Roland A. Pattillo, MD, a gynecologic oncologist and a longtime member of the AACR, died May 3, 2023, at the age of 89.
Pattillo was born June 12, 1933, in DeQuincy, Louisiana. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Xavier University and a medical degree from St. Louis University Medical School. He did his residency at Marquette University Medical School, known today as the Medical College of Wisconsin. Pattillo remained there for 32 years as a researcher, author, and lecturer, as well as a practicing obstetrician/gynecologist.
He then joined the faculty of Morehouse School of Medicine, where he taught and conducted research for 20 years before retiring in 2013. During his tenure in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Morehouse, Pattillo helped launch the residency program, served as interim chairman, and directed the Gynecologic Oncology Division.
Pattillo became a close ally of the family of Henrietta Lacks, the woman whose cells were harvested without her knowledge and used to create the world’s first immortal human cell line. He was instrumental in creating the Annual HeLa Women’s Health Conference at the Morehouse School of Medicine in her honor.
Pattillo became a member of the AACR in 1971.
Leave your remembrance of Dr. Pattillo below (limit 1,000 characters).
As a distant relative, and fellow Xavier University of Louisiana graduate, I fondly remember him as a dedicated and caring physician. Roland delivered my son at the Medical College of Wisconsin, Wauwatosa, WI, RIP