| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
September 24, 2009 |
Contact: Randolph Fillmore (813) 850-7614 rfillmore@nasw.org
ATA selects new President-Elect and two new Board members
(Palm Beach, Sept. 24, 2009) —Members of the American Thyroid Association (ATA) have elected Gregory A. Brent, MD, professor of medicine and physiology at the University of California Los Angeles. Election results were announced today by Secretary/Chief Operating Officer, Richard T. Kloos, MD, during the ATA’s Annual Meeting being held Sept. 23-27 in Palm Beach, Florida. The president-elect serves a one-year term (2009-2010) followed by a one-year term as president (2010-2011) and a one-year term as past president (2011-2012).
Dr. Brent, who also serves as chief of the Endocrinology and Diabetes Division at the Veterans Administrations Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, has been an ATA member since 1988 and was the ATA’s secretary/chief operating officer from 2003 to 2007. He has served on numerous ATA boards, co-chaired meetings and committees and was associate editor of Thyroid from 1997 to 1999.
His research interests include the molecular mechanisms of thyroid hormone and retinoic acid action, iodine transport in hormone-dependent cancers, and thyroid disease during pregnancy.
“I appreciate and value the confidence in me as expressed by ATA members,” said Dr. Brent. “My focus as president-elect and as president will be to help sustain ATA’s authoritative voice in clinical thyroid disease and research and to work harder with out traditional partners and sister endocrine societies, the international thyroid community, thyroid patient groups and industry.”
Dr. Brent noted with gratitude his mentoring by ATA members throughout his training and vowed to similarly reach out to basic scientists, clinicians, fellows and trainees who share an interest in thyroid diseases.
Despite an era of limited research resources, Dr. Brent pledged to “recruit and retain younger ATA members” and to “promote basic research.”
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Drs. Pearce and Kopp elected to ATA Board of Directors
Elizabeth N. Pearce, MD, MSc, was elected to 4-year term on the ATA Board of Directors at the Annual Business Meeting, held September 24, 2009 in Palm Beach, Florida. Dr. Pearce is an associate professor of medicine at the Boston University School of Medicine’s in the Section of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Nutrition. She is also a staff endocrinologist at Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates. Active as a clinician, researcher and educator, her research interests include thyroid function during pregnancy, the sufficiency of dietary iodine in the U.S., the thyroid effects of environmental perchlorate exposure, and the cardiovascular effects of subclinical thyroid dysfunction.
Dr. Pearce, an ATA member since 2003, chairs the ATA’s Public Health Committee and is a member of the ATA Task Force on Thyroid and Pregnancy.
“The ATA is my professional home,” said Dr. Pearce. “As a member of the Board, I am going to help further the ATA’s mission to educate health professionals as well as the public about thyroid issues. We also need to expand fundraising, continue building collaborations and grow ATA membership.”
Also elected to the Board of Directors for a 4-year term Peter Kopp, MD, an associate professor in the Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism and Molecular Medicine at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University, who has been an ATA member since 1997. A member of the ATA’s Program Committee for a number of years, Dr. Kopp also served as basic science co-chair for the ATA’s 2007 Annual Meeting. His clinical activities focus on patients with thyroid dysfunction and thyroid cancer.
“The ATA’s future depends on integrating and educating the next generation of clinicians and young investigators and providing them with opportunities to further their careers,” said Dr. Kopp. “This goal is tied to my second interest, which is trying to increase funding for thyroid research. My third goal is to maintain and improve the ATA’s level of educational opportunities for professionals.”
As a new Board member, Dr. Kopp also advocates enhancing ties with sister organizations nationally and internationally, as well as helping the ATA maintain an active voice in public policy and patient advocacy.
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The American Thyroid Association (ATA) is the lead organization in promoting thyroid health and understanding thyroid biology. The ATA values scientific inquiry, clinical excellence, public service, education, collaboration, and collegiality.
A non-profit medical society founded in 1923, the ATA fulfills its mission through supporting excellence and innovation in research, clinical care, education, and public health. ATA members are physicians and scientists who work to enhance the understanding of thyroid physiology and pathophysiology, improve the diagnosis and treatment of thyroid diseases, and promote the education of physicians, patients, and the public about thyroid disorders. The official journal “Thyroid” of the ATA is published monthly. “Clinical Thyroidology” is published online monthly for the benefit of clinicians and scientists around the world.
Thyroid diseases are among the most common disorders of the endocrine system, affecting almost 13 million Americans alone. The ATA has extensive online information for patients on thyroid disease (in English and Spanish) serving the clinician as a resource for patients and the public who look for reliable information on the Internet. To further benefit patients, the ATA publishes an online journal “Clinical Thyroidology for Patients.” The Alliance for Patient Education was formed in 2002 to offer an exchange of information between the ATA and patient education groups: ThyCa: Thyroid Cancer Survivors’ Association, Inc.; the Light of Life Foundation, and the Graves’ Disease Foundation. A public forum is held each year in conjunction with the ATA annual meeting.
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The 80th Annual Meeting of the ATA will be in Palm Beach, Florida, from September 23-27, 2009 at The Breakers Hotel. All registration and program information is available at www.thyroid.org. We welcome your participation.
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ATA 6066 Leesburg Pike, Suite 550, Falls Church, VA 22041 * (703) 998-8890 (Fax) (703) 998-8893 * www.thyroid.org
