Dr. Jorge E. Cortes received his medical degree from the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, Mexico City. In September 2019, he joined Augusta University as the Director of the Georgia Cancer Center in Augusta, Georgia, after being at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center for 27 years, where he was Professor of Medicine and Internist and had many roles in the Department of Leukemia and the Division of Cancer Medicine, including Deputy Department Chair, Chair of AML and CML Sections, Deputy Division Chair for MDACC Network.
He was chair of the executive IRB from 2012 to 2019, and Chair of the Executive Committee of the Medical Staff from 2012 to 2015. He held the Jane & John Justin Distinguished Chair in Leukemia Research at MDACC from 2015 to 2019. He now holds the Cecil F. Whitaker Jr., GRA Eminent Scholar Chair in Cancer endowment.
As Director, 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. He has over 230 grants and contracts
where he was principal investigator and has led the approval of 4 drugs currently
available for patients with leukemia. Dr. Cortes has authored more than 1,000 peer-review
original research manuscripts with numerous other accolades towards his name and practice.
Dr. Cortes is a member of the National Academy of Medicine in Mexico and he has received
numerous awards including the Service to Mankind Award, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
in 2007, The Otis W. & Pearl L. Walters Faculty Achievement Award in Clinical Research,
MDACC, in 2007, the William Randolph Hearst Foundations Faculty Achievement Award
in Education, MDACC, in 2013, Samuel J. Hassenbush III, M.D., Ph.D., Physicians Referral
Service Leadership and Institutional Service Award at MD Anderson in 2018, the John
Goldman Prize from the International CML Foundation in 2018, and Castle Connolly America’s
Top Doctor in 2013, 2020 and 2021. He was listed in "A list of highly influential
biomedical researchers, 1996-2011" by Boyack et al. Eur J Clin Invest, 2013, and named
among the listing of Highly Cited Researchers in 2014 by Thomson Reuters. Dr Cortes
has served as Associate Editor for Blood and serves on the editorial board of multiple
medical journals; he is currently a member of the Journals Committee of the American
Society of Hematology. Dr Cortes is a member of the Board of Directors of the International
Chronic Myeloid Leukemia Foundation, President of the Latin American Leukemia Net,
member of the National CML Society Medical Advisory Board, member of the International
Steering Committee of the Japanese Society of Medical Oncology, and serves on the
Augusta University Faculty Development Committee. He has previously served in the
National Board of Directors of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. He is a graduate of
the 2021 Class of Leadership Augusta Executive Forum and serves on the Boards of the
Augusta Symphony and Greater Augusta Arts Council.
