Erwin G. Van Meir, Ph.D., was recently recognized at the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Endowed Chairs and Professors Reception as the inaugural holder of the David Hart White Endowed Professorship in Brain Cancer Research.  
 
Anupam Agarwal, M.D., interim dean of the Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine, welcomed Van Meir and other faculty honorees to the reception on Sept. 29 to celebrate their endowed chairs and professorships. 
 
“Each of today’s honorees are contributing to life-changing medicine and research daily. They work tirelessly to offer advances in their fields as well as in prevention, care, therapeutics and discovery,” said Agarwal.
 
Van Meir, who joined UAB in 2019 after leading a brain cancer research team for more than 20 years at Emory University, serves as a professor in the Department of Neurosurgery and an associate director for shared resources for the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at UAB. His research focuses on the molecular basis for human tumor development and innovative therapeutics that will improve patient survival. 
 
The principal modeling systems Van Meir uses in his research lab are malignant brain and eye cancers, although his developments are applicable to the cure of many solid malignancies.
 
After receiving his endowed professorship appointment, Van Meir said it is wonderful that donors are partnering with the Cancer Center “to help foster a culture of research, discovery and entrepreneurship to find the new drugs we need.”