Clark T Sawin Memorial History of Endocrinology Lecture: Estrogens Over 90 Years: Discovery, Indications, and Implications
Richard J Santen, MD
Univ of VA Hlth System, Charlottesville, VA
Disclosures: Advisory Board Member; Self; therapetics MD. Consulting Fee; Self; therrapeutics MD.
Dr. Richard Santen, a Professor of Medicine in the Division of Endocrinology at the University of Virginia, maintains an active medical practice with recognition nationally as an outstanding clinical Endocrinologist. He has held several academic positions including Chief of the Division of Endocrinology and Vice Chair of Medicine at the Penn State School of Medicine and Chair of Medicine at Wayne State University. He recently served as the President of the Endocrine Society and previously initiated and nurtured its International Scholars Program and led the effort to develop its long range financial plan as the Chair of the Finance committee. His research interests have focused on the development of aromatase inhibitors for treatment of breast cancer, mechanisms relating estrogens to breast cancer, the biology and natural history of endocrine-dependent breast cancer, and the effects of vaginal estrogens on circulating hormone levels. He has been funded consecutively by the National Institutes of Health for nearly four decades and has published over 400 manuscripts and chapters, predominantly related to the role of estrogen in breast cancer development and treatment. He was the lead author of the Endocrine Society Scientific Statement on Menopausal Hormone therapy and on a review of the Management of Menopausal Symptoms in Breast Cancer Survivors. For his work in the development of aromatase inhibitors, he received the Susan Komen Foundation, Brinker International Award for breast cancer clinical research; the Clinical Chemistry Distinguished Science Award; the Robert H. Williams Distinguished Leadership Award of the Endocrine Society; and the William L. McGuire Memorial Lectureship Award for breast cancer. Professional memberships include the American Society for Clinical Investigation, the Association of American Physicians, and the American Society of Clinical Oncology. Major current interests are on mentorship, the means to enhance the careers of Next-Generation endocrinologists, and a book to inform the lay public about the history of the discovery of estrogen and controversies surrounding its clinical development.
Evan R Simpson, BSC,PHD
Centre for Reproductive Health, QMRI, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Disclosures: Nothing to disclose
Professor Simpson is a world leader in the field of estrogen biosynthesis. His work has focused on the study of aromatase, the enzyme responsible for oestrogen biosynthesis. His group was the first to clone the gene encoding aromatase, and to show that tissue-specific regulation was under the control of tissue-specific promoters. His research led to the concept that oestrogen action in post-menopausal women is due to local production in sites such as the breast, bone and brain. This has led to the search for drugs for breast cancer therapy which specifically inhibit aromatase expression in the breast but spare other sites where it serves a critical role, such as in the bone, brain and blood vessels. Professor Simpson's work also led to the creation of the first aromatase knockout (ArKO) mouse, which is a model of oestrogen insufficiency that compares with the phenotype of humans with natural mutations in aromatase. This resulted in the discovery of new and unexpected roles for oestrogens in both males and females. In particular, the role of oestrogens in the maintenance of bone metabolism in men and the role of oestrogens in the regulation of energy homeostasis in both sexes are among these discoveries. His current research is focused on the role of oestrogen in several important health conditions, including obesity, diabetes, osteoporosis and, of course, breast cancer.