awards, including the AACR Award for Lifetime Achievement in Cancer Research (2008-2009), the AACR-Women in Cancer Research Charlotte Friend Lectureship (2001-2002), and the Bruce F. Cain Memorial Award (2000-2001), and as an ex officio member of the AACR Publications Committee (2001-2016).
Parkinson has received several awards and honors throughout his career, including the Top Innovator Award from the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (2012), the Weinberg Memorial Lecture from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard University School of Medicine (2008), and the Harvey W. Wiley Medal and FDA Commissioner’s Special Citation (1997).
Parkinson earned his medical degree from the University of Toronto before completing his medical training at the Royal Victoria Hospital of McGill University and a research fellowship in hematology at Tufts Medical Center (formerly New England Medical Center).
Download a photo of Parkinson