Department of Medicine honors the passing of R. Wayne Alexander, MD, PhD

It is with great sadness that we share the news of the passing of R. Wayne Alexander, MD, PhD, who served as the Chair of the Department of Medicine from 1999 to 2013, and the R. Bruce Logue Professor in the Department of Medicine’s Division of Cardiology.

“Wayne was an inspiration to all of us as an incredible clinician-scientist who made many important contributions to our field. He was also a devoted mentor who spent endless hours with his trainees and inspired many of today’s leaders in cardiology,” says W. Robert Taylor, MD, PhD, Director of the Division of Cardiology and Interim Chair of the Department of Medicine.

During Dr. Alexander’s esteemed career as a cardiologist, he was known for his research in the field of vascular biology. His lab focused on molecular mechanisms which control the cells in the blood vessel wall and, in particular, the role of inflammation in vascular disease. His research led to a new understanding of the pathogenesis of human diseases and the development of novel therapeutics. Many of the 30-plus trainees from Dr. Alexander’s lab are now leaders of academic medicine in the United States and elsewhere in the world.

Dr. Alexander began his research career as a PhD student at Emory University in his late teens and early twenties. He published over 250 scientific publications and edited ten books. He was also a senior editor of the cardiology textbook, “Hurst’s The Heart,” and served on the editorial boards of numerous publications. Dr. Alexander contributed notably to the field of vascular biology, taking basic observations to applications that could be applied clinically, including drug development. In honor of his extensive impact, Emory University’s Department of Medicine created the R. Wayne Alexander Excellence in Research Accomplishment Award to recognize significant contributions to medical knowledge realized through a body of research over an individual’s career in either basic research or clinical and translational research.

Dr. Alexander received his doctorate in physiology from Emory University and his medical degree from Duke University School of Medicine. He completed both his residency and cardiology fellowship training at Duke University. Dr. Alexander then served as a staff associate at the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health from 1971 to 1973. Before joining Emory as the R. Bruce Logue Professor and Chief of Cardiology, he was an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and the Brigham and Women’s Hospital. From 1988 to 1999, Dr. Alexander was Director of the Division of Cardiology before serving as Chair of the Department of Medicine at Emory from 1999 to 2013. Dr. Alexander was active in numerous professional societies and served as Vice President of Research and on the Board of Directors for the American Heart Association.

“We have lost a creative physician-scientist and gifted academic leader. We all have great memories of stimulating discussions of medicine and science driven by Wayne that crossed disciplines and led to key Emory initiatives in predictive health and inflammation,” says David S. Stephens, MD, returning soon from his role as interim EVPHA of the Woodruff Health Sciences Center.

Please join the Department of Medicine in celebrating Dr. Alexander’s legacy. He will be remembered as an important pillar of Emory University, but even more so, as a friend and mentor to many of us. Services will be held at the Cathedral of St Philip, 2744 Peachtree Rd NW, Atlanta, Georgia 30305, Thursday, January 19, at 10:00 a.m. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be sent to The Dr. Wayne Alexander Graduate Student Stipend Fund at The University of Mississippi Foundation, Attn: Nikki Neely Davis, 406 University Avenue, Oxford, Mississippi, 38655.