LUIS DIAZ, M.D.
Head of the Division of Solid Tumor Oncology,
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center’s Department of Medicine
Dr. Luis Diaz is a member of the Innovatus Advisory Board. He is the Head of the Division of Solid Tumor Oncology in Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center’s Department of Medicine. Dr. Diaz is a leading authority in oncology, having founded several companies that focus on genomic analysis of cancer, including Personal Genome Diagnostics, Inostics and PapGene.
Dr. Diaz is a pioneer in circulating tumor DNA analyses in human cancer, having performed landmark studies in the field. Dr. Diaz researched the development of liquid biopsy that can be used to test the presence of cancer and to monitor its response to therapy. Also, while at Johns Hopkins, Dr. Diaz and his colleagues developed a Pap smear to detect early-stage ovarian and endometrial cancers. Dr. Diaz also led a study of pembrolizumab to target tumors that share a particular biomarker called mismatch repair deficiency. It was the first FDA approval for a cancer treatment based on a biomarker rather than the location in the body where the tumor originated.
Prior to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Dr. Diaz was a member of the Ludwig Center for Cancer Genetics and Therapeutics at Johns Hopkins and the head of the Swim Across America Laboratory at Johns Hopkins.
Dr. Diaz holds undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Michigan, and completed post-doctoral training at Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Diaz is the Chairman of the board of Personal Genome Diagnostics and a member of the board of directors of Jounce Therapeutics. In September 2021, Dr. Diaz was appointed to the National Cancer Advisory Board by President Biden. The board plays an important role in guiding the Director the National Cancer Institute in setting the course for the national cancer research program.