CEOI MEMBER SINCE 2018

Dr. James Downing is president and CEO of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. He is leading a $12.9 billion commitment to accelerate progress in the research and treatment of pediatric cancer and other catastrophic diseases by expanding St. Jude’s clinical care and scientific programs. A renowned leader in pediatric cancer research, Dr. Downing focuses his work on understanding the genetic basis of cancer and using that information to improve treatments. He was instrumental in launching the Pediatric Cancer Genome Project, an ambitious sequencing effort to discover why childhood cancer arises, spreads, and resists treatment. Beyond research, Dr. Downing champions St. Jude Global, a program dedicated to increasing pediatric cancer survival rates internationally through a global alliance of health care providers working to ensure children everywhere have access to quality care. Dr. Downing joined St. Jude in 1986 after training in anatomic pathology at Washington University in St. Louis and completing a fellowship in hematopathology at the University of Florida in Gainesville. He has received numerous honors, including election to the National Academy of Medicine and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 2022, he was named one of the 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare by Modern Healthcare.