Muhammad Furqan, MD, medical oncologist in the University of Iowa Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center, is the recipient of a 2020 Cancer Clinical Investigator Team Leadership Award (CCITLA) from the National Cancer Institute (NCI).

The annual award recognizes mid-career clinical investigators at NCI-designated cancer centers who demonstrate exceptional leadership skills while participating in and promoting cancer clinical trials. The award also provides financial assistance to directly support recipients in their work.

Furqan, who specializes in treating lung cancer, is one of eight investigators across the nation to receive the 2020 award. He was nominated by George Weiner, MD, director of Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center.

“Dr. Furqan has worked tirelessly to open clinical trials to develop new therapies for lung cancer patients,” Weiner says. “His dedication to launching these important studies is helping to reduce the burden of cancer in Iowa and beyond.”

Furqan, clinical associate professor of internal medicine–hematology, oncology, and blood and marrow transplantation in the UI Carver College of Medicine, serves as the principal investigator on several clinical trials, including investigator-initiated studies.

He actively collaborates at the regional and national levels to develop innovative therapeutic trials for lung cancer and mesothelioma through the Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium thoracic working group and the National Clinical Trial Network Alliance respiratory committee.