Margaret Foti, one of the most influential voices in advancing the field of cancer research, both in the United States and abroad, will be the featured speaker at the University of Illinois Cancer Center’s Distinguished Lecture on Thursday, Feb. 27. Foti, PhD, MD (hc) will discuss “AACR and the Next Wave of Innovation in Cancer Research and Patient Care.”
The event will be held from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the College of Medicine Research Building’s Moss Auditorium (Room 1020), 909 S. Wolcott Ave.
Foti serves as chief executive officer of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), the first and largest cancer research organization in the world. Under her visionary leadership, membership has grown from about 3,000 members to more than 42,000 in 120 countries, and the AACR’s portfolio of peer-reviewed scientific journals has increased from one to eight.
Foti advanced through several key editorial and management roles in scientific publishing to become chief executive officer. She launched seven major peer-reviewed scientific journals: Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention; Clinical Cancer Research; Molecular Cancer Therapeutics; Molecular Cancer Research; Cancer Prevention Research; Cancer Discovery; and Cancer Immunology Research. She also assisted in launching Cancer Today, a magazine for cancer patients, survivors, and their families and caregivers, as well as a new AACR publication, Leading Discoveries.
A graduate of Temple University, Foti was elected president of three professional societies in scholarly publishing and in cancer research. She has also served as a board member, committee member, and consultant to a number of other nonprofit organizations.
Under her leadership, the AACR has served with distinction as the Scientific Partner of Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C). In this capacity, Foti and the AACR staff have brought significant expertise to their work with the organization, especially in the scientific peer review of projects, scientific project management, grants administration, communications, and science policy.
Foti’s leadership was instrumental in the production of the first landmark AACR Cancer Progress Report in 2011, and the equally important subsequent annual reports which celebrate advances in basic, translational, and clinical cancer research, all of which have had a major impact on therapeutic development and improved patient care.
During her distinguished career, Foti has been widely recognized by numerous awards from organizations around the world. She was honored recently as one of the 2019 Women of Inspiration and Influence by the Women Business Leaders of the U.S. Health Care Industry Foundation, and has been recognized with the 2018 Women for Oncology Award from the European Society for Medical Oncology. In 2016 alone, Foti was bestowed the PHL Life Sciences Ultimate Solution Award; the Ovarcome Excellence Award; the James Ewing Layperson’s Award from the Society of Surgical Oncology; and the Honorary Member Award from the Oncology Nursing Society. In 2007, the AACR established the first AACR Margaret Foti Award for Leadership and Extraordinary Achievements in Cancer Research.
All UI Cancer Center members are encouraged to attend.