The Private Diagnostic Clinic (PDC) has named John H. Sampson, MD, PhD, MHSc, MBA, as its new president. The PDC is the physician practice of Duke Health, with 1,650 members practicing in Duke hospitals and more than 100 clinics in North Carolina.
Sampson will continue to serve as chair of the Duke Department of Neurosurgery.
The PDC is one of the first and the largest academic multi-specialty group practices in the United States. In addition to patient care, PDC members conduct cutting-edge research and train the future health care workforce as faculty in the Duke University School of Medicine.The PDC collaborates with other entities within the Duke University Health System to expand opportunities and advance Duke's clinical, research, and academic missions.
Sampson is the Robert H. and Gloria Wilkins Distinguished Professor and co-leader of the Duke Cancer Institute Neuro-Oncology program. He is a recognized leader in the surgical resection and experimental treatment of complex brain tumors. He currently focuses his clinical practice on treating patients with benign and malignant brain tumors and divides his time between his clinical practice and an active research laboratory investigating new modalities of direct brain tumor infusion and immunotherapy.
After earning his medical degree from the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Sampson went on to pursue his PhD in neuropathology and MHSc in clinical research at Duke University. He did his research training under the internationally renowned scientist, Darell D. Bigner, and Nobel Laureate Gertrude Elion. Recognizing the need for additional health sector management and leadership training, he completed an MBA with Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.
He has authored more than 240 peer-reviewed publications documenting the development of multiple immunotherapeutic agents that have affected the standard of care in glioblastoma multiforme, the most malignant form of brain cancer. He has remained continuously funded by the National Institutes of Health since 2000. Sampson is a member of the prestigious National Academy of Medicine as well as the Association of American Physicians.