Lupus Foundation And American College of Rheumatology Honors George Tsokos

A national leader in lupus research and chief of Rheumatology at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) George Tsokos, MD, was recently awarded with two prestigious awards by the Lupus Foundation of America and the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) during the 2014 ACR Annual Scientific Meeting held in Boston.

George Tsokos was awarded with the Evelyn V. Hess Research Award from the Lupus Foundation of America in recognition of his significant contributions regarding the origins and management of lupus. Lupus is an autoimmune condition that affects mainly women between 15 and 45 years old. The disease leads to inflammation and damage of several body tissues, such as joints, kidneys, skin, lungs blood vessels, brain and heart.

Tsokos also received the Distinguished Basic Investigator Award from the American College of Rheumatology, an award given to basic researchers that make important contributions to the rheumatology field.

The BIDMC Chair of Medicine Mark Zeidel said in a press release: “For more than 20 years, George Tsokos has led investigations that have been instrumental in defining the molecular and biochemical abnormalities in T-cells of individuals with lupus. This work has not only furthered our understanding of the disease’s origins, but has led to the discovery of new therapeutic targets that are helping to improve the lives of patients with this debilitating disease.”

Tsokos received his PhD from the University of Athens, Greece, and trained at the Georgetown University and at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). He served as a member of the Uniformed Services at Walter Reed Hospital. Now, he serves as BIDMC Center Director of a FOCIS Center of Excellence (Federation of Clinical Immunology Societies.) He was also president of the Clinical Immunology Society, Chair of NIH Study Sections and worked as editor in several scientific journals. He was elected member of the Association of American Physicians.