Dr. Savio Woo is professor and founding chairman of the department of gene and cell medicine at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine (1996-). His pioneering work on human molecular genetics and gene therapy is internationally recognized. He is an authority in the field of cancer gene therapy, and his preclinical investigation on active genetic immunization against breast and colon cancer, oncolytic virotherapy for liver cancer, and oncopathic bacteriotherapy for pancreatic cancer has led to the development of novel therapeutic agents and clinical translational trials in the respective target diseases.

Dr. Woo received his PhD in biochemistry from the University of Washington at Seattle in 1971, and post-doctoral training at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. He joined the faculty at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston in 1973 and became professor of cell biology and human genetics in 1984, the founding Director of the Baylor Center for Gene Therapy (1990-1996) and an investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (1980-1996). Dr. Woo served on the Board of Scientific Councilors at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (1988-1994), and the Board of Directors of the American Society for Human Genetics (1994-1997). He also served on the Board of Directors (1997-1999) and as Ppesident (1999-2000) of the American Society for Gene Therapy (1997-1999). He was also the founding director of a Comprehensive Review Course on Clinical Gene Transfer (2000-2003) to facilitate translational research in the field nation-wide, which was co-sponsored by the FDA, NIH and OHRP.

Dr. Woo is currently serving as chairman of the Scientific Council of the Alliance for Cancer Gene Therapy (2000-present) and on the Board of Directors of the International Society for Cancer Gene Therapy (2006-2009).  He also served as secretary of the Harvey Society of New York (1998-2002) and as a member of the Cellular, Tissue and Gene Therapies Advisory Committee of the US Food and Drug Administration (2006-2010).