Laurence P. Clarke, Ph.D.

SPIE mourns the death of SPIE Fellow Laurence P. (Larry) Clarke, who was a visionary leader of the Cancer Imaging Program (CIP) at the US National Cancer Institute (NCI) and steadfast supporter of new and emerging quantitative imaging technologies that address the cancer problem.

Clarke, the longtime NCI branch chief for imaging technology development, died 16 April. He was 72.

Clarke was a visionary in the field of medical imaging for cancer with a particular focus on quantitative imaging methods across a range of imaging modalities to support clinical decision-making and cancer research. He established several NCI programs and research networks for the development and validation of quantitative imaging methods for current and next-generation imaging platforms that support multi-center clinical trials and preclinical research, most notably the Quantitative Imaging Network (QIN).

His efforts as a co-chair of the Trans NCI-Center for Biomedical Informatics & Information Technology (CBIIT) informatics working group stimulated the development of open-source informatics tools and imaging archives that permit the evaluation of clinical decision tools as applied to cancer and precision medicine.

Clarke was actively working with several international scientific societies, including SPIE, to support and adopt physical standards for imaging as a biomarker and to position imaging to play a significant role in NCI future precision medicine initiatives.

photo of Laurence Clarke and Maryellen Giger”Larry Clarke was an imaging leader and the founder of the Quantitative Imaging Network program at NCI,” said SPIE Vice President Maryellen Giger (pictured at right). “He was always enthusiastic, visionary, and effective, and really moved imaging forward in today’s science of precision medicine. Dr. Clarke often attended SPIE Medical Imaging and most recently was the motivator behind the 2015 LungX Challenge, which brought together NCI, SPIE, and AAPM (the American Association of Physicists in Medicine).” The LungX Challenge was a project to evaluate quantitative image-analysis methods from multiple research labs for the diagnostic classification of malignant and benign lung nodules.

WASHINGTON, D.C.— The American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) has announced the pending induction of Laurence P. Clarke, Ph.D., NCI: Extramural Special Expert: Title 42 Chief of Branch: Imaging Technology Development Cancer Imaging Program, Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis, National Cancer Institute, NIH, Cancer Imaging Program, National Cancer Institute, to its College of Fellows. Dr. Clarke was nominated, reviewed, and elected by peers and members of the College of Fellows For outstanding contributions to the advancement of biomedical imaging, especially in the realm of cancer diagnosis and treatment.