DAVID FLOCKHART, board member of The Personalized Medicine Coalition, died Nov. 26.
Flockhart helped establish a foundation for personalized medicine by developing the P450 Drug Interaction Table, which provides information on how an individual will metabolize certain drugs.
Flockhart, who served as the director of the Indiana Institute for Personalized Medicine at Indiana University, had been elected to PMC’s board of directors just months before he passed away of glioblastoma multiforme on Thanksgiving.
PMC Board Chair William Dalton said Flockhart was an extraordinary leader for the field.
“Dave Flockhart was a unique individual in many ways, combining outstanding scientific skills with integrity and compassion,” Dalton said. “He will be remembered as an impactful scientist, clinician and mentor dedicated to the advancement of personalized medicine to improve the lives of patients everywhere. Indeed, Dave was truly inspirational in his ability to learn and ultimately teach us all in dealing with his own health challenges. He will be sorely missed.”
In an interview published in September in the fall issue of PMC’s newsletter, Education + Advocacy, Flockhart described his experience receiving personalized care. He emphasized the importance of thoughtful interactions with patients.
“It is the simple act of caring that really matters,” he said. “Of course, the advances of knowing what drugs my cancer is more likely to respond to are important. The skill of my surgeon is important, but what matters most when you are undergoing treatment is a kind word, a touch, the simple act of caring.”
Prior to joining Indiana University in the summer of 2001, Flockhart had served as the Francis Cabell Brown Chair, chief of the Division of Clinical Pharmacology and director of the Pharmacogenetics Core Laboratory at Georgetown University Medical Center.
A native of Edinburgh, Scotland, Flockhart obtained a Ph.D. from the Welsh National School of Medicine and an M.D. from the University of Miami School of Medicine.
