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Jesse Leonard Steinfeld, M.D.
Before
arriving at MCG in November 1983 to assume the presidential post
from the retired fourth president, Dr. William H. Moretz, Dr.
Steinfeld was Dean of the Medical College of Virginia School of
Medicine, an appointment he held since 1976.
Dr. Steinfeld began his career as an Instructor of Medicine at the University of California in San Francisco in 1952. He then moved to George Washington University School of Medicine, Washington, D.C., in 1954. During this time, he bean developing what evolved into a lifelong interest in cancer research, serving as Director of the National Cancer Institute's Radioisotope Laboratory and Associate Editor of the Organization's journal. In 1959 he began teaching at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, where he served as Assistant, Associate and then, Professor of Medicine until 1968. During this period, Dr. Steinfeld was President of the 21st Pan American Sanitary Conference; Chief of the U.S. Delegation to the 23rd, 24th, and 25th World Health Assemblies; and Chief of the U.S. Delegation to the 19th, 20th, and 21st Pan American Health Organization Directing Councils. In 1968, Dr. Steinfield was responsible for strengthening the label on cigarette packages to warn: "The Surgeon General has determined that cigarette smoking is dangerous to your health."
In 1973, Dr. Steinfeld became Director of the world-renowned Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center and Professor of Medicine and Oncology at Mayo Medical School, Rochester, Minnesota. In 1974, he returned to California at Irvine and Chief of Medical Service, Veterans Administration Hospital, Long Beach. He accepted the appointment as Dean and Professor of Medicine at the Medical College of Virginia in 1976.
Dr. Steinfeld is a member and past President of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. He is a Fellow in the American College of Physicians and served as a Governor of the organization from 1970 to 1973. In addition, he is a member of the American Federation for Clinical Research, the American Association of University professors, the Society of Nuclear Medicine, the American Society for Hematology, the International Society of hematology ad the American Public Health Association, among others.
His numerous honors include being named an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Health and President-Elect of the Association of Military Surgeons of the United States. He has served on the Governing Council of the American Public Health Association and as Chairman of the American Cancer Society's ad hoc Task Force on Tobacco and Cancer Research Opportunities. He received the Golden Torch Award, City of Hope, Los Angeles; and has been named a Kentucky Colonel, and honorary citizen of Texas and 1971 Man of the Year in his home town, West Aliquippa, Pennsylvania.
Through the years, Dr. Steinfeld has been a prolific writer, authoring papers, mostly on cancer research, published in many professional journals. He has served on the Editorial Board of "Cancer Research" since 1965 and is Associate Editor of "Medical and Pediatric Oncology." He served in this same capacity for "Annals of Internal Medicine" from 1973 to 1977.
Inauguration Ceremony Program