Adel K El-Naggar

Councillor of HNODIS (Jul 14 - Jul 16)

Councillor of HNODS (Sep 08-Sep 13)

Professor of Pathology and Head and Neck Surgery, The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Texas

Current Research Interests
Adel El-Naggar, M.D., Ph.D., is an internationally renowned head and neck pathologist with 20 years experience in this field. He contributed extensively to the histopathology, clinicopathologic, flow cytometric, and molecular diagnostics of head and neck tumors with over 400 peer-reviewed publications. He has made a significant contribution integrating molecular and biological markers in the diagnosis and management of head and neck cancer. One of his major contributions was in 1990 with the establishment of the first comprehensive tissue acquisition programs in the nation. Through genomic analysis, his group has, for the first time, identified a set of genes that distinguishes conventional squamous carcinoma from other phenotypic squamous carcinoma variants. He was the first to identify loss of imprinting at the IGF-2 gene in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, and the t(11:19) translocation as a sole cytogenetic alteration in mucoepidermoid carcinoma of salivary gland. Dr. El-Naggar is also a leader in head and neck surgical pathology and was selected to outline the molecular alterations in salivary gland tumors for WHO classifications of head and neck tumors. In 2002 he established and directs the head and neck cancer pathology training program at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center. In 1997, Dr. El-Naggar was awarded The B. Rothschild Senior Research Scholarship at the Curie-Institute in France, and he holds the Kenneth D Műller Endowed Professorship. He is the recipient of the Presidential Citation of The American Head and Neck Surgical Society, the highest honor bestowed by this society. Nationally, Dr. El-Naggar led the Correlative Science Subcommittee of the SWOG Head and Neck Committee from 2002-2006, is the only pathologist on the NCI-Head and Neck Steering Committee, and is a member of the RTOG Steering, Pathology and Surgery Committees.