Dr. Gilbert is an expert in clinical research, emphasizing both large, multi-institutional studies for malignant gliomas as well as smaller clinical trials that are designed to advance therapies for less common cancers. He is currently an NIH Scientist Emeritus after serving as the Chief of the Neuro-Oncology Branch in the National Cancer Institute and National Institute of Neurologic Disorders and Stroke for a decade. He has led several important clinical trials in the field of Neuro-Oncology including the RTOG 0525 study which accrued nearly 1200 patients to test whether a dose-dense schedule of temozolomide is therapeutically superior to standard dosing. He also led RTOG 0825, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, evaluating the role of bevacizumab for newly diagnosed glioblastoma. Upfront tumor collection and molecular stratification, in addition to the placebo-control design and expansion of the quality-of-life studies signify advances in clinical trial opportunities in the field. The results of RTOG 0825 were published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2014. Dr. Gilbert created and led the Brain Tumor Trials Collaborative, a 32-center national consortium, and the Collaborative Ependymoma Research Network which transformed knowledge and treatment of this rare cancer. This led to a Cancer Moonshot funded program, NCI-CONNECT, co-led with Dr. Terri Armstrong to study a variety of rare CNS cancers. Dr. Gilbert’s long-term interest is in translational research by utilizing laboratory based discoveries to create novel and hypothesis-based clinical trials. As an emeritus, he continues to teach, mentor and participate in grant reviews for colleagues and organizations worldwide.
Mark Gilbert M.D.
