SAN ANTONIO (April 30, 2010) – Ian M. Thompson Jr., M.D., professor and chair of urology at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio and executive director of its Cancer Therapy & Research Center, has been elected a trustee of the American Board of Urology.
Founded in 1935, the American Board of Urology (ABU) establishes and maintains standards of certification for urologists to ensure high quality, safe, efficient and ethical practice. Dr. Thompson’s six-year term to the 12-member board began February 28, 2010.
An internationally recognized expert in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of urologic malignancies, Dr. Thompson has authored more than 400 scientific publications. He is principal investigator of the San Antonio Center for Biomarkers of Risk of Prostate Cancer, a study of over 3,700 South Texas men, and he served as the leader of the National Cancer Institute’s (NCI) Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial.
Dr. Thompson holds several national posts, including vice chair of the Early Detection Research Network of the NCI and chair of the Genitourinary Committee of the Southwest Oncology Group, the largest clinical trials organization sponsored by the NCI. He previously served as president of the Society of Urologic Oncology and chair of the Residency Review Committee for Urology.
Dr. Thompson received his undergraduate degree from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and his medical degree from Tulane University. After a residency in urology at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, he completed a fellowship in urologic oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. Dr. Thompson retired as a colonel from the U.S. Army, having served as chair of the Department of Surgery at Brooke Army Medical Center as well as Commander of the 41st Combat Support Hospital. He served in Saudi Arabia and Iraq as a general surgeon in a combat support hospital during Operation Desert Storm/Shield. Dr. Thompson is a Diplomate of the American Board of Urology.
The Cancer Therapy & Research Center at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio is one of the nation’s leading academic research and treatment centers, serving more than 4.4 million people in the high-growth corridor of Central and South Texas including Austin, San Antonio, Laredo and the Rio Grande Valley. CTRC is one of the elite cancer centers in the country to be named a National Cancer Institute-designated Cancer Center, and is one of the only three in Texas. A world leader in developing new drugs to treat cancer, the CTRC Institute for Drug Development is internationally recognized for conducting one of the largest oncology Phase I clinical drug programs in the world, and participates in the clinical and/or preclinical development of many of the cancer drugs approved by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration. For more information, visit www.ctrc.net