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Benjamin G. Neel (born 1956) is an American cancer biologist and a Professor of Medicine at NYU Langone Health. He served as Director of the Perlmutter Cancer Center at NYU Langone Health from 2015-2023, and formerly served as the Director of Research for Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and a Canada Research Chair at the University of Toronto. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and Royal Society of Canada.

Early life and education

Neel was born in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania but grew up in Philadelphia and Cherry Hill, New Jersey. Shortly following his birth in 1956, Neel's parents divorced and he grew up with his mother who worked as a bookkeeper. While a student at Cherry Hill High School East, Neel was selected to present his original research at the Monmouth Junior Science Symposium in 1972 and 1973. Following his junior year, Neel participated in a National Science Foundation program in biochemistry. Upon returning home, his grandmother was diagnosed with cancer, which sparked his interest in becoming a cancer researcher.

Following high school, Neel completed his Bachelor's degree at Cornell University in 1977 and his PhD in viral oncology at Rockefeller University. Neel returned to Cornell for his medical degree, which he earned in 1983. As a graduate student at Rockefeller, Neel began research on the activation of endogenous oncogenes by slowly transforming RNA tumor viruses. Following his medical degree, Neel conducted his residency in internal medicine at Beth Israel Hospital and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard University.

Career

Upon completing his postdoctoral fellowship, Neel served on the faculty of Harvard Medical School from 1988 to 2006. In 1993, Neel was the inaugural recipient of the Gertrude Elion Award of the American Association for Cancer Research. During his tenure at the school, Neel served as the Director of the Cancer Biology Program and as deputy director for Basic Research, Hematology Division at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. While serving in these roles, Neel continued to conduct research on gene mutations. In 2002, Neel and co-senior author Barbara B. Kahn identified a protein that enables the body to overcome resistance to the hormone leptin. In 2006, he was one of the lead scientists who discovered that mutations in the SOS1 gene account for many cases of Noonan syndrome.

In 2006, Neel was recruited from Harvard to serve as the Director of the Ontario Cancer Institute at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. He was also appointed a professor of Medical Biophysics and the Chair of Signal Transduction and Human Disease at the University of Toronto and University Health Network. In 2007, Neel was appointed a Canada Research Chair at the University of Toronto. His research at the University of Toronto helped to unravel cell signaling pathways involved in developmental disease which resulted in new therapeutic approaches to cancers caused by KRAS mutations. He also contributed to the greater understanding on the functional genomics of breast cancer and generated new models of ovarian cancer.

Neel eventually returned to the United States in 2014 to serve as Director of the Perlmutter Cancer Center and Professor of Medicine at NYU Langone Health. While serving in this role, Neel was elected a member of the National Academy of Sciences in 2022. The following year, in recognition of his efforts while in Toronto, Neel was named a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.

On November 1, 2023, members of the NYU Langone Health community were informed via email that Neel had, effective immediately, been suspended from his position as Director of the Perlmutter Cancer Center. The New York Times subsequently confirmed that Neel was let go for his postings and reposts on the X social media platform, which included "offensive caricatures of Arab people" and posts that "appeared to question the extent of the death toll in Gaza from Israel’s relentless bombing campaign.". Neel is suing the hospital for wrongful dismissal.

Personal life

Neel and his wife Phyllis Koton Neel have three daughters together. He is Jewish.

References

1. ^ "Benjamin G. Neel". National Academy of Sciences. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
2. ^ Reinhart, Anthony (June 14, 2006). "Cancer institute gains top scientist". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
3. "Science students to get inside view of space telescope". The Daily Register. April 7, 1985. Retrieved September 17, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
4. ^ "Dr. Benjamin Neel: Inspired to Pursue a Career in Cancer Science". American Association for Cancer Research. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
5. ^ "Benjamin G. Neel, Md, PhD, Named Director Of The Laura And Isaac Perlmutter Cancer Center At NYU Langone Medical Center". OncLive.com. October 23, 2014. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
6. "Researchers Identify Protein That Overcomes Leptin Resistance". Science Daily. April 19, 2002. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
7. "Research finds mutation that causes Noonan syndrome". Harvard Gazette. December 7, 2006. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
8. "U of T Scarborough professor among 13 new Canada Research Chairs". University of Toronto. May 25, 2007. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
9. ^ "Dr. Benjamin Neel, Director of NYU Langone's Perlmutter Cancer Center, Is Elected to National Academy of Sciences". NYU Langone Health. May 11, 2022. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
10. "The Royal Society of Canada: Class of 2023" (PDF). Royal Society of Canada. September 2023. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
11. "NYU Cancer Center Director Benjamin Neel suspended over social media posts". The Cancer Letter. October 2023. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
12. ^ "Cancer doc speaks out on suit against NYU Langone for termination over anti-Hamas posts". The Times of Israel. March 31, 2024.
13. ^ Joseph Goldstein, NYU Langone Fired Him for His Anti-Hamas Posts. He’s Suing., New York Times, November 23, 2023
14. "Dana Neel, Andrew Macrae". The New York Times. July 29, 2012. Archived from the original on July 30, 2012. Retrieved September 17, 2023.

External links

• Benjamin G. Neel publications indexed by Google Scholar

• Living people
• 1956 births
• Scientists from Pennsylvania
• Harvard Medical School faculty
• Academic staff of the University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine
• Rockefeller University alumni
• Cornell University alumni
• Weill Cornell Medical College alumni
• Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada
• Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences
• Canada Research Chairs
• Jewish American physicists