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Cardiologist nominated to be next FDA chief

Robert Califf had long career at Duke University

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration/FLICKR

President Barack Obama has nominated a veteran heart researcher who has run numerous large clinical trials to be the next head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Robert Califf, currently FDA's deputy commissioner for medical products and tobacco, was a top administrator and researcher at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, for more than 30 years before coming to FDA earlier this year. If confirmed by the Senate, Califf would succeed Margaret Hamburg, who stepped down this past March.

Califf, 63, "has long been considered a likely candidate for the top FDA job," Brady Dennis reports in The Washington Post. "He has led scores of pivotal clinical trials, been among the nation's most cited medical authors and for years served on various FDA advisory committees."

Reaction to the 15 September White House announcement has been positive. "Great news!," tweeted Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health.

"He's thoughtful and personable, and I'm sure will be a strong advocate on behalf of the FDA during a very critical period," Aaron Kesselheim of Harvard Medical School told the Associated Press.

Califf is "a soft-spoken Southerner with a passion for improving clinical trials," and extensive knowledge of industry, Nature's Heidi Ledford reported earlier this year.

Califf's confirmation is not assured. Numerous Obama administration nominees have never received confirmation votes, and many have bowed out of the process after waiting a year or more for Senate action.


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