Dr. Andrew Von Eschenbach Will Resign as Director of the National Cancer Institute

Below is an article by the Associated Press announcing that Dr. Andrew Von Eschenbach will resign as Director of the National Cancer Institute, effective June 10. Dr. John Niederhuber will become acting director of the NCI.

Von Eschenbach to Resign as Director of NCI; Niederhuber to Become Acting Director

June 1, 2006 - Andrew von Eschenbach, MD, the acting head of the Food and Drug Administration, announced yesterday he will resign from his other job as director of the National Cancer Institute.

His resignation from the NCI will be effective June 10, said Christina Pearson, a spokeswoman for the Department of Health and Human Services.

Von Eschenbach's holding of both positions - one as director of a government institute that helps develop drugs, the other as head of the federal agency that regulates them - had raised questions of a potential conflict of interest.

Von Eschenbach has served as NCI director since 2002. He became acting FDA commissioner in September 2005. In March, President Bush nominated him to lead the regulatory agency on a full-time basis.

Meanwhile, Von Eschenbach's confirmation as FDA commissioner remains in limbo over a dispute involving the agency's position on emergency contraceptive pills. Two Democratic senators said they would place a hold on his nomination until the FDA decides whether to allow over-the-counter sales of Plan B pills. They now are sold only by prescription.

Dr. John Niederhuber will become acting director of the NCI. Niederhuber is currently NCI's deputy director.