David P. Faxon to head cardiology at University of Chicago
David P. Faxon to head cardiology at University of Chicago
July 1, 2000
David Parker Faxon, MD--a pioneer in the development of non-surgical techniques such as angioplasty for restoring blood flow through clogged coronary arteries, and the current president-elect of the American Heart Association--has been appointed chief of the section of cardiology at the University of Chicago Medical Center, effective July 1, 2000.
Dr. Faxon, 55, comes to the University of Chicago from the University of Southern California, where he was a professor of medicine and chief of the Division of Cardiology at the Los Angeles County and USC Medical Center and University Hospital.
Routinely included on lists of the best cardiologists in the United States, Dr. Faxon is best known for his basic and clinical research on new techniques for opening the plaque-filled vessels that deliver blood to the heart muscle and on methods to prevent restenosis, the tendency for those vessels to close again after treatment. He is currently the principal investigator of a nationwide trial of intravascular radiation therapy to prevent the growth of new tissue into reopened blood vessels.
"David brings new strengths, depth and energy to an already impressive program in interventional cardiology," said Harvey Golomb, MD, professor and chairman of the department of medicine at the University. "He has done important work on non-surgical treatment of cardiovascular problems, on new tools for opening arteries, on the added risks for patients with diabetes, on preventing restenosis, and on the comparison of competing technologies in cardiology. He is a welcome addition to our faculty."
A native of Manchester, New Hampshire, Dr. Faxon earned his BA from Hamilton College, in Clinton, New York in 1967 and graduated from the Boston University Medical School in 1971. He did his residency at the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, followed by a fellowship in cardiology at Boston University Hospital. He then taught at Boston University from 1976 to 1993, rising quickly from instructor to professor of medicine, director of interventional cardiology and acting chief of cardiology. After 17 years of teaching in Boston, he moved to USC in 1993 as professor of medicine and chief of cardiology.
The author or co-author of more than 135 articles in peer-reviewed journals, editor of three books, and author of 20 book chapters, Dr. Faxon serves on the editorial boards of several journals, including Circulation, the American Journal of Cardiology, and the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. He has served as an investigator and on the data and safety monitoring boards for many nationwide clinical trials of new cardiovascular therapies, including the BARI, EPIC, IMPACT, and STARS trials.
Dr. Faxon has also been a leader at the local and national level for the various heart-health organizations. He has served as president of the Massachusetts and Los Angeles affiliates of the American Heart Association and is currently a member of the AHA's national board of directors and chairman of the AHA's scientific publishing committee. He will begin a one-year term as president of the American Heart Association in 2001.