The Legacy of R. Lee Clark

MD Anderson is building on its storied history as the organization observes its 80th anniversary and heads into the next phase of cancer prevention, research and treatment advances. A pioneering figure prominently featured in our story is R. Lee Clark, M.D., the organization’s first president who joined in 1946 and led until his retirement in 1978, leaving an extraordinary legacy of growth and innovation.

In celebration of Clark’s legacy are a series of articles co-authored by Charles Balch, M.D., the institution’s fourth head of Surgery, and Bryant Boutwell, Dr. P.H., who served MD Anderson for 15 years in various roles including assistant vice president for Academic Affairs. The series takes us back to the life and times of the trailblazing Clark and the people he tapped to grow Texas’ new state cancer hospital into what is now considered the nation’s top hospital for cancer care.

Read about Clark and the early, formative days of MD Anderson.