Peter Marks is an American hematologist oncologist serving as the director of the

Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research The Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER) is one of six main centers for the Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which is a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The current Dir ...

within the

Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respon ...

. He was appointed to the position in 2016 after previously serving as deputy director. He has two children a daughter and a son. Dr. Marks resides in Washington, D.C. with his wife.

Education

Marks earned a Bachelor of Science degree from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, followed by a

Doctor of Medicine Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin language, Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a profes ...

and PhD in

cell and molecular biology Cell and molecular biology are related fields of biology that are often combined. * Cell biology * Molecular biology * Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (disambiguation) * GRE Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology Test * '' International ...

from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

in the lab of Fredrick R. Maxfield. As an undergraduate, he volunteered at Mount Sinai St. Luke's in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, where he worked in the

radioimmunoassay A radioimmunoassay (RIA) is an immunoassay that uses radiolabeled molecules in a stepwise formation of immune complexes. A RIA is a very sensitive in vitro assay technique used to measure concentrations of substances, usually measuring antigen conc ...

lab. He completed an internal medicine residency and

Oncology Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγκος (''ó ...

training at the

Brigham and Women's Hospital Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) is the second largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School and the largest hospital in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Along with Massachusetts Gener ...

Career

After completing his training, Marks worked at the

as a clinician-scientist, and later served as Clinical Director of Hematology. He then worked in the pharmaceutical industry, where he worked on the development of hematology and oncology products. He later managed the Adult Leukemia Service at

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

and served as the Chief Clinical Officer of the

Yale New Haven Hospital Yale New Haven Hospital (YNHH) is a 1,541-bed hospital located in New Haven, Connecticut. It is owned and operated by the Yale New Haven Health System. YNHH includes the 168-bed Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale New Haven, the 201-bed Yale New Haven ...

Cancer Center. Marks joined the

as deputy director in 2012, and was promoted to director in 2016. In May 2020, he was selected to serve as a member of the

White House Coronavirus Task Force The White House Coronavirus Task Force was the United States Department of State task force during the Trump administration that "coordinate and overs wthe administration's efforts to monitor, prevent, contain, and mitigate the spread" of cor ...

, although he left a few days later over concerns that his participation would represent a conflict with his position at FDA. Marks also played a role in establishing

Operation Warp Speed Operation Warp Speed (OWS) was a public–private partnership initiated by the United States government to facilitate and accelerate the development, manufacturing, and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics. The firs ...

, a partnership between the federal government and various private companies to develop a

COVID-19 vaccine A COVID19 vaccine is a vaccine intended to provide acquired immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 ( COVID19). Prior to the COVID19 pandemic, an e ...

, but left the project in May 2020 shortly after it was launched because Marks believed he would be more useful in his role as chief regulator of vaccines as the Director of FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. In 2021, Marks served as a plenary speaker at the State of the Science Research Summit.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marks, Peter American oncologists Columbia University alumni New York University alumni New York University Grossman School of Medicine alumni Yale University faculty Food and Drug Administration people Living people Year of birth missing (living people)