Research

Research Priorities: pharmacodynamics and pharmacogenomics of anticancer agents, pediatrics, acute lymphoblastic leukaemia

William E. Evans is a clinical pharmacist and pharmaceutical scientist. He is recognized for his research on the pharmacogenomics of leukaemia treatment in children. He studied the biochemical mechanisms that underlie inter-individual differences in drug response and applied these discoveries in developing new cancer treatments.

He and his team study the pharmacodynamics and pharmacogenomics of the widely used cancer chemotherapy for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. They discovered the genetic basis for inherited differences in the enzyme “thiopurine methyltransferase” (TPMP) and defined its role in determining the toxicity risk during the development of blood cells and other blood cellular components (haematopoiesis) in patients treated with the agents mercaptopurine and azathioprine.

More recently, his lab has used various strategies that monitor patients’ genomes, such as gene expression profiling or genome sequencing of whole cohorts to discover the importance of both inherited and somatic genome variation in determining the efficacy and toxicity of chemotherapy against leukaemia.

The aim of William E. Evans and his team is to improve the safety and efficacy of treatments for children with cancer by understanding the effects of genome variation on medications. Furthermore, they seek to derive new forms of diagnosis and treatment with the help of this knowledge.

Career

• 2021 Professor emeritus, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, USA
• 2004-2014 CEO, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, USA
• 2002-2004 Scientific Director, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, USA
• 1987-1988 Studies of Pharmacogenomics, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
• 1986-2002 Chair, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, USA
• 1975 Doctoral degree (Pharm.D), University of Tennessee, Memphis, USA

Honours and Memberships

• 2021 Member, Tennessee Healthcare Hall of Fame, Nashville, USA
• 2017 Paul F. Parker Medal, American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP), USA
• since 2016 Member, German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, Germany
• since 2015 Member, National Academy of Medicine, USA
• 2014 Claes Nobel World Betterment Award, National Society of High School Scholars (NSHSS), USA
• 2014 Honorary Doctor of Humanities, Rhodes College, Memphis, USA
• 2013 Oscar B. Hunter Career Award, American Society for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics (ASCPT), USA
• 2012 Remington Medal, American Pharmaceutical Association, USA
• 2009 Pediatric Oncology Award (shared with MV Relling), American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), USA
• 2009 AACR Team Science Award (shared with St. Jude Faculty), American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), USA
• 2008 Honorary Doctor of Science, Ohio State University, Columbus, USA
• 2006 Rawls Palmer Progress in Medicine Award, ASCPT, USA
• 2005 NIH MERIT Award, National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), USA
• since 2002 Member, Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, USA
• 2002-2004 Executive Vice President, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, USA
• 1995 NIH MERIT Award, NCI, NIH, USA
• 1994 Volwiler Research Achievement Award, American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (APhA), USA
• 1991 Leon Goldberg Award, ASCPT, USA
• 1989 Therapeutic Frontiers Lecture Award, American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP), USA
• 1987 NIH MERIT Award, NCI, NIH, USA