It is with deep sorrow that JDRF International announces the passing of Robert A. Goldstein, MD. PhD, MBA. Bob’s impact on type 1 diabetes (T1D) research has been profound and will be long lasting. In 1997, he joined JDRF International as the first head of our in-house research team. As Chief Scientific Officer, his pioneering work guiding research to achieve the best possible outcomes continues to serve as a model, not only for JDRF but for other research-funding organizations around the globe. He brought a tremendous understanding of T1D and significant experience in the funding of foundational research.

In 2010, Bob became Chief Scientific Officer of JDRF Canada, as well as serving as Advisor to the CEO of JDRF Canada. Bob was instrumental in the development of JDRF’s Canadian Clinical Trials Network (CCTN) that demonstrated JDRF Canada’s commitment to translating research progress into therapies and treatments for type 1 diabetes. More recently, he continued to play an integral role in establishing important research activities in Canada, including the formation of the Partnership to Defeat Diabetes with the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR).

From 1978 until 1997, Bob was a senior administrator at the National Institute of Allergy, Immunology, and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, MD. He received his MD from Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, his PhD in Microbiology/Immunology from The George Washington University in Washington, DC, and an MBA from New York University.

Everyone in the T1D community owes Bob a significant debt of gratitude for all that he did to advance research in the field. JDRF will miss his wisdom, his piercing intelligence and his abiding commitment to our mission of accelerating life-changing breakthroughs to cure, prevent and treat T1D and its complications.