December 20, 2024
The American Board of Medical Genetics and Genomics Board of Directors is pleased to announce the appointment of Azra Ligon, PhD, FACMG, as its new Chief Executive Officer, effective January 1, 2025.
Dr. Ligon received her PhD in Cancer Genetics from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, where she studied the genomics of primary brain tumors using molecular genetic and cytogenetic techniques. After completing a fellowship in Clinical Cytogenetics at Baylor College of Medicine and a postdoctoral research fellowship at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) in Boston, she joined the Clinical Cytogenetics faculty at BWH. She served as Program Director for the Clinical Cytogenetics Fellowship and later was appointed Division Chief of BWH Clinical Cytogenetics. Currently, Dr. Ligon is Associate Professor of Pathology at Harvard Medical School. Her current appointments include Co-Director of the BWH Center for Advanced Molecular Diagnostics and Division Chief of Clinical Cytogenetics.
“We are thrilled to welcome Azra as the new CEO of ABMGG,” said Katrina Dipple, MD, PhD, FACMG, chair of the ABMGG Board of Directors and medical director of the Division of Genetic Medicine, Seattle Children’s Hospital. “With her extensive experience in the field of genetics, as well as her deep familiarity with ABMGG, she is exceptionally well-equipped to lead our organization forward.”
Dr. Ligon has been an active contributor to numerous professional organizations, including the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics, College of American Pathologists, American Society of Human Genetics, Association of Professors of Human and Medical Genetics, and the Cancer Genomics Consortium (CGC). She has a keen appreciation of the ABMGG mission, having volunteered in item development and then chairing the Clinical Cytogenetics Test Committee. Dr. Ligon was elected to the ABMGG Board of Directors and was a major leader in the development of the Laboratory Genetics and Genomics specialty. She served on the ABMGG Accreditation Committee and as the Board representative to the ACGME when accreditation of laboratory specialties transitioned to this organization. She served as chair of the ABMGG Board of Directors during her six-year term and just completed a term on the ACGME Medical Genetics and Genomics Review Committee.
“I am honored to be entrusted with this important role following in the footsteps of Dr. Miriam (Mimi) Blitzer, who has set the bar high through her outstanding leadership and service to the medical genetics and genomics community,” said Dr. Ligon. “I look forward to engaging with many colleagues to carry on the mission of the ABMGG.”