Early life
Waun Ki Hong was born in Korea, the sixth of seven children. He credits his brother Suk Ki Hong, MD, PhD, with stimulating his interest in a medical career. He graduated from Yonsei University College of Medicine in 1967, then served three years in the Korean Air Force. Hong migrated with his wife and family to theRecognition in the field
A national and international leader in medical oncology, he trained clinical oncologists throughout the world and participated in creating national cancer policy through the National Cancer Advisory Board (NCAB), the US FDA Oncologic Drug Advisory Committee, the NCI Board of Scientific Advisors, theDeath
He died at his home in California on January 2, 2019, at the age of 76.Research interests
Hong’s specialty was medical oncology, with expertise in the areas of molecularOrgan preservation
Hong and his colleagues demonstrated the efficacy of combined chemotherapy and radiotherapy for laryngeal cancer without sacrificing the human larynx. He served as co-study chair for the Veterans Administration Cooperative laryngeal preservation trial, which affected the quality of life for advanced laryngeal cancer patients who previously had no other options except total removal of the voice box. This trial also served as a model for organ preservation in many other cancers such as bladder, breast, and anus.Chemoprevention
Hong demonstrated that high-dose retinoids can reverse oral carcinogenesis—a proof of principle that has led to additional ongoing studies in the area of cancer chemoprevention.Personalized targeted therapy
Hong initiated a translational research program at MD Anderson Cancer Center using molecularly-targeted approaches for the treatment of lung cancer. He led the BATTLE (Biomarker-integrated Approaches of Targeted Therapy for Lung Cancer Elimination) trial, which was the first successful prospective randomized trial based on the analysis of molecular findings from real-time biopsies to assign individualized targeted treatment. This trial laid out the groundwork for worldwide development of personalized targeted treatments through the use of tumor profiling.Background
Hong has played a role in shaping public policy in the United States through his service as chair of the Prevention, Clinical and Therapeutic Subcommittee for the National Cancer Institute (NCI) External Board of Scientific Advisors (BSA); the NCI Translational Research Working Group (TRWG); the U.S. FDA Oncologic Drug Advisory Committee (ODAC); and as chair of the Subcommittee of Clinical Investigations for the National Cancer Advisory Board (NCAB). His contributions to cancer research have been recognized through national and international awards, including the Raymond Bourgine Award and the Claude Jacquillat Award from the International Congress on Anti-Cancer Treatment (ICACT) in France and the Ho-Am Prize from the Samsung Foundation in Korea. From the AACR, he received the Joseph A. Burchenal and Rosenthal Foundation Awards and the AACR/Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation Award for Excellence in Cancer Prevention Research. From the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) he received the David Karnofsky Award and the American Cancer Society Award. He also was selected to serve as a member of the ASCO Board of Directors. In 2012, he received the American Cancer Society Medal of Honor for Outstanding Clinical Research. Hong obtained his medical degree from the Yonsei University School of Medicine, Korea, and completed his medical residency at the Boston Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center, followed by a fellowship at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. He served as Chief of Medical Oncology at the Boston VA Medical Center and was a faculty member at both the Boston University School of Medicine and thePublications and books
Hong has authored more than 685 articles in scientific journals and edited 11 books. He was a founding editor of ''Head and Neck Cancer: A Multidisciplinary Approach'' and editor-in-chief of Holland-Frei Cancer Medicine, 8th Edition. He has served on the editorial boards of 17 scientific journals.Selected peer-reviewed original research articles
* Zhang J, Fujimoto J, Zhang J, Wedge DC, Song X, Zhang J, Seth S, Chow CW, Cao Y, Gumbs C, Gold KA, Kalhor N, Little L, Mahadeshwar H, Moran C, Protopopov A, Sun H, Tang J, Wu X, Ye Y, William WN, Lee JJ, Heymach JV, Hong WK, Swisher S, Wistuba II, Futreal PA. Intratumor heterogeneity in localized lung adenocarcinomas delineated by multiregion sequencing. Science 346(6206):256-9, 2014. * Kadara H, Shen L, Fujimoto J, Saintigny P, Chow CW, Lang W, Chu Z, Garcia M, Kabbout M, Fan YH, Behrens C, Liu DA, Mao L, Lee JJ, Gold KA, Wang J, Coombes KR, Kim ES, Hong WK, Wistuba II. Characterizing the molecular spatial and temporal field of injury in early stage smoker non-small cell lung cancer patients after definitive surgery by expression profiling. Cancer Prev Res (Phila) 6(1):8-17, 2013. * Wu X, Ye Y, Rosell R, Amos CI, Stewart DJ, Hildebrandt MAT, Roth JA, Minna JD, Gu J, Lin J, Buch SC, Nukui T, Ramirez Serrano JL, Taron M, Cassidy A, Lu C, Chang JY, Lippman SM, Hong WK, Spitz MR, Romkes M, Yang P. Genome-wide association study of survival in non-small cell lung cancer patients receiving platinum-based chemotherapy. J Natl Cancer Inst 103: 817-825, 2011. * * Gold KA, Kim ES, Lee JJ, Wistuba II, Farhangfar CJ, Hong WK. The BATTLE to Personalize Lung Cancer Prevention through Reverse Migration. Cancer Prev Res (Phila). 4(7):962-72, 2011 * * CycKies MS, Holsinger FC, Lee JJ, William WN, Glisson BS, Lin HY, Lewin JS, Ginsberg LE, Gillaspy KA, Massarelli E, Byers L, Lippman SM, Hong WK, El-Naggar AK, Garden AS, Papadimitrakopoulou V. Induction chemotherapy and cetuximab for locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck: results from a phase II prospective trial. ''J Clin Oncol'' 28(1): 8-14, 2010. * * Papadimitrakopoulou V, Izzo JG, Liu DD, Myers J, Ceron TL, Lewin J, William WN, Atwell A, Lee JJ, Gillenwater A, El-Naggar A, Wu X, Lippman SM, Hittelman WN, Hong WK. Cyclin D1 and cancer development in laryngeal premalignancy patients. Cancer Prev Res (Phila) 2(1):14-21, 2009. * * Spitz MR, Hong WK, Amos CI, Wu X, Schabath MB, Dong Q, Shete S, Etzel CJ. A risk model for prediction of lung cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst 99(9):715-26, 2007. * * Hong WK, Spitz MR, Lippman SM. Cancer chemoprevention in the 21st century: genetics, risk modeling, and molecular targets. ''J Clin Oncol'' 18(21 Suppl):9S-18S, 2000. * * Hong WK, Lippman SM, Itri LM, Karp DD, Lee JS, Byers RM, Schantz SP, Kramer AM, Lotan R, Peters LJ, Dimery IW, Brown BW, Goepfert H. Prevention of second primary tumors with isotretinoin in squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. ''N Engl J Med'' 323:795-801, 1990.References
* "The Department of Veterans Affairs Laryngeal Cancer Study Group. Induction chemotherapy plus radiation compared with surgery plus radiation in patients with advanced laryngeal cancer. ''N Engl J Med'' 324:1685-90, 1991-Study Co-Chairman. * "The Cancer War: A Major Advance." The New York Times, October 8, 1989. * "13 cis retinoic acid in the treatment of oral leukoplakia." ''N Engl J Med'' 315:1501-h 5, 1986. * "HEALTH; Scientists Say an Acne Drug Can Prevent a Type of Cancer. The New York Times, September 20, 1990. * "VITAL SIGNS: REMEDIES; Green Tea Without the Taste of Old Socks. The New York Times, October 20, 1998. * "Medicine: Cancer Shield: A way to block malignancies. Time Magazine, October 1, 1990. * "The BATTLE Trial: Personalizing Therapy for Lung Cancer." Cancer Discovery 1(6):44-53, 2011.External links