Donald Pinkel

Donald Paul Pinkel (born September 7, 1926) is an American medical doctor who specializes in pediatric hematology and oncology. He was born in Buffalo, New York and graduated from Canisius High School in 1944. He has made contributions to cures for several forms of childhood cancer, including leukemia. He has received many awards and recognitions for his research work, including the Albert Lasker Award for Clinical Medical Research in 1972, the Kettering Prize for cancer research in 1986, and the Pollin Prize for Pediatric Research in 2003. Pinkel was the first director of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, serving from 1962 to 1973. He has also authored or co-authored numerous books, chapters in books, and journal articles.

Director of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Dr. Donald Pinkel served as the first director and CEO of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital from 1962 to 1973 focusing on Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), the most frequent cancer in young children, he and his colleagues identified four major obstacles to its cure: drug resistance, drug toxicity, meningeal relapse, and most important, pessimism.