Dr. John T. Macdonald Foundation Department of Human Genetics

The Dr. John T. Macdonald Foundation Department of Human Genetics was created in January 2008 with Jeffery M. Vance M.D., Ph.D. as Professor and Chair, and reflects both the Foundation’s and the Medical School’s commitment to innovative transformational medicine.  Established in July 2000 as the Dr. John T. Macdonald Foundation Center for Medical Genetics, its first Director was Dr. Louis J. Elsas in November 2002. The Center was developed as a pioneering initiative for comprehensive genetic resources that combines research, education and service. It is one of two signature programs launched in 2002 by the Dr. John T. Macdonald Foundation at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. Formation of the Center was prompted by the completion of the Human Genome Project and the increasingly prominent role that medical genetics will therefore play in human health care. Medical genetics is unique in that it reaches into every aspect of human health and is the root cause of many major and minor diseases. By enabling presymptomatic disease diagnosis and providing the means of intervention, medical genetics make it possible to prevent the onset of disease, thus maintaining health, prolonging life and lowering the cost of treatment.