Bradley named James W. Keller, MD Distinguished Professor in Radiation Oncology

Jeffrey Bradley, MD, FACR, FASTRO, professor and executive vice chair in the Department of Radiation Oncology in the Emory University School of Medicine, was honored with the James W. Keller, MD Distinguished Professorship in Radiation Oncology at a ceremony on August 31. The endowed professorship was established in 2007 with a generous gift from the Emory Department of Radiation Oncology and a number of patients and family members of the venerable James W. Keller, MD, for whom the professorship was named.

The professorship supports necessary research, training, and education in the department and provides the resources needed to recruit and retain the best faculty. The appointment has a renewable five-year term and is awarded to exceptional academic leaders such as Dr. Bradley, who joined Emory in 2019 from Washington University where he served as the S. Lee Kling Endowed Chair in Radiation Oncology.

Bradley is an expert in proton beam therapy and stereotactic body radiation therapy for patients with early-stage lung cancer. As a leading investigator in innovative radiation therapy technologies, he has initiated several transformative clinical trials for patients with unresectable stage III lung cancer.

"This distinguished professorship was invaluable in recruiting Dr. Bradley, an outstanding leader who will benefit the department in many ways," says Walter J. Curran Jr., MD, FACR, FASCO, executive director of Winship Cancer Institute. Curran, who serves as the Lawrence W. Davis Chair of Radiation Oncology states, "The work that he is already doing here at Emory and Winship is phenomenal and builds on the great work that he has done his whole career."

Bradley began his medical career as a student at the University of Arkansas in Little Rock. He completed an internal medicine internship at Northwestern University’s Evanston Hospital and completed his residency and a research fellowship in the Department of Radiation and Cellular Oncology at the University of Chicago Medical Center. He began at Washington University as an Instructor of Radiology in 1998. In 2002, he was appointed Assistant Professor and then Associate Professor in 2006. Two years later he was named director of the S. Lee Kling Center for Proton Therapy, where he led Washington University's School of Medicine and Barnes-Jewish Hospital’s effort to open the world’s first single-room proton center. He achieved the rank of full professor in 2011.

"It is a privilege to be a part of a department and cancer center that is leading the way in research for emerging treatment options such as proton therapy," says Bradley. "I am grateful to the department and Dr. Keller for this honor."

Keller joined Emory in 1972 as a faculty member and hematologist in the Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology. His commitment to excellence in clinical care, teaching, and research made him a gifted physician who inspired everyone he met. In 1985, Keller decided to pursue radiation oncology with the idea that he wanted to study cancer treatments that focused on the early stages of the disease with hopes for a cure. Keller spent nearly 16 years as a faculty member in Emory's Department of Radiation Oncology before retiring in August 2008. Known for his team-based approach to cancer care, Keller left a lasting legacy of team spirit within the department. He was appointed as Emeritus Professor shortly after his retirement.

"It makes me most happy and I am deeply honored that such a person with an enviable academic background as well as being a strong patient advocate should reside in this distinguished professorship," says Keller.

Interim Provost of Emory University and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Jan Love, PhD says, "In naming Dr. Jeffrey Bradley the new James W. Keller, MD, Distinguished Professor in Radiation Oncology we recognize the traits shared by Dr. Keller and Dr. Bradley: a reflective nature that contributes to their ability to connect with patients in a way that builds trust and understanding, an essential component to making groundbreaking research discoveries."

Bradley is a founding member of the Particle Therapy Oncology Group of North America and Lung Cancer Committee Chairman for NRG Oncology, a National Cancer Institute-funded research group. He has authored over 180 peer-reviewed publications.