Jorge Cortes serves as the director for the Georgia Cancer Center and is a Cecil F. Whitaker Jr., GRA Eminent Scholar Chair in Cancer, after spending 27 years at MD Anderson Cancer Center as Deputy Chair Department of Leukemia, Chair of AML and CML Sections, and Leukemia Fellowship Program Director. He has over 230 grants and research contracts where he was principal investigator and led the approval of 4 leukemia drugs. He has published more than 1300 manuscripts and has received multiple accolades, including a Research.com ranking of Best Scientist (all fields) of 196 in United States and 291 in the world for 2022. Dr. Cortes is a member of the National Academy of Medicine in Mexico and has served as Associate Editor for Blood and as member of the National Board of Directors of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. He is Co-Founder and Co-Director of the International CML Foundation and Vice Chair of the Publications Committee for the American Society of Hematology. He is listed in Georgia 500 Top Individuals in their fields by Georgia Trend Magazine 2022, and recipient of Today’s Innovator Award by the Georgia CORE Trailblazers Celebration 2022. He is a graduate of Leadership Augusta Executive Forum and serves on the Boards of local organizations such as the Cancer Support Services, Augusta Symphony and Greater Augusta Arts Council. As Director of the Georgia Cancer Center, Dr. Cortes continues the Georgia Cancer Center’s mission of obtaining National Cancer Institute (NCI) designation, while keeping the mission of ‘reducing the burden of cancer in the State of Georgia and across the globe through superior care, innovation and education’ at the forefront of all endeavors.