AGA InstitutePresentation of the Julius M. Friedenwald Medal to Daniel K. Podolsky, MD
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Growing Up in the Midwest
Daniel Kalman Podolsky was born in Detroit, Michigan, on May 17, 1953. The third of 5 children of Harold and Ruth Podolsky, whose parents emigrated from Russia to Detroit in the early 20th century, Dan was raised in Southfield, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. Dan's father graduated from Wayne State University Medical School during the Great Depression. To earn money for tuition, he worked as a research assistant during medical school and, in a harbinger of Dan's interests, studied the physiology
Harvard and Massachusetts General Hospital
Because of his extraordinary scholastic record, Dan was accepted to Harvard College with advanced standing as a sophomore. He planned to major in science and decided to do research during the summer after his first year. Through his cousin, the late Jay Schumaker, who was then a fellow in gastroenterology, he was introduced to Milton Weiser, a young investigator who later became chief of the Division of Gastroenterology at the State University of New York in Buffalo and is now retired, and Kurt
Seminal Research
Dan's early research explored intestinal epithelial differentiation and the control of proliferation. He also studied the role of glycoproteins but ultimately concluded that their complex structure resisted a ready analytical approach to fully understanding their function in the intestine. In studying glycoproteins, he discovered characteristic alterations in patients with ulcerative colitis, thereby paving the way for current concepts about altered barrier function of the gut as a
Chief and Mentor
In 1989, Dan succeeded Kurt Isselbacher as chief of the MGH GI Unit when Isselbacher became director of the newly created MGH Cancer Center. At the young age of 35 years, Dan was only the third chief in the history of the unit. Later he also became the Mallinckrodt Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. He acted quickly to enhance the clinical and endoscopic faculty, expand the facilities, strengthen the fellowship training program, and foster both basic and clinical research. He
Academic Leader
Dan's administrative responsibilities extended well beyond the MGH GI Unit. At MGH, Dan was appointed by Dennis A. Ausiello, Jackson Professor of Clinical Medicine and physician-in-chief, to serve as vice chair of the Department of Medicine; he also served as chair of the MGH Executive Committee on Research. In 2005, James Mongan, President and Chief Executive Officer of Partner, HealthCare System, Inc, invited Dan to become chief academic officer of Partners, a position that gave him oversight
Clinical Excellence
Dan is a superb clinician. He can handle the most complex medical cases and deal with challenging psychological issues posed by a patient with the type of “end-stage” functional disease that reaches the chief of gastroenterology at MGH. He was often the clinician his colleagues turned to for advice about difficult cases. At MGH, he saw patients in the office regularly, attended on both the gastroenterology consult and inpatient medical services, and even cared for primary care patients,
AGA Service and Leadership
Dan has been active in the AGA since the early 1980s, with a gamut of contributions that encompass research, training, and practice and that culminated in his election as president of the AGA. His many roles in the AGA have been enhanced by his experience as a member of the Advisory Council of the National Institutes of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Among numerous awards during his illustrious career are two of the most prestigious AGA distinctions: delivering the Morton J.
An End and a Beginning
In 2008, Dan was lured away from the only professional home he had ever known to become the third president of the University of Texas (UT) Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, where he also holds the Philip O'Bryan Montgomery, Jr, MD, Distinguished Presidential Chair in Academic Administration and the Doris and Bryan Wildenthal Distinguished Chair in Medical Science and is a professor of internal medicine. His departure from the GI Unit, MGH, Harvard Medical School, and Partners was
The Podolsky Family
Dan's greatest pride is reserved for his family (Figure 2). Until the move to Dallas, Carol was the pediatrician for the Newton, Massachusetts, school system. Their children are Matt, age 26, who is a graduate of Harvard College (where he majored in history and government) and recently of Columbia Law School; Mike, age 24, who also graduated from Harvard College and is now completing his second year at Harvard Medical School, with plans to train in internal medicine and infectious diseases; and
Choicest Reward
Of Julius Friedenwald it was said, “Of unblemished reputation, he commands the respect and confidence of the entire community. He has devoted his life to a noble calling and is now crowned with its choicest rewards.”1 For his groundbreaking scientific achievements, his masterly leadership of committees, divisions, departments, institutions, and the AGA itself, and his vital role as mentor, teacher, practitioner, and friend, Daniel K. Podolsky too commands the respect and confidence—and
Acknowledgments
The author thanks Robin M. Jacoby, PhD, and Barbara J. Nath, MD, for their critical review of this manuscript.
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Conflicts of interest The author discloses no conflicts.