It is with great sadness we share the news of the untimely death of David Alastair Flockhart, MD, PhD on Thursday November 26th. Dr. Flockhart was one of the North American editors of BJCP and a staunch supporter of the journal.
Dr. Flockhart, who grew up in Edinburgh (Scotland), received his Bachelor's Degree in Science from the University of Bristol and Ph.D. from the Welsh National Medical School, UK. This was followed by a postdoctoral fellowship and assistant professor position at the department of physiology, Vanderbilt University, USA. Although Dr. Flockhart was a successful basic scientist, he had a unique passion for patient care. In pursuit of his passion, he enrolled in medical school at the University of Miami, and completed a residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in Clinical Pharmacology, at Georgetown University. Dr. Flockhart joined the faculty at Georgetown University in 1994 where he solidified his clinical pharmacology experience under the tutelage of Drs. Darrel Abernethy, MD, PhD, Carl Peck MD and Raymond Woosley MD, PhD. He later served as acting and then Chief of the Division of Clinical Pharmacology at Georgetown and held the Francis Cabell Brown Chair.
In 2001, Dr. Flockhart was recruited by Dr. D. Craig Brater to lead the Clinical Pharmacology program at the Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis. At IUSM, Dr. Flockhart was the Edith Gladstein Chair in Cancer Genomics, Professor of Medicine, Medical Genetics and Pharmacology and served as Chief of the Division of Clinical Pharmacology and the Director of the Indiana Institute for Personalized Medicine (IIPM).
Dr. Flockhart quickly achieved international prominence in the area of Clinical Pharmacology making contributions that spanned the entire translational spectrum, particularly in the areas of drug‐drug interactions, pharmacogenomics and personalized medicine. His early work identified mechanisms of cardiac toxicity of antipsychotic drugs, including pimozide. Subsequent pioneering work included discoveries that led to the understanding of the modulation of the beneficial and adverse effects of the anti‐estrogen drug tamoxifen and other endocrine therapies. In recent years his research directed efforts on the implementation of pharmacogenomics in large health care settings as a means of improving drug therapy for the individual patient within short time frames. This was the focus of the INGENIOUS project which is part of NHGRI's IGNITE network on which he served as PI. Dr. Flockhart formed a strong pharmacogenomics group at IUSM which broadened and deepened the opportunities for collaboration in both research and training across different basic and clinical specialties within the University and beyond. He also had a major role in creating the Indiana CTSI Disease and Therapeutic Drug Modeling Program. Dr. Flockhart's deep interest in rational prescribing of medicines led to his creation of a tool to improve rational prescribing used by many physicians and scientists around the globe: the www.drug‐interactions.com website. In addition to his research, Dr. Flockhart was an exceptional teacher and mentor who trained a new generation of clinical pharmacologists. These individuals are now leaders in academic, industry and regulatory agencies. His commitment and advocacy for science and his profession was exemplary; he served in many leadership roles that enhanced the mission of his profession as well as those at FDA and NIH. Under his leadership, the division, along with the Indiana Institute for Personalized Medicine, evolved into a vibrant, multidisciplinary and energetic group of well‐funded investigators drawn from a broad range of specialties. The multidisciplinary nature of this group is a critical element within the translational research enterprise of the Indiana University medical center. The division is now unique and esteemed among Clinical Pharmacology divisions in the USA.
Dr. Flockhart made immeasurable contributions to the field of clinical pharmacology, pharmacogenomics and personalized medicine. We have lost a generous and humble man, a friend and colleague, a great scientist, mentor, and visionary leader. He has influenced immensely the lives and careers of countless scientists and patients and he made the world a better place. We will greatly miss him and Clinical Pharmacology is considerably poorer for his passing. Our sympathies go to his children (Andrew, Julia and Peter), his siblings (Patrick, Carola and Andy and their spouses) and Tara, his former wife.
Dr. Flockhart has requested that any donations be made to the Division of Clinical Pharmacology (electronically at http://medicine.iupui.edu/about/flockhart or by check made payable to IU Foundation mailing address: IU Foundation, P.O. Box 7072, Indianapolis, IN 46207‐7072) or alternatively to Amnesty International in his name at amnestyusa.org. Please indicate ‘in memory of David Flockhart’ on your gift.
Bies, R. , McDonald, C. , and Desta, Z. (2016) Obituary. Br J Clin Pharmacol, 81: 393–394. doi: 10.1111/bcp.12868.