Since 2003, the IMF has honored an outstanding physician each year with the Robert A. Kyle Lifetime Achievement Award. The award, named for its first recipient, is presented to an individual whose body of work in the field of multiple myeloma has made significant advances in research, treatment, and care of myeloma patients.
Our honorees’ work reflects the words of Dr. William Mayo, founder of Mayo Clinic, who challenged the nature of patient care nearly a century ago when he said “The needs of the patient are the only needs to be considered.”
2024 Awardee:
This year’s Robert A. Kyle Lifetime Achievement Awardee is Shaji K. Kumar, MD, Professor of Medicine and Chair of the Myeloma, Amyloid, and Dysproteinemia Group at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN.
Dr. Kumar has had a long and sustained impact on the field of myeloma and related disorders. He has over 600 peer-reviewed publications in the field, and has led numerous phase I, II, and III clinical trials advancing new treatments for patients with the disease. His laboratory research contributions are extensive, and include development of new targeted therapies as well as several biomarkers for response assessment and prognosis. Of particular note, he led the development of the International Myeloma Working Group response criteria, as well as established the currently used definitions for Minimal Residual Disease (MRD) in myeloma. Dr. Kumar’s research accomplishments also include contributions to understanding the role of tumor microenvironment in myeloma, mechanisms of disease progression, risk stratification of plasma disorders. In 2021, Dr. Kumar was recognized at this event with the Brian G.M. Durie Outstanding Achievement Award.
