Campus alert status is yellow: For the latest UMMS campus alert status, news and resources, visit umassmed.edu/coronavirus

Site Menu
Search Close Search
Search Close Search
Page Menu

Terence R. Flotte, MD

Celia and Isaac Haidak Professor, Dean of School of Medicine
Provost and Executive Deputy Chancellor
"This is an exciting time to be pursuing a career in medicine and applying to the University of Massachusetts Medical School"

 

About the Dean 

Terence R. Flotte, MD

Since joining UMass Medical School in 2007, Dean Flotte has led numerous successful initiatives elevating the academic stature of the institution, including establishing the Department of Quantitative Health Sciences; establishment of neurosurgery, urology and ophthalmology as academic departments; recruitment of numerous department chairs; and development of the Advanced Therapeutics Cluster. During Flotte’s time as dean of the School of Medicine, class size has increased from 103 to 162; a revised curriculum has been developed and implemented including “Learning Communities” guided by faculty mentors. in 2016, the medical school opened its first regional campus in Springfield, Mass. The research enterprise of the institution has grown to more than $280 million and a new 512,000-square-foot multiuse facility was built to accommodate the growing clinical and translational research laboratories as well as provide a new educational home for faculty and students.

An internationally known pioneer in human gene therapy, Flotte is currently investigating the use of gene therapy for genetic diseases, including alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency and Tay-Sachs disease. In 1995, he led the team at Johns Hopkins that became the first to use the apparently harmless adeno-associated virus, or AAV, as a vehicle to deliver corrective genes to targeted sites in the body, including the damaged airways of adults with cystic fibrosis. He is the author of more than 250 scholarly papers and his research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Alpha One Foundation. Since 2015, Flotte has also been editor-in-chief of gene therapy’s oldest journal family, Human Gene Therapy.Button - Learn More
  • Gold Humanism Honor Society inducts 36 new members at UMMS
    Jun 10, 2021

    Gold Humanism Honor Society inducts 36 new members at UMMS

    The UMass Medical School chapter of the Gold Humanism Honor Society inducted 26 students, six residents and four faculty members on June 2.

    Read more
  • Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society at UMMS inducts largest, most diverse class
    Jun 10, 2021

    Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society at UMMS inducts largest, most diverse class

    New criteria was used to select the newest members of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. The Class of 2021 is the largest and most diverse class of AOA inductees in the history of UMass Medical School.

    Read more
  • Chancellor Collins to Class of 2021: ‘You are scientists, nurses and doctors at their best’
    Jun 6, 2021

    Chancellor Collins to Class of 2021: ‘You are scientists, nurses and doctors at their best’

    The 48th annual UMass Medical School Commencement was held on Sunday, June 6, at Worcester State University following lifting of COVID-19 restrictions in recent weeks. Many graduates reflected on the unusual year in which they completed their studies.

    Read more
  • School of Medicine graduating students commended for resilience in year-end ceremony
    Jun 4, 2021

    School of Medicine graduating students commended for resilience in year-end ceremony

    Members of the School of Medicine Class of 2021 were recognized for their resilience and commitment as they completed their studies in the depths of the worst global pandemic in a century at the annual UMass Medical School Alumni Association breakfast.

    Read more
  • USA Today reports on first baby in gene therapy clinical trial for Sandhoff, Tay-Sachs diseases
    Apr 27, 2021

    USA Today reports on first baby in gene therapy clinical trial for Sandhoff, Tay-Sachs diseases

    Thomas Feldborg and Daria Rokina, of Denmark, chose to enroll their baby daughter, Alissa, in an investigational gene therapy for the treatment of GM2 gangliosidosis, which causes Tay-Sachs and Sandhoff diseases, to “let hope conquer the fears,” according to a report in USA Today chronicling their journey.

    Read more
  • Innovative neurosurgical technique used in Tay-Sachs gene therapy clinical trial
    Mar 3, 2021

    Innovative neurosurgical technique used in Tay-Sachs gene therapy clinical trial

    Oguz Cataltepe, MD, describes the innovative neurosurgical procedure used to treat patients in the new clinical trial for a gene therapy targeting infantile Tay-Sachs and Sandhoff diseases.

    Read more
  • First patient dosed in clinical trial of gene therapy for Tay-Sachs and Sandhoff diseases
    Feb 3, 2021

    First patient dosed in clinical trial of gene therapy for Tay-Sachs and Sandhoff diseases

    Sio Gene Therapies announced that the first patient with infantile Tay-Sachs disease has been dosed in a Phase I/II trial evaluating AXO-AAV-GM2, an investigational gene therapy for the treatment of GM2 gangliosidosis, which causes Tay-Sachs and Sandhoff diseases. Miguel Sena-Esteves, PhD, is a principal scientist of the research program at UMMS.

    Read more
  • FDA clears IND application for Tay-Sachs gene therapy
    Nov 9, 2020

    FDA clears IND application for Tay-Sachs gene therapy

    Axovant Gene Therapies, a clinical-stage company developing innovative gene therapies based on UMass Medical School research discoveries, has announced that the FDA has lifted its clinical hold and cleared Axovant’s Investigational New Drug application to initiate a registrational study of gene therapy to treat patients with Tay-Sachs disease and Sandhoff disease.

    Read more
  • Nine-story biomedical research and education facility to be built at UMass Medical School
    Oct 20, 2020

    Nine-story biomedical research and education facility to be built at UMass Medical School

    UMass Medical School has received approval from the University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees to build a nine-story biomedical research and education facility on the Worcester campus to support laboratory research growth and the educational enterprise.

    Read more
  • UMass Medical School taking a stand in support of positive change
    Jun 12, 2020

    UMass Medical School taking a stand in support of positive change

    In a memo to the UMass Medical School community, Chancellor Michael F. Collins and Dean Terence R. Flotte say racism is a public health crisis and outline changes underway at UMMS.

    Read more
More news