Patrick Hwu, MD

Patrick Hwu, MD, is the president and CEO of Moffitt Cancer Center, one of the nation’s leading cancer hospitals and the only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center based in Florida.

As an internationally recognized tumor immunologist, Dr. Hwu has led pioneering research and clinical efforts to better understand the interactions between tumors and the immune system. He helped launch the field of gene-modified T cells, publishing research on the first chimeric antigen receptor directed against cancer. His work focuses on vaccines, adoptive T-cell therapies and immune resistance. An internationally recognized physician-scientist, Hwu has a proven track record leading collaborative teams to make breakthroughs in science while improving cancer outcomes for cancer patients.

Prior to joining Moffitt, Dr. Hwu was the head of the Division of Cancer Medicine at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, where he held various leadership roles for 17 years. In 2003, he was recruited as the first chairman of the Department of Melanoma Medical Oncology. He was also the associate director of the Center for Cancer Immunology Research (2004) and chair of the Department of Sarcoma Medical Oncology (2012).

Dr. Hwu earned his medical degree from The Medical College of Pennsylvania. He served as a house officer in Internal Medicine at The Johns Hopkins Hospital and completed a fellowship in oncology at the National Cancer Institute, where he worked as a principal investigator leading tumor immunology studies.