Roy S. Herbst

Roy S. Herbst
Roy Herbst
Born (1963-01-16) January 16, 1963
Known forLung cancer research, targeted therapies, BATTLE trial, Lung-MAP, ADAURA trial
Scientific career
FieldsOncology
WorkplacesYale Cancer Center
Yale School of Medicine
MD Anderson Cancer Center

Roy S. Herbst (born January 16, 1963) is an American oncologist who is the Ensign Professor of Medicine, Professor of Pharmacology, Deputy Director of Yale Cancer Center, Chief of Medical Oncology, and Associate Director for Translational Research at Yale Cancer Center and Yale School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut. He has been appointed the sixth director of Dartmouth Cancer Center, a position he will assume on July 13, 2026.[1][2]

Education

Herbst earned a BS and MS degree from Yale University. He earned his Doctor of Medicine at Cornell University Medical College and his PhD in Molecular Cell Biology at The Rockefeller University in New York City.[3] His clinical fellowships in Medicine and Hematology were completed at the Dana–Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women's Hospital, respectively. He completed a MS degree in Clinical Translational Research at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.[4][5]

Career

Herbst was the Barnhart Distinguished Professor and Chief of the Section of Thoracic Medical Oncology in the Department of Thoracic/Head & Neck Medical Oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. He also served as Professor in the Department of Cancer Biology and Co-Director of the Phase I Clinical Trials Program at MD Anderson.[1] During his tenure there, he led early-phase clinical development of novel targeted agents for lung cancer, including pivotal studies of therapies targeting the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) signaling pathways. This work contributed directly to the approval of therapies including gefitinib, erlotinib, cetuximab, bevacizumab, and axitinib.[6][7]

Herbst also designed and co-led the national Biomarker-integrated Approaches of Targeted Therapy for Lung Cancer Elimination (BATTLE) clinical trial program at MD Anderson, one of the first adaptive biomarker-driven clinical trial designs in oncology. He also served as Co-Director of the Phase I Clinical Trials Program during this period.[8]

Starting in 2011, Herbst has been the Ensign Professor of Medicine, Professor of Pharmacology, Deputy Director, Chief of Medical Oncology, and Associate Director for Translational Research at Yale School of Medicine, Yale Cancer Center, and Smilow Cancer Hospital.[9]

In 2017, Herbst helped establish and led the Yale–AstraZeneca Alliance.[10]

Research

Herbst's early career focused on the clinical development of novel targeted agents for the treatment of lung cancer, including the early phase development of therapies targeting the epidermal growth factor receptor and vascular endothelial growth factor receptor signaling pathways for the treatment of lung cancer.[11]

Herbst designed and led the national Biomarker-integrated Approaches of Targeted Therapy for Lung cancer Elimination (BATTLE) clinical trial.[12] He served as founding principal investigator of the Lung Master Protocol (Lung-MAP) for ten years and is now Chair Emeritus and Senior Advisor for the trial through SWOG Cancer Research Network.[13][14] Herbst testified about this work before the U.S. House of Representatives 21st Century Cures Committee and established master protocols as a preferred clinical trial design recognized by the FDA.[15]

Herbst helped design and implement the Pragmatica-Lung Cancer trial (SWOG S2302), a phase III study that used a streamlined pragmatic design to accelerate enrollment and broaden patient participation.[16]

Herbst and his colleagues at Yale did early research on the presence of the immune checkpoint protein PD-L1 in tumors that may dictate response to the immunotherapy atezolizumab.[17] This work earned their team the Herbert Pardes Clinical Research Achievement Award from the Clinical Research Forum, its top award in the US for 2015.[18][19] Herbst and colleagues at Yale were also among the first to describe the PD-1/PD-L1 adaptive immune response in early-phase clinical trials and to offer clinical trials of the PD-L1 inhibitors atezolizumab and pembrolizumab to lung cancer patients.[20][21]

Herbst was a senior investigator of the ADAURA trial, a phase III study of adjuvant osimertinib in patients with resected EGFR-mutated non-small cell lung cancer.[22] The trial demonstrated improvements in disease-free and overall survival, leading to worldwide regulatory approvals and adoption of osimertinib as a standard treatment.[23][24]

Herbst leads a lung cancer-focused National Cancer Institute specialized programs of research excellence (SPORE) grant at Yale, investigating novel immune based therapies, new methods to combat treatment resistance and understanding mechanisms of brain metastasis.[25]

From 2015 to 2019, he served as Yale's representative Principal Investigator of the Stand Up To Cancer-American Cancer Society Lung Cancer Dream Team.[26]

Professional service

Herbst holds memberships in the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American Association for Cancer Research and the American College of Physicians.[27][28][29] He is a Fellow of ASCO and an elected member of the Association of American Physicians.[30][31] He has served on the Board of Directors of both IASLC and AACR.[4] He was the founding chair of the AACR Tobacco Policy Committee (2010-2022) and since 2023 has been the chair of the AACR scientific policy and government affairs committee.[32] In 2024, he became a member of the Board of Directors for Friends of Cancer Research.[33] In 2025, he was elected into the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering.[34]

Select publications

  • "Selective oral epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor ZD1839 is generally well-tolerated and has activity in non-small-cell lung cancer and other solid tumors: results of a phase I trial"[35]
  • "Gefitinib in combination with paclitaxel and carboplatin in advanced non-small-cell lung cancer: a phase III trial--INTACT 2"[36]
  • "Phase I/II trial evaluating the anti-vascular endothelial growth factor monoclonal antibody bevacizumab in combination with the HER-1/epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor erlotinib for patients with recurrent non-small-cell lung cancer"[37]
  • "Phase II multicenter study of the epidermal growth factor receptor antibody cetuximab and cisplatin for recurrent and refractory squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck"[38]
  • "Efficacy of bevacizumab plus erlotinib versus erlotinib alone in advanced non-small-cell lung cancer after failure of standard first-line chemotherapy (BeTa): a double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial"[39]
  • "Osimertinib in Resected EGFR-Mutated Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer" (ADAURA), New England Journal of Medicine, 2020. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa2027071
  • "Overall Survival with Osimertinib in Resected EGFR-Mutated NSCLC" (ADAURA final OS), New England Journal of Medicine, 2023. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa2304594
  • "Adjuvant Osimertinib for Resected EGFR-Mutated Stage IB-IIIA Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer: Updated Results From the Phase III Randomized ADAURA Trial," Journal of Clinical Oncology, 2023.

Awards

  • 2010, Waun Ki Hong Award for Excellence in Team Science[40]
  • 2016 Paul A. Bunn, Jr. Scientific Award[41]
  • 2019, Asclepios Award[42]
  • 2020, AACR Distinguished Public Service Award for Exceptional Leadership in Cancer Science Policy[43]
  • 2018, Team Science Award, Association for Clinical and Translational Science[44]
  • 2021, Friends of Cancer Research 25th Anniversary Scientific and Advocacy Leaders Honoree[45]
  • 2022, Giants of Cancer Care Award for Lung Cancer[5]
  • 2024, Ezra Greenspan Award, Chemotherapy Foundation[46]
  • 2025, Elected to the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering[34]

References

  1. 1 2 "Dartmouth Cancer Center names internationally renowned cancer research pioneer Roy Herbst, MD, PhD, as its next leader". Geisel News. 2026-03-26. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
  2. ↑ Agrawal, Nina (4 June 2026). "Early Research Suggests a Path to Predict and Prevent Lung Cancer". The New York Times.
  3. ↑ "Fighting Cancer...And Each Other". Bloomberg.
  4. 1 2 "Roy S. Herbst, MD, PhD, Receives 2016 Paul A. Bunn Jr. Scientific Award - The ASCO Post". ascopost.com. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  5. 1 2 "Dr. Roy S. Herbst - Medical Oncology - New Haven, CT". Castle Connolly. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  6. ↑ "Dr. Roy S. Herbst – At the Limits". Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  7. ↑ "The early days of EGFR: Herbst, Haber, Meyerson, Pao, Sequist present at Yale SPORE workshop". The Cancer Letter. 2024-07-05. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
  8. ↑ "Roy S. Herbst, MD, PhD | AACR Governance". American Association for Cancer Research (AACR). Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  9. ↑ "Roy S. Herbst, MD, PhD". medicine.yale.edu. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
  10. ↑ "Pharmaceutical collaboration expands horizons". Yale Daily News.
  11. ↑ Pfeiffer, Naomi (2003-11-10). "Recurrent NSCLC: Novel Second-Line Treatment Options". Oncology Times. 25 (21): 37–38. doi:10.1097/01.COT.0000291057.16221.07. ISSN 0276-2234. S2CID 75210600.
  12. ↑ "Adaptive BATTLE trial uses biomarkers to guide lung cancer treatment". Nature Reviews Drug Discovery. 9 (6): 423. 2010-06-01. doi:10.1038/nrd3199. ISSN 1474-1784. PMID 20514061. S2CID 38114099.
  13. ↑ "Groundbreaking Collaborative Clinical Trial Launched | Lung Cancer Master Protocol". www.lung-map.org. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  14. ↑ "Leadership | Lung Cancer Master Protocol". www.lung-map.org. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  15. ↑ "- 21ST CENTURY CURES: MODERNIZING CLINICAL TRIALS". www.govinfo.gov. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
  16. ↑ "S2302 Pragmatica-Lung reports out as model for faster, leaner, more representative trials | SWOG". www.swog.org. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
  17. ↑ "Longer Survival Observed With Atezolizumab for High PD-L1 NSCLC". Targeted Oncology. October 2020. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  18. ↑ "Clinical Research Forum Awards, April 2015" (PDF).
  19. ↑ "Pembrolizumab confers sustained OS benefit in PD-L1-expressing non-small cell lung cancer". www.healio.com. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  20. ↑ Herbst, Roy S.; Giaccone, Giuseppe; Marinis, Filippo de; Reinmuth, Niels; Vergnenegre, Alain; Barrios, Carlos H.; Morise, Masahiro; Felip, Enriqueta; Andric, Zoran; Geater, Sarayut; Özgüroğlu, Mustafa; Zou, Wei; Sandler, Alan; Enquist, Ida; Komatsubara, Kimberly (2020-09-30). "Atezolizumab for First-Line Treatment of PD-L1–Selected Patients with NSCLC". New England Journal of Medicine. 383 (14): 1328–1339. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa1917346. ISSN 0028-4793.
  21. ↑ Herbst, Roy S.; Baas, Paul; Kim, Dong-Wan; Felip, Enriqueta; Pérez-Gracia, José L.; Han, Ji-Youn; Molina, Julian; Kim, Joo-Hang; Arvis, Catherine Dubos; Ahn, Myung-Ju; Majem, Margarita; Fidler, Mary J.; de Castro, Gilberto; Garrido, Marcelo; Lubiniecki, Gregory M. (2016-04-09). "Pembrolizumab versus docetaxel for previously treated, PD-L1-positive, advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (KEYNOTE-010): a randomised controlled trial". Lancet. 387 (10027): 1540–1550. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(15)01281-7. ISSN 1474-547X. PMID 26712084.
  22. ↑ Wu, Yi-Long; Tsuboi, Masahiro; He, Jie; John, Thomas; Grohe, Christian; Majem, Margarita; Goldman, Jonathan W.; Laktionov, Konstantin; Kim, Sang-We; Kato, Terufumi; Vu, Huu-Vinh; Lu, Shun; Lee, Kye-Young; Akewanlop, Charuwan; Yu, Chong-Jen (2020-10-28). "Osimertinib in Resected EGFR-Mutated Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer". New England Journal of Medicine. 383 (18): 1711–1723. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa2027071. hdl:11577/3508312. ISSN 0028-4793.
  23. ↑ McGinnis, Adam (2023-06-13). "ADAURA Demonstrates OS Benefit with Adjuvant Osimertinib in Resectable EGFRm NSCLC". ILCN.org (ILCN/WCLC). Retrieved 2026-06-09.
  24. ↑ "Osimertinib Improves Survival in Lung Cancer - NCI". www.cancer.gov. 2023-07-05. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
  25. ↑ "About Us". www.yalecancercenter.org.
  26. ↑ "The Researchers | SU2C-ACS Lung Cancer Dream Team". www.lungcancerdreamteam.org.
  27. ↑ "2018 Fellows of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (FASCO) Recognized During Annual Meeting in Chicago" ASCO Post, June 2018
  28. ↑ "International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer announces president-elect, board members". www.healio.com. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  29. ↑ "Scientific Advisory Board". Lung Cancer Research Foundation. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  30. ↑ "FASCO Recipients - ASCO". www.asco.org. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
  31. ↑ "Dr. Roy Herbst elected to the Association of American Physicians | Yale News". news.yale.edu. 2015-04-29. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
  32. ↑ Whittington, Elizabeth (2026-06-09). "Does your doc ask you about smoking history? | CURE". www.curetoday.com. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
  33. ↑ "Roy Herbst elected to Friends board of directors". The Cancer Letter. 2024-01-12. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
  34. 1 2 "Roy S. Herbst". Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
  35. ↑ Herbst RS, Maddox AM, Rothenberg ML, Small EJ, Rubin EH, Baselga J, Rojo F, Hong WK, Swaisland H, Averbuch SD, Ochs J, LoRusso PM (September 2002). "Selective oral epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor ZD1839 is generally well-tolerated and has activity in non-small-cell lung cancer and other solid tumors: results of a phase I trial". J Clin Oncol. 20 (18): 3815–25. doi:10.1200/JCO.2002.03.038. PMID 12228201.
  36. ↑ Herbst RS, Giaccone G, Schiller JH, Natale RB, Miller V, Manegold C, Scagliotti G, Rosell R, Oliff I, Reeves JA, Wolf MK, Krebs AD, Averbuch SD, Ochs JS, Grous J, Fandi A, Johnson DH (March 2004). "Gefitinib in combination with paclitaxel and carboplatin in advanced non-small-cell lung cancer: a phase III trial--INTACT 2". J Clin Oncol. 22 (5): 785–94. doi:10.1200/JCO.2004.07.215. hdl:2318/39988. PMID 14990633.
  37. ↑ Herbst RS, Johnson DH, Mininberg E, Carbone DP, Henderson T, Kim ES, Blumenschein G, Lee JJ, Liu DD, Truong MT, Hong WK, Tran H, Tsao A, Xie D, Ramies DA, Mass R, Seshagiri S, Eberhard DA, Kelley SK, Sandler A (April 2005). "Phase I/II trial evaluating the anti-vascular endothelial growth factor monoclonal antibody bevacizumab in combination with the HER-1/epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor erlotinib for patients with recurrent non-small-cell lung cancer". J Clin Oncol. 23 (11): 2544–55. doi:10.1200/JCO.2005.02.477. PMID 15753462.
  38. ↑ Herbst RS, Arquette M, Shin DM, Dicke K, Vokes EE, Azarnia N, Hong WK, Kies MS (August 2005). "Phase II multicenter study of the epidermal growth factor receptor antibody cetuximab and cisplatin for recurrent and refractory squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck". J Clin Oncol. 23 (24): 5578–87. doi:10.1200/JCO.2005.07.120. PMID 16009949.
  39. ↑ Herbst RS, Ansari R, Bustin F, Flynn P, Hart L, Otterson GA, Vlahovic G, Soh CH, O'Connor P, Hainsworth J (May 2011). "Efficacy of bevacizumab plus erlotinib versus erlotinib alone in advanced non-small-cell lung cancer after failure of standard first-line chemotherapy (BeTa): a double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial". Lancet. 377 (9780): 1846–54. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(11)60545-X. PMC 4134127. PMID 21621716.
  40. ↑ Khuri, Fadlo R.; Herbst, Roy S. (2019). "The fork in the road: Waun Ki Hong, John Mendelsohn, and the reinvigoration of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center". Cancer. 125 (10): 1593–1596. doi:10.1002/cncr.32045. ISSN 1097-0142. PMID 30825386. S2CID 73513961.
  41. ↑ "IASLC Awards, 2016" (PDF). International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer. Retrieved 10 March 2021.
  42. ↑ "GO2 Foundation for Lung Cancer presents awards". www.healio.com. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  43. ↑ "2020 AACR Distinguished Public Service Awards | AACR | News Releases". American Association for Cancer Research (AACR). Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  44. ↑ Montemerlo, Emily (2025-03-17). "Yale Cancer Answers with Dr. Roy Herbst: 50 Years of Cancer Progress - Medical Oncology". medicine.yale.edu. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
  45. ↑ "Yale School of Medicine - Dr. Roy S. Herbst honored at Friends of Cancer Research 25th Anniversary Dinner". Friends of Cancer Research. 2022-05-12. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
  46. ↑ "Roy Herbst receives Ezra Greenspan Award from Chemotherapy+ Foundation". The Cancer Letter. 2024-11-22. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
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