The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) welcomes five new members to the National Advisory Council for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NACCAM). The Council serves as the principal advisory body to NCCAM, a component of the National Institutes of Health within the Department of Health and Human Services.

The Council, which meets three times a year, is composed of physicians, scientists, licensed alternative and complementary medicine practitioners, and representatives of the public who contribute their time and expertise over a 4-year term. Council members offer advice and recommendations on the prioritization, conduct, and support of complementary and alternative medicine research, including research training and disseminating health information derived from NCCAM's research.

New NACCAM members include:

• Silvia Corvera, M.D., Professor, Program in Molecular Medicine and Department of Cell Biology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA
  
  
• Joan E. B. Fox, Ph.D., Professor, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH
  
  
• Ted J. Kaptchuk, O.M.D., Assistant Professor of Medicine, Director, Asian Medicine and Healing Program, Harvard Medical School, Osher Institute, Cambridge, MA
  
  
• Bruce G. Redman, D.O., Clinical Professor, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan Health System, Ann Arbor, MI
  
  
• Danny D. Shen, Ph.D., Professor and Chair, Department of Pharmacy, University of Washington, Seattle, WA

Silvia Corvera, M.D. Dr. Corvera is Professor in the Program in Molecular Medicine and Department of Cell Biology at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She trained as an endocrinologist; she has focused her efforts on understanding type II diabetes, a metabolic disease that currently affects 12 million adults in the U.S. alone. Dr. Corvera has served on the editorial boards of Diabetes and the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

Joan E. B. Fox, Ph.D. Dr. Fox is Professor in the Departments of Molecular Cardiology, Cardiovascular Medicine, and Center for Integrative Medicine (where she was the founding director) at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, and Professor in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Case Western Reserve University. Her research focuses on intracellular signaling mechanisms regulating cell migration and movement, vascular biology, atherosclerosis, and formation of blood vessels. Her research also includes studying mechanisms by which complementary mind-body practices affect the cardiovascular system. Dr. Fox practices many complementary therapies, including Reiki.

Ted J. Kaptchuk, O.M.D. Dr. Kaptchuk is Associate Director of the Osher Institute, Harvard Medical School, Director of the Asian Medicine and Healing Program at Harvard Medical School, and Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. His original training includes a doctorate in East Asian medicine from Macau Institute of Chinese Medicine, and he is considered an expert in many forms of alternative medicine. His recent research centers on clinical, basic mechanism biological and psychosocial mechanisms, and methodological implications of placebo effects.

Bruce G. Redman, D.O. Dr. Redman is a Clinical Professor within the Department of Internal Medicine and serves as Chair of the Comprehensive Cancer Center Data Monitoring Committee at the University of Michigan. He is an advisor to the Food and Drug Administration as a member of the Oncology Drug Advisory Committee, and is also Executive Officer of the Southwest Oncology Group, the largest cooperative clinical trials group in the United States. Dr. Redman’s research interests focus on immunotherapeutic approaches to the treatment of cancer, especially as they apply to melanoma and kidney cancer.

Danny D. Shen, Ph.D. Dr. Shen is Professor and Chair of the Department of Pharmacy at the University of Washington. He is also a Full Member of the Clinical Research Division at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center where he directs the Pharmacokinetics Laboratory within the Clinical Research Division. Dr. Shen’s research focuses on metabolic interactions between drugs and herbal supplements and drug delivery to the central nervous system. He serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Pharmaceutical Research and is a fellow of the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists.

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine’s mission is to explore complementary and alternative medical practices in the context of rigorous science, train CAM researchers, and disseminate authoritative information to the public and professionals. For additional information, call NCCAM’s Clearinghouse toll free at 1-888-644-6226, or visit the NCCAM Web site at www.nccam.nih.gov.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) — The Nation's Medical Research Agency — includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is the primary federal agency for conducting and supporting basic, clinical and translational medical research, and it investigates the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.