UF College of Medicine

09/04/2026

The 2026 issue of our Florida Physician magazine celebrates the accomplishments of 10 University of Florida College of Medicine alumni. Learn more about what our Gator grads are up to at https://floridaphysician.med.ufl.edu/2026/05/29/news-notes-summer-2026/?utm_source=FB&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=FP_summer_2026.

Celebrating the achievements of UF College of Medicine alumni

09/03/2026

When the University of Florida College of Medicine first opened its doors in Gainesville in 1956, a small group of researchers gathered over 1,000 miles away at Dartmouth in Hanover, New Hampshire, to discuss human intelligence. They proposed a lofty conjecture: that machines could simulate cognition using what they called “artificial intelligence.”

Seventy years later, that idea has reshaped the world, changing the landscape of research, clinical care and education for the next generation. Learn how Gators like fourth-year medical student Taylor Edwards and fourth-year general surgery resident Jeremy Balch, M.D., Ph.D., are training to lead responsibly in this new environment: https://floridaphysician.med.ufl.edu/2026/05/22/ai-medical-education/?utm_source=FB&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=FP_summer_2026.

09/02/2026

The University of Florida has selected Duane A. Mitchell, M.D., Ph.D., as the next director of the UF Health Cancer Institute, a national leader in cancer research and treatment.

Mitchell, the Phyllis Kottler Friedman Professor in the Department of Neurosurgery, assumes the role Sept. 21 at a pivotal moment for the institute, which earned National Cancer Institute designation in 2023 and has experienced significant growth in recent years, with over $57 million in total cancer grants.

“Dr. Mitchell is an exceptional scientific leader whose career reflects the very best of the University of Florida’s commitment to discovery, innovation and patient impact,” said David Norton, UF’s vice president for research. “His ability to bring together researchers, clinicians and partners across disciplines has helped transform cancer research at UF. He is uniquely positioned to lead the UF Health Cancer Institute as it builds on its recent successes and pursues even greater national prominence.”

An M.D.-Ph.D.-trained physician-scientist, Mitchell has built an international reputation for pioneering immunotherapy approaches that harness the body’s immune system to combat cancer, particularly malignant brain tumors such as glioblastoma. His work has advanced novel cancer vaccines and other immunotherapies from laboratory discovery to human clinical trials, earning national recognition and offering new hope for patients facing some of the most aggressive forms of cancer.

Read the full story: https://go.ufl.edu/hfmu7qh

09/02/2026

David Kropp, a Mustang mechanic in Alachua County, Florida, went out for his daily walk down Race Track Road, an isolated dirt path across the street from his house. It was quiet, with no one around but Kropp and the neighbor’s horses. He enjoyed the peace and sunshine. Stopping briefly to take off his jacket, he noticed a tingling in his left hand.

Then, he fell to his knees. Something was very, very wrong.

Kropp was having a stroke — his second, just shy of two years after his first in April 2024. Thanks to the UF Health Mobile Stroke Treatment Unit, a specialty-equipped ambulance with expert crew from both UF Health and Alachua County Fire Rescue, his life was saved both times.

Read the full story at https://floridaphysician.med.ufl.edu/2026/05/22/mobile-stroke-patient/?utm_source=FB&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=FP_summer_2026.

09/01/2026

Applications are open for the next class of , a program recognizing outstanding young alumni whose leadership, innovation and impact exemplify the best of the .

Submit a nomination by Oct. 5 at https://connect.ufalumni.ufl.edu/events/40gatorsunder40, and visit https://news.drgator.ufl.edu/tag/uf-40-under-40/ to learn more about past University of Florida College of Medicine honorees, like Avan Armaghani, M.D. '12. Armaghani developed and launched the inaugural Oncology Explorers Program, a collaborative initiative with the University of South Florida and the Moffitt Cancer Center's Breast Oncology Department that is inspiring the next generation of cancer researchers, scientists and healthcare professionals.

09/01/2026

Before most people have even finished their morning cup of coffee, Jennifer Hosford, M.P.H., has already unpacked materials for a young patient she’ll accompany throughout a four-year clinical trial for Type 1 diabetes. Back in her office, the rising sun will cast rays onto the teddy bears, slinkies and drawings that abound there, all tokens of gratitude from the patients and families whose lives she’s impacted.

Hosford serves as a clinical research manager in the University of Florida College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics. She is not only responsible for coordinating trials for UF, but also for 10 affiliated sites throughout the Southeast in partnership with TrialNet, an international consortium of clinical centers that screen patients for Type 1 diabetes across the globe.

Learn more about Hosford's story and impact at https://news.drgator.ufl.edu/2026/08/03/jennifer-hosford-staff-spotlight/.

09/01/2026

Congratulations to faculty member Hiren Mehta, M.D., a leader in interventional pulmonology and thoracic oncology, on being named chief of the University of Florida College of Medicine Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine. 🐊🎉

Read his Q&A with the University of Florida Health Cancer Institute here: https://cancer.ufl.edu/2026/08/31/bringing-novel-therapies-to-patients-hiren-mehta-aims-to-improve-lung-cancer-outcomes/.

"Early detection gives me tremendous hope because lung cancer outcomes are dramatically better when we find it early. At the same time, the rapid growth of targeted therapies, immunotherapy and clinical trials is giving patients treatment options we could not have imagined even a decade ago. Combining these advances with minimally invasive diagnosis and multidisciplinary care has the potential to significantly improve outcomes," said Hiren Mehta, M.D.

Mehta, who is the clinical leader of our Thoracic Oncology Disease Site Group, was recently named chief of the UF Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine in the UF College of Medicine.

We asked him a few questions about innovations in the field of thoracic oncology, how artificial intelligence is playing a role in identifying lung nodules, his goals for the chief role and more.

Read the full Q&A: https://go.ufl.edu/ecorde7

Congratulations, Dr. Mehta!

08/31/2026

University of Florida clinician-scientists like Amy Sheer, M.D. ’15, M.P.H., are collaborating to uncover new ways to treat obesity, prevent disease and improve patients’ lives.

Because people deserve comprehensive care backed by research — not stigma.

Learn more about how at https://news.drgator.ufl.edu/2026/08/24/obesity-research/.

08/27/2026

Jim Murphy, M.D., served as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ first team orthopedic surgeon in the 1970s, completing players’ physicals and evaluating injuries during football games. Decades later, his son, University of Florida College of Medicine alumnus Daniel Murphy, M.D. ’93, carries on this legacy, working as an orthopedic surgeon for both the Bucs and the New York Yankees during the baseball team’s spring training in Florida.

Read more about their story at https://floridaphysician.med.ufl.edu/2026/05/26/dugout-doc/?utm_source=FB&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=FP_summer_2026.