The Constance A. Griffin Molecular Pathology Fund
Support a Fellow in Molecular Pathology
The Constance A. Griffin Molecular Pathology Fund was established in 2012 by the Department of Pathology in memory of Constance A. Griffin, M.D., an outstanding leader, teacher, and mentor at John Hopkins and internationally known pancreatic cancer researcher. The income from the fund supports a fellow in the Division of Molecular Pathology for research projects that support their career development.
Dr. Griffin was born in Evansville, Indiana, and grew up in Akron, Ohio. Like her father, a pediatrician, she attended the University of Chicago for her undergraduate degree in biology before earning her medical degree from the University of Cincinnati School of Medicine in 1977. After completing her internal medicine residency at Indiana University in Indianapolis, Dr. Griffin entered the medical oncology fellowship program at Johns Hopkins in 1981. Her strong belief in the importance of somatic genetic changes in cancer motivated her to pursue a fellowship in cytogenetics in the Department of Pathology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.
In 1986, Dr. Griffin joined the faculty of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine as an assistant professor of oncology and medicine, splitting her time between caring for oncology patients and directing the cytogenetics laboratory. Her team analyzed the chromosomes of solid tumors, rather than the more accessible blood malignancies, and took an early and sustained interest in pancreatic cancer.
In 1994, Dr. Griffin moved to the Department of Pathology where she spearheaded the adoption of new molecular cytogenetic methods and contributed to the identification of specific cancer-relevant genes located at the site of chromosome breaks. In 1998, she established and directed the Cancer Risk Assessment Program in the Department of Oncology to counsel patients with a familial history of certain cancers and, beginning in 2005, served as the interim director of the Department of Pathology's molecular pathology division. In 2008, Dr. Griffin was appointed Professor of Pathology and Oncology at Johns Hopkins, a position she held until her death in January 2012 from pancreatic cancer.
During her distinguished career at Johns Hopkins, Dr. Griffin made remarkable discoveries in the field of medical oncology and pathology. Her research helped to advance our understanding of pancreatic cancer, leading to the development of more effective ways to treat pancreatic tumors. Dr. Griffin has left behind a truly laudable legacy within the Division of Molecular Pathology at Johns Hopkins.
If you would like to honor Dr. Connie Griffins's legacy, please consider making a tax-deductible contribution in her memory to the Constance A. Griffin Molecular Pathology Fund through the Department of Pathology's secure online giving form by clicking the button below.
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