Lewis Cantley

Lewis C. Cantley is an American biochemist and cancer researcher. He is currently the Meyer Director of the Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center at Weill Cornell Medicine and a professor of cancer biology in medicine at the same institution. He is also a professor of cancer biology in pharmacology at the Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences.

Cantley received his B.S. in chemistry from West Virginia University in 1972 and his Ph.D. in biochemistry from Vanderbilt University in 1977. He then did postdoctoral work at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research.

Cantley's research focuses on the signaling pathways that control cell growth and metabolism, particularly emphasizing the role of these pathways in cancer. He is best known for discovering the enzyme phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K), which plays a critical role in cell signaling and is frequently activated in cancer. This discovery has led to the developing of several PI3K inhibitors, which are now being tested in clinical trials for cancer treatment.

In addition to his research, Cantley is also an advocate for increased funding for cancer research and greater collaboration between basic researchers and clinicians. He has received numerous awards and honors for his work. Some of his most notable awards include:

• The AACR-CRI Lloyd J. Old Award in Cancer Immunology
• The Pezcoller Foundation-AACR International Award for Cancer Research
• The Stanley Cohen Prize in Epigenetics
• The American Cancer Society's Medal of Honor
• The American Association for Cancer Research's Lifetime Achievement Award

Cantley is also a recipient of several other awards, such as the Society of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center William D. Coley Award, the West Virginia University Academy of Distinguished Alumni, and the American Association for Cancer Research's Team Science Award.

Cantley is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Association of Cancer Research, and the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. He is also a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.