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Howard A. Fine, MD

Dr. Howard Fine has been appointed to lead the newly established neuro-oncology program at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, effective Feb. 2. He will serve as director of the Brain Tumor Center and associate director for translational research in the Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center at Weill Cornell Medical College, as well as chief of the Division of Neuro-Oncology in the Department of Neurology at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell. He has also been named to the faculty of the Departments of Medicine and Neurosurgery at Weill Cornell Medical College.

At NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell, Dr. Fine will establish a state-of-the-art research and clinical program that will provide cutting-edge treatments for patients with brain tumors. Prior to joining NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell, he built two of the nation’s leading neuro-oncology programs, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Center for Neuro-Oncology at Harvard Medical School and the Neuro-Oncology Branch at the National Institutes of Health. He has run a basic and translational science laboratory throughout his 26-year career, and has been involved in more than 100 brain tumor clinical trials.

“The recruitment of Dr. Howard Fine will be transformational for the Department of Neurology and the clinical neuroscience programs at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital and Weill Cornell Medical College,” said Dr. Matthew Fink, neurologist-in-chief at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell and the Louis and Gertrude Feil Professor and chairman of the Department of Neurology at Weill Cornell Medical College. “He brings knowledge and expertise to a specialized area that we have not pursued in the past, and he will help a key program, the Brain Tumor Center of the Meyer Cancer Center, fulfill its mission and vision.”

“Dr. Fine will collaborate with our world-class neurosurgeons in translating research to the clinical setting, particularly in the area of precision and personalized therapies,” said Dr. Philip Stieg, neurosurgeon-in-chief at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell and professor and chairman of the Department of Neurological Surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College. “Through these interdisciplinary collaborations, we hope to develop new, highly effective treatments for patients with difficult brain tumors.”

Dr. Fine received his medical degree at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. He completed an internship and residency in internal medicine at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, followed by a fellowship in medical oncology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School in Boston. Most recently, Dr. Fine served as deputy director of the Cancer Center and director of the Brain Tumor Center at NYU Langone.

He has authored more than 200 scholarly articles, reviews and book chapters in subjects related to neuro-oncology and brain tumors, and served on the editorial boards of Neuro-Oncology and The Journal of Clinical Oncology. His numerous awards and honors include the Community Leadership Award for Service from the National Brain Tumor Society, The National Service to America Award and the National Cancer Institute Director’s Gold Star Award for vision, leadership and advice in designing cancer programs for the future using neuro-oncology as a model.

“As part of the Meyer Cancer Center, the Weill Cornell Brain Tumor Center at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital will offer its patients the highest level of comprehensive state-of-the-art care delivered by nationally renowned clinical experts from multiple disciplines,” Dr. Fine said. “With this level of world-class clinical and scientific expertise, along with an institutional commitment to the vision of a better future for patients suffering with brain tumors, NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell is uniquely positioned to make a huge impact on the field by providing innovative and highly effective treatments for patients with brain tumors.”

NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center

NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, located in New York City, is one of the leading academic medical centers in the world, comprising the teaching hospital NewYork-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medical College, the medical school of Cornell University. NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell provides state-of-the-art inpatient, ambulatory and preventive care in all areas of medicine, and is committed to excellence in patient care, education, research and community service. Weill Cornell physician-scientists have been responsible for many medical advances — including the development of the Pap test for cervical cancer; the synthesis of penicillin; the first successful embryo-biopsy pregnancy and birth in the U.S.; the first clinical trial for gene therapy for Parkinson’s disease; the first indication of bone marrow’s critical role in tumor growth; and, most recently, the world’s first successful use of deep brain stimulation to treat a minimally conscious brain-injured patient. NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital also comprises NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center, NewYork-Presbyterian/Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital, NewYork-Presbyterian/Westchester Division, NewYork-Presbyterian/The Allen Hospital, and NewYork-Presbyterian/Lower Manhattan Hospital. The hospital is also closely affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian/Lawrence Hospital in Bronxville. NewYork-Presbyterian is the #1 hospital in the New York metropolitan area, according to U.S. News & World Report, and consistently named to the magazine’s Honor Roll of best hospitals in the nation. Weill Cornell Medical College is the first U.S. medical college to offer a medical degree overseas and maintains a strong global presence in Austria, Brazil, Haiti, Tanzania, Turkey and Qatar. For more information, visit www.nyp.org and weill.cornell.edu.

Weill Cornell Medical College

Weill Cornell Medical College, Cornell University’s medical school located in New York City, is committed to excellence in research, teaching, patient care and the advancement of the art and science of medicine, locally, nationally and globally. Physicians and scientists of Weill Cornell Medical College are engaged in cutting-edge research from bench to bedside aimed at unlocking mysteries of the human body in health and sickness and toward developing new treatments and prevention strategies. In its commitment to global health and education, Weill Cornell has a strong presence in places such as Qatar, Tanzania, Haiti, Brazil, Austria and Turkey. Through the historic Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, the Medical College is the first in the U.S. to offer its M.D. degree overseas. Weill Cornell is the birthplace of many medical advances — including the development of the Pap test for cervical cancer, the synthesis of penicillin, the first successful embryo-biopsy pregnancy and birth in the U.S., the first clinical trial of gene therapy for Parkinson’s disease, and most recently, the world’s first successful use of deep brain stimulation to treat a minimally conscious brain-injured patient. Weill Cornell Medical College is affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, where its faculty provides comprehensive patient care at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center. The Medical College is also affiliated with Houston Methodist. For more information, visit weill.cornell.edu.