ASTCT Lifetime Achievement Award 

Dr. Gerard Socie

Gerard Socie, MD, PhD, is 66 years old and married, with four children. He trained in Oncology and Hematology in Paris, where he earned a MD degree in 1988 and PhD degree in 1993. He became an associate professor in 1997 and full tenure professor position in hematology in 2001. He was head of the unit and director of the transplant program at the Hôpital Saint-Louis (Paris, France) from 2005 to 2022 (and head of the department of hematology/immunology/oncology from 2013-2021). He has been leading an INSERM research unit since 2001.

Dr. Socie was president of the French Society of Hematology (2014-2018) and president of the National University Council in Hematology (2015-2021). As of November, 2023, he is the president of the scientific committee of the French National Cancer Institute, a role he will serve in for the next five years. He has been a member of different scientific societies over the years, including: ASH (1992), EHA (1993), EBMT (1992 and past-chairman of the late effect WC), ASTCT (1995 and past-chairman of the late effect WC).

Dr. Socie supervised more than 40 MD and 15 PhD theses and mentored over 50 foreign fellows from abroad. He is a reviewer for main peer reviewed journals in hematology (Blood, Haematologica, and BJH), oncology (JCO, Nature Cancer, JAMA Oncology), and for the New England Journal, Nature Medicine and JCI.

Dr. Socie's main field of research both clinically and in the lab is on Graft-versus-host disease. His research also includes aplastic anemia, Paroxysmal Nocturnal Hemoglobinuria (PNH), malignant tumors after treatment of aplastic anemia and late effects after allogeneic stem cell transplantation.

ASTCT Public Service Award

Robin Roberts

Robin Roberts is the versatile co-anchor of America’s top-rated morning news program, Good Morning America, with more than 30 years of experience as a producer, reporter and anchor in radio and television.

Raised on her beloved Mississippi Gulf Coast, Robin was destined for success. Surrounded by her remarkable family -- love, inspiration, and creativity was never in short supply. As a child, Robin understood the power of both aspiration and inspiration. Her father, Lawrence Roberts, was a Colonel in the United States Air Force, and a member of the famed Tuskegee Airmen. Her mother, Lucimarian Roberts, was a social worker, educator, and Chairperson of the Mississippi Board of Education. Bolstered by their encouragement and her talent, Robin excelled academically, and also in athletics as a basketball star at her alma mater, Southeastern Louisiana University. After college, her ambition and love of the game inspired her to take a shot off the court with a local news broadcast. Her knowledge of sports was a given, but it was her preternatural passion for broadcast journalism that provided the building blocks for her future.

After navigating the waters of local news in several U.S. cities, including Nashville and Atlanta, Robin joined ESPN as a host of SportsCenter at 29, one of many career slam-dunks. Robin’s preparation, knowledge, and fearlessness prevailed as she encouraged people everywhere to ‘get in the game.’

After several years as a contributing correspondent and news reader, in 2005, Robin joined Diane Sawyer and Charlie Gibson as a co-anchor of Good Morning America. She would go on to cover countless news events and entertainment specials, from Hurricane Katrina and the Inauguration of President Barack Obama, to the Academy Awards, where she has served several times as the host of the red carpet pre-show.

Robin’s path to realizing her dreams was not without its hardships. Twice she faced life-threatening illnesses. She credits the love and support from her family, friends, colleagues and viewers for helping her overcome breast cancer, and a rare and often fatal blood disease called myelodysplastic syndrome, referred to as MDS. Through it all, she honored her friends and supporters by choosing to make “her mess her message,” something her mother said often. She opened her heart and soul, lifted the veil, and shared her struggle with the world on Good Morning America, and on a primetime 20/20 special entitled Robin’s Journey, hoping to inspire and encourage those in need. In 2012, her tireless documentation of her own medical odyssey won a Peabody Award. In 2013, she was the recipient of the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the ESPYs. In 2014, Robin opened up even more in the pages of her second book, Everybody’s Got Something, making the New York Times best sellers list.

As President of Rock'n Robin Productions she actively oversees creative content and new business partnerships. Robin and the team at Rock’n Robin Productions are forging a new path into the world of content development. Robin is keenly aware of the current nature of programming and is extremely excited to expand upon the boundaries of traditional content and uncover the limitless possibilities of media. As she often says, “not even the sky is the limit.”

Source: rocknrobin.tv/robin-roberts

CIBMTR Distinguished Service Award

Prof. Xiao-Jun Huang, MD

Prof. Xiao-Jun Huang is currently the director of Chinese National Clinical Research Center for Hematologic Diseases, Fellow of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Foreign Corresponding Member of the French Academy of Medicine. The chairman of Chinese Medical Doctor Association (CMDA) Hematologist Branch and the director of China Marrow Donor Program (CMDP), the former chairman of Chinese Medical Association (CMA) Hematology Branch. He is also the member of IACRLR World Committee.

He established a series of key techniques of non-T cell depleted haploidentical transplantation, which gradually developed to the G-CSF/ATG based protocol (Beijing Protocol). With this novel protocol, the 3-year survival rate increased from approximately 20% to about 70% in haploidentical transplantation treating leukemia, which prompted haplo-HSCT from "formidable” to “feasible”. The key techniques of the G-CSF/ATG based protocol (Beijing Protocol) have been extended to numerous countries such as South Korea, Italy, France, and so on. In China, more than 190 centers have applied this protocol, making the proportion of haploidentical transplantation increased from almost zero to 65% (in 2022). Currently, it is the most widely used haplo-HSCT system with the best curative effect around the world.

He optimized and standardized the universally key techniques of HSCT. He improved the efficacy of elderly patients through the optimization of conditioning regimen and GvHD prophylaxis. He established novel protocols of prophylactic/salvage strategies for leukemia relapse, including modified donor lymphocyte infusion and low-dose interferon post HSCT.

He also established a total therapy strategy for refractory/relapsed leukemia, with the guidance of minimal residual disease and GvHD monitoring. He greatly promoted the rapid development of HSCT in China through writing guidelines and popularizing the above universal techniques. In the past fifteen years, the number of allo-HSCT cases has increased by 11 times (1,062 cases in 2008 to 12,637 cases in 2022) in China. He also established an international HSCT training center and a demonstration teaching base. It has undertaken the visiting scholar training program of the American Society of Hematology (ASH), and trained transplant professional physicians from Malaysia, Macedonia, India, Chicago and other well-known teaching hospitals. As the leader of Chinese Blood and Marrow Transplantation Registry Group (CBMTR), he strengthened the communication and cooperation between CBMTR with CIBMTR or EBMTR.

In recognition of his academic achievements and contributions to promoting cooperation around the world, he was awarded “Guanghua Engineering Science and Technology Prize (this is the highest honor in engineering from China)”, “Scientific and technological progress Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation (this awards the most outstanding achievements from China)”, the “Saint-Antoine-EBMT Achievement Award”, “IACH International Collaboration Award” and so on.