UM School of Medicine's Department of Radiation Oncology Announces that Preeminent Scientist, Dr. Zeljko Vujaskovic, will Transition to New Role in the Department

Dr. Vujaskovic has made major contributions to research in hyperthermia and radiation countermeasures; Will work with faculty and staff on major targeted research projects

University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) Radiation Oncology Department Chair William F. Regine, MD, FACR, FACRO, announced today that Zeljko Vujaskovic, MD, PhD, Professor and Vice Chair for Research in the Department of Radiation Oncology, will transition from his current faculty position to a new role in the Department, effective December 3, 2021.

In his new role, he will work closely with Department of Radiation Oncology faculty and staff, focusing specifically on hyperthermia and FLASH-based research projects, industry collaboration opportunities, extramural funding efforts, and continued countermeasure activities. A national search has been underway to recruit an experienced physician/scientist radiation oncologist as the department’s new Vice Chair for Research.

Dr. Vujaskovic is an internationally recognized NIH-funded radiation oncologist/biologist whose more than 30-year career has been defined by transdisciplinary research. His work bridges the gap between basic science and clinic research, with the ultimate goal of improving outcomes and long-term quality of life for cancer patients. He joined the UMSOM in 2012 from his previous position at Duke University Medical Center.

“Dr. Vujaskovic’s clinical and research prowess in the areas of hyperthermia and radiation countermeasures/protectors/sensitizers has brought the UMSOM Department of Radiation Oncology to unparalleled levels of success and national recognition,” said Dr. Regine, who is the Isadore & Fannie Schneider Foxman Chair, Department of Radiation Oncology. “We are fortunate that he leaves us with a wonderful legacy research infrastructure and leadership team in place, and that he will now focus on these targeted areas that have significant impact.”

At UMSOM, Dr. Vujaskovic established the new Division of Translational Radiation Sciences (DTRS) within the Department of Radiation Oncology, while continuing to focus on hyperthermia by creating one of the largest clinical thermal therapy services in the country. His division’s research has been continuously supported by NIH, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, and other federal agencies, as well as industry sponsors. Most recently, he received a five-year, $12.2 million U19 award from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) to establish a NIAID Center for Medical Countermeasures Against Radiation at the UMSOM.

Isabel Lauren Jackson, PhD, Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology, who co-founded DTRS with Dr. Vujaskovic, became DTRS director earlier in 2021.

“Dr. Vujaskovic is a visionary leader and physician-scientist whose career has been dedicated to bringing new therapeutics to clinical trial to increase the likelihood of cancer cure and improve the quality of life of cancer survivors,” Dr. Jackson said. “His unique ability to bring people together from across academia, industry, and federal agencies has advanced our understanding of how tumors and healthy tissue respond to radiation therapy and formidably impacted patient care – particularly those with difficult to treat disease.  We look forward to having him continue in this new targeted role in the Department.”

UMSOM Dean E. Albert Reece, MD, PhD, MBA, who is Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs and the John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor, commented: “Dr. Vujaskovic has been one of our most distinguished and prolific scientists.  We are privileged to have recruited him to the UMSOM, where he has had an enormous impact in the Department of Radiation Oncology, and has served as a tremendous mentor and faculty leader over the past 9 years. We are grateful and delighted that he will continue to serve a valuable role in the department in the future.”

About the University of Maryland School of Medicine

Now in its third century, the University of Maryland School of Medicine was chartered in 1807 as the first public medical school in the United States. It continues today as one of the fastest growing, top-tier biomedical research enterprises in the world -- with 46 academic departments, centers, institutes, and programs, and a faculty of more than 3,000 physicians, scientists, and allied health professionals, including members of the National Academy of Medicine and the National Academy of Sciences, and a distinguished two-time winner of the Albert E. Lasker Award in Medical Research.  With an operating budget of more than $1.2 billion, the School of Medicine works closely in partnership with the University of Maryland Medical Center and Medical System to provide research-intensive, academic and clinically based care for nearly 2 million patients each year. The School of Medicine has nearly $600 million in extramural funding, with most of its academic departments highly ranked among all medical schools in the nation in research funding.  As one of the seven professional schools that make up the University of Maryland, Baltimore campus, the School of Medicine has a total population of nearly 9,000 faculty and staff, including 2,500 students, trainees, residents, and fellows. The combined School of Medicine and Medical System (“University of Maryland Medicine”) has an annual budget of over $6 billion and an economic impact of nearly $20 billion on the state and local community. The School of Medicine, which ranks as the 8th highest among public medical schools in research productivity (according to the Association of American Medical Colleges profile) is an innovator in translational medicine, with 606 active patents and 52 start-up companies.  In the latest U.S. News & World Report ranking of the Best Medical Schools, published in 2021, the UM School of Medicine is ranked #9 among the 92 public medical schools in the U.S., and in the top 15 percent (#27) of all 192 public and private U.S. medical schools.  The School of Medicine works locally, nationally, and globally, with research and treatment facilities in 36 countries around the world. Visit medschool.umaryland.edu