JORGE E. CORTES, M.D.

Distinguished Professor of Leukemia Research
Deputy Chair, Department of Leukemia
Chief, CML & AML Sections
MD Anderson Cancer Center
Houston, TX

Dr. Cortes is an oncologist and leukemia specialist with over 25 years experience working in diverse health care settings. Dr. Cortes is a renowned professional for his research on the treatment and management of patients with myelodysplastic syndromes, acute and chronic leukemias, and myeloproliferative disorders. He currently serves as the Chair of the Chronic Myeloid leukemia (CML) Section in the Department of Leukemia at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. In addition, Dr. Cortes holds appointments as the D.B. Lane Cancer Research Distinguished Professor for Leukemia Research and Professor of Medicine in the Department of Leukemia at MD Anderson Cancer Center, as well as being a member of the graduate faculty for the University of Texas Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences in Houston, Texas.

In addition to his multiple academic appointments, Dr. Cortes has served as the principal investigator of numerous clinical trials and complex interventions. Throughout his esteemed career, Dr. Cortes has provided expert advice as a medical consultant to numerous companies, including Astra Zeneca, Schering Plough, Jensen, Glaxo Smith-Kline, Novartis Pharmaceuticals, and Rhone-Poulenc Rorer.

As a prolific scholar, Dr. Cortes has authored and edited over 500 peer-reviewed medical publications and book chapters. Furthermore, he has a distinguished record of editorial activities, including serving as Editorin-Chief of Current Hematological Malignancies Reports and Clinical Leukemia and on the editorial boards of the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Leukemia, Clinical Cancer Research, Leukemia and Lymphoma, the Open Clinical Cancer Journal, Haematologica, Blood and the American Journal of Hematology. He is a member of numerous well-respected national and international societies and organizations including serving as the Founder and President of the Latin American Leukemia Net, Member of the Executive Committee of the International CML Foundation, and Co-Chair of the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research - Chronic Leukemia Working Committee. Moreover, Dr. Cortes is an active member of several organizations including, but not limited to, the Agrupacion Mexicana para el Estudio de la Hematologia, the American Association for Cancer Research, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American Society of Hematology, the Ecuatorian Oncology Research Group, the Harris County Medical Society, the Medical Society of the Instituto Nacional de la Nutricion Salvador Zubiran, the Mexican Association of Internal Medicine, the NCI-ASH Hematology Clinical Trials Workshop Steering Committee, and the Texas Medical Association.

Throughout his impressive tenure, Dr. Cortes has been the recipient of numerous prestigious awards and honors, including the Faculty Scholar Award from MD Anderson Cancer Center, the Annual Celgene Young Investigator Achievement Award for Clinical Research in Hematology, the Dr. John J. Kenny Award from and the Service to Mankind Award from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, the Otis W. and Pearl L. Walters Faculty Achievement Award in Clinical Research from MD Anderson Cancer Center. Furthermore, in 2008, Dr. Cortes was honored with the establishment of the Jorge Cortes Lecture at the Agrupacion Mexicana Para el Estudio de la Hematologia.

Dr. Cortes received his Doctor of Medicine from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico in Mexico City. He further completed residency in internal medicine from the Instituto Nacional de la Nutricion Salvador Zubiran in Mexico City. In addition, he completed his hematology/oncology fellowship at the University of Texas Health Science Center and MD Anderson Cancer Center. Dr. Cortes also holds a Bachelor of Science degree in biological sciences from Centro Universitario Mexico in Mexico City.