Dr. Marcus M. Reidenberg, one of the Weill Department of Medicine’s most esteemed faculty members, passed away on February 29, 2020. A member of the department for more than 40 years, Dr. Reidenberg exemplified unwavering dedication in all of his roles as a physician, investigator, educator, and academic leader. Born in Philadelphia, Dr. Reidenberg received his M.D. from Temple University Medical School where he completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Pharmacology.
Dr. Reidenberg was a Professor Emeritus of Medicine and held the titles of Professor in Pharmacology and Professor in Healthcare Policy and Research. He served as the department’s Chief of Clinical Pharmacology until 2015 and was a constant presence at the Chiefs’ meetings, always bringing his vast breadth of medical knowledge, astute guidance, and genuine kindness to the table. A trail blazer in research, he was an early advocate for individualization of drug therapy, or, what is known today as personalized medicine. In 1981, he presented one of the earliest symposiums on this topic, which helped to usher in a new era in medicine. Dr. Reidenberg was the inventor of a drug for hormone-refractory prostate cancer, a leader in developing a better understanding of adverse drug reactions in human disease, and an expert in drug-induced lupus. He also led a study on a drug to reduce fatal arrhythmias in patients with heart attacks and furthered advances on the relationship between age and altered drug response. Some 40 years ago, in collaboration with Dr. Henry Erle, Dr. Reidenberg helped to create the first “Supportive Care” initiative at Weill Cornell that played a key role in paving the way for palliative care and geriatrics services at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medicine.
For the World Health Organization (WHO), Dr. Reidenberg worked on the Essential Medicines Program for many years updating a list of 300 medicines to address the world’s major medical problems, and, in 2013, presented a review of statins for children for the WHO’s Expert Committee. Dr. Reidenberg was the editor of the Journal of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics for more than 20 years, establishing it as the leading journal in the field of clinical pharmacology. In 2010, Dr. Reidenberg received the prestigious Torald Sollman Award in Pharmacology from the American Society of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics in recognition of his unparalleled service in the field of pharmacology.
A sought-after mentor, Dr. Reidenberg trained many generations of medical students, residents, fellows, and graduates in pharmacology at Weill Cornell. He was known for his unique ability to help trainees discover exactly the right path in medicine to pursue, as well as for his generosity in sharing his laboratory’s valuable resources. His trainees, who went on to enjoy highly successful careers, recall Dr. Reidenberg’s “rare and valuable mentorship style” distinguished for its “selflessness.” Dr. Reidenberg was the recipient of Temple’s Golden Apple Teaching Award, and, at Weill Cornell Medicine, the Hochstein Teaching Award, Senior List Award, Second Year Teaching Award, and the Weill Medical College’s Teaching Excellence Award. He also had a science program named in his honor at Weill Cornell involving community service by medical students – the Marcus M. Reidenberg Gateways to Science Program.
Dr. Reidenberg will be remembered not only for his professional accomplishments, which were many, but as a great humanitarian. He will be missed, but his legacy will live on.
The Weill Department of Medicine expresses its sincerest condolences to Dr. Reidenberg’s dear wife, June, and to his sons, daughter, and grandchildren.