Dr. Napoleone Ferrara is a distinguished molecular biologist whose pioneering work in angiogenesis research has transformed therapeutic approaches to cancer and ocular diseases. He currently serves as Distinguished Professor of Pathology and Adjunct Professor of Ophthalmology and Pharmacology at the University of California San Diego, holding the Hildyard Endowed Chair in Eye Disease and serving as Senior Deputy Director for Basic Sciences at the Moores Cancer Center. Born in Catania, Italy on July 26, 1956, he earned his medical degree from the University of Catania Medical School in 1981 before completing postdoctoral research at the University of California, San Francisco. His career trajectory includes a transformative 25-year tenure at Genentech where he conducted groundbreaking research on vascular endothelial growth factor, followed by his move to UCSD in 2013 to continue his influential work in cancer biology and therapeutic development.
Dr. Ferrara's seminal discovery and isolation of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in 1989 revolutionized understanding of angiogenesis and established the foundation for anti-angiogenic therapies that have saved millions of lives worldwide. His development of the first anti-VEGF antibody led directly to the creation of bevacizumab (Avastin), which became the first clinically available angiogenesis inhibitor for cancer treatment and is now part of standard care for multiple cancer types. His parallel research on ocular applications resulted in ranibizumab (Lucentis), the first effective therapy for neovascular age-related macular degeneration that has prevented vision loss in countless patients. These breakthroughs represent a paradigm shift in medical treatment, demonstrating for the first time that inhibiting blood vessel formation could effectively treat both cancer and blinding eye diseases.
As a member of the National Academy of Sciences since 2006 and recipient of prestigious awards including the Lasker-deBakey Clinical Medical Research Award and Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences, Dr. Ferrara continues to shape the field of molecular oncology through his leadership and innovative research. His current investigations focus on understanding alternative angiogenesis pathways beyond VEGF, particularly examining how myeloid cells and fibroblasts produce factors that mediate resistance to VEGF inhibitors in tumors. With over 300 publications cited more than 200,000 times, his work remains profoundly influential across both cancer research and ophthalmology. Dr. Ferrara's ongoing commitment to translating basic science discoveries into clinical applications ensures his continued impact on developing next-generation therapies for angiogenic diseases.
