New Dean Takes the Helm at Long School of Medicine

Robert Hromas, M.D., FACP, assumed the role of dean in February at the Long School of Medicine.
Robert Hromas, M.D., FACP, assumed the role of dean in February at the Long School of Medicine.

In February, Robert A. Hromas, M.D., FACP, assumed the roles of dean of the Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long School of Medicine and vice president for medical affairs for UT Health San Antonio.

His selection was announced Oct. 31, 2017, by University President William L. Henrich, M.D., MACP, after an extensive nationwide search was conducted by a 29-member committee led by Francisco G. Cigarroa, M.D., professor of pediatric transplantation surgery, former university president and former UT System chancellor.

Dr. Hromas previously served as chair of the Department of Medicine at University of Florida Health and vice president of the University of Florida Physicians Clinical Practice Association.

Prior to his work at the University of Florida, he served as chief of hematology-oncology and deputy director of the Cancer Center at the University of New Mexico, assisting that institution in being named a National Cancer Institute-Designated Cancer Center. Before that, he was deputy director of the Indiana University Cancer Center, also assisting it in obtaining its first NCI designation.

He earned a bachelor of science in biology at Wheaton College in Illinois and his medical degree at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston. Dr. Hromas completed a post-doctoral research fellowship in the regulation of immunoglobulin gene expression and a residency in internal medicine at the University of Iowa. He also did a post-doctoral research fellowship in transcriptional regulation of hematopoiesis at the University of Washington.

A seasoned investigator, Dr. Hromas has published more than 160 scholarly research papers, has been continuously funded by the National Institutes of Health for two decades, and has chaired several NIH and American Cancer Society study sections.

His laboratory has isolated and characterized several novel DNA repair proteins that play crucial roles in both cancer chemotherapy resistance and in HIV integration.

Dr. Henrich said, “Dr. Hromas has the requisite skills to launch a new era of excellence and propel the institution to the highest rank of academic medical centers.”

Dr. Hromas, who described being humbled and honored by the appointment, said, “I feel as if I have been training for this all my life, and that this is a remarkable opportunity to make a huge impact on health not just in San Antonio but everywhere.”

He continued, “UT Health San Antonio is poised to bring new treatments and new diagnostics to the patients for whom there has been little other effective therapies. Our goal is to bring hope to those who have had no hope before, and to relieve suffering that could not be relieved before.”

Dean Hromas is leading a biotechnology company called Dialectics Therapeutics, which is based in San Antonio. This company is creating new cancer drugs and testing them for effectiveness in treating cancers resistant to chemotherapy. They have a lead drug progressing to the clinic for treatment of pancreatic cancer, small-cell lung cancer, and triple-negative breast cancer.

In addition, Dr. Hromas is the author of “Einstein’s Boss: 10 Rules for Leading Genius,” which is selling well in the U.S. and 25 other countries. “Einstein’s Boss” tells the story of Abraham Flexner, who was Albert Einstein’s boss at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton. While explaining Flexner’s role in guiding scientific developments, Dr. Hromas, with coauthor and son Dr. Christopher Hromas, shares 10 leadership lessons for anyone governing geniuses. The book is an official resource of the American Management Association, and HarperCollins has published it in most European and Asian countries.


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In the 2018 issue of Future

Future is the official magazine of the Joe R. & Teresa Lozano Long School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. Read and share inspiring stories highlighting our medical alumni, faculty and students who are revolutionizing education, research, patient care and critical services in the communities they serve.

View the 2018 issue

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