January 13, 2006
Note: This information was distributed by Thomson Scientific.
Kimmel Cancer Center Sweeps List of Top Cancer Research Docs
Five Johns Hopkins Cancer Researchers Called Best in Their Field Kimmel Cancer Center Called Research Powerhouse
Scientific journals are researchers’ way of disseminating key findings throughout the medical community. Rather than starting from scratch, investigators build upon published discoveries of others. In cancer research, the “others” are most often five Kimmel Cancer Center investigators, according to the January/February issue of Science Watch, a newsletter published by Thomson Scientific. With more than 90,000 references between them, the investigators were named in the newsletter as the most frequently cited in cancer research from 1995-2005. “The Kimmel Cancer Center solidifies its stance as a research powerhouse in the field of oncology with its researchers accounting for the top five spots in this category,” reports Science Watch.
Calling cancer researchers Bert Vogelstein, M.D., Kenneth Kinzler, Ph.D. James Herman, M.D., Stephen Baylin, M.D., and David Sidransky, M.D. doctors of the decade, Science Watch editor Christopher King said, “The impressive number of citations these exceptional researchers have received is evidence of their profound influence on modern scientific thought."
Science Watch compiled the list by using data from Essential Science Indicators(SM) and evaluating institutions based on papers published and cited in clinical-medicine journals indexed by Thomson Scientific.
Vogelstein and Kinzler, who topped the cancer list with more than 50,000 citations, are the leading experts in molecular genetics and were, in large part, responsible for defining cancer as a disease of genetic mistakes. They have identified the key genetic mutations involved in the development and progression of colorectal cancer and have invented genetic screening tests for people at high risk of developing the disease.
Herman and Baylin are pioneers in epigenetics, or the study of gene alterations that occur without mutating the DNA. Instead of mutating, genes are altered by a cellular mechanism known as methylation. When tumor suppressor genes are hypermethylated, they do not function and stop the growth of cells, which may cause cancers to start. Demonstrating how important these changes are, the FDA has recently approved the first demethylating agent, a drug that reduces methylation in genes and restores their function.
Sidransky studies genetic and epigenetic changes in cancer and is a leader in the study of cancer biomarkers, the earliest molecular changes in the cancer process. His discoveries have been used to develop screening tests for cancer by identifying early markers of cancer in urine, blood plasma, sputum, and other bodily fluids. Sidransky also was among the first to definitively link cigarettes to cancer by identifying the mutation caused by smoking.
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Thomson Scientific Names Doctors of the Decade, 1995-2005
Harvard University researchers dominate the list of highly cited clinical medicine researchers; University of Miami, Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center also make strong showings
Philadelphia, Pa. USA-London UK, January 12, 2006 -- Researchers from Harvard University lead the pack in clinical medicine research by earning the highest number of citations over the past decade, according to a study published in the January/February issue of Science Watch-the bimonthly newsletter published by Thomson Scientific, a business of The Thomson Corporation.
Using data from Essential Science IndicatorsSM, the Science Watch study evaluated institutions based on papers published and cited in clinical-medicine journals indexed by Thomson Scientific (including multidisciplinary journals such as Science and Nature).
Harvard University researchers account for four of the top-10 clinical medicine researchers (eight of the top 20), with Meir J. Stampfer receiving the highest number of citations, 34,872, for his work in the field of Epidemiology. Another Harvard researcher, Walter C. Willett, ranks a close second with 33,724, while University of Miami researcher Charles H. Hennekens ranks third with 27,629 citations. Willett and Hennekens also published in the field of Epidemiology.
Rounding out the top five are Bert Vogelstein of Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center with 27,148 citations, and Kenneth W. Kinzler, also of Johns Hopkins, with 25,785. Both researchers published in the field of Oncology.
"Citations are an acknowledgement of intellectual debt," said Christopher King, editor of Science Watch. "The impressive number of citations these exceptional researchers have received is evidence of their profound influence on modern scientific thought."
Most-Cited Authors in Clinical Medicine
(Ranked by total citations, based on papers published and cited in Thomson-indexed journals between January 1995 and August 2005)
Rank Name Institution Field Citations
1. Meir J. Stampfer Harvard Univ. Epidemiology 34,872
2. Walter C. Willett Harvard Univ. Epidemiology 33,724
3. Charles H. Hennekens Univ. of Miami Epidemiol 27,629
4. Bert Vogelstein HHMI, JHKimmel Oncology 27,148
5. Kenneth W. Kinzler JHKimmel Oncology 25,785
6. Graham A. Colditz Harvard Univ. Epidemiology 25,702
7. Robert M. Califf Duke Univ. Cardiology 24,494
8. John C. Reed Burnham Institute Cell Biology 23,729
9. Eric J. Topol Cleveland Clinic Cardiology 22,829
10. JoAnn E. Manson Harvard Univ. Epidemiology 19,141
From the above list, five authors were featured in the previous Science Watch Clinical Medicine rankings, evaluating 1991-1998 (and published in 1998): Meir J. Stampfer, Harvard University; Charles H. Hennekens, University of Miami; Walter C. Willett, Harvard University; Graham A. Colditz, Harvard University; and Eric J. Topol, Cleveland Clinic Foundation.
Most-Cited Authors in Clinical Medicine: Four Subfields
(Ranked by total citations, based on papers published and cited in
Thomson-indexed journals between January 1995 and August 2005)
Oncology
Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center solidifies its stance as a research powerhouse in the field of Oncology with its researchers accounting for all of the top five. Bert Vogelstein, who is affiliated with Howard Hughes Medical Institute, tops the list with 27,148 citations. Vogelstein was named a Thomson Scientific Laureate in 2005 for his highly influential work.
Rank Name Institution Citations
1 Bert Vogelstein HHMI, JHKimmel 27,148
2 Kenneth W. Kinzler JHKimmel 25,785
3 James G. Herman JHKimmel 13,853
4 Stephen B. Baylin JHKimmel 13,281
5 David Sidransky JHKimmel 12,789
