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.
2023 Awardee
Dr. María-Victoria Mateos, MD, PhD, is Head of Myeloma and clinical trials Unit at the Haematology Department and Professor of Medicine at the University of Salamanca, Spain. She serves as coordinator of GEM (Spanish Myeloma Group), with direct involvement in the design and development of clinical trials. She has coordinated many clinical trials especially in the setting of transplant ineligible and smoldering myeloma and these trials have profoundly influenced current options for the management of these patient populations.
She has published over 400 papers in international journals with an H index of 96. Dr. Mateos is also a member of the IMWG (International MM Working Group), IMS (International MM Society), EHA and ASH. She has served on the ASH Scientific Committee on plasma cell diseases between 2015-2019 and on the EHA’s Scientific Program Committee and Advisory Board since 2013 until 2020 being chair of the Scientific Program Committee in 2019.
Dr. Mateos has been Councillor on the EHA Board since 2015 for a four-year mandate and she is now a member of the IMS executive board, member of the European School of Haematology (ESH) Scientific committee and member of the ASCO scientific program committee. She received the Brian G.M. Durie Award in 2019 and the Bart Barlogie Award in 2022 recognizing excellence in myeloma research. She is the President of the National Society of Hematology since October 2022 for a four-year mandate.