MIT Media Lab’s Visiting Professor and WHx Honorary Chair recognized for global leadership in women’s health and cancer research

At the 2025 Marie Curie Legacy Dinner in New York City, Rear Admiral Susan Blumenthal, M.D. (ret.), a leading US health expert and global advocate for cancer prevention, was awarded the prestigious Marie Curie Legacy Medal by Institut Curie. The event, hosted at the Consulate General of France, honored her extraordinary scientific leadership and celebrated enduring Franco-American collaboration in medical innovation.

"Madame Curie once said, 'I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done,'" said Dr. Blumenthal. 

Institut Curie’s new chemical biology center will do what remains to be done to understand and stop metastases linked to 90% of cancer deaths. This innovative work will make a lifesaving difference in the prevention and treatment of cancer.

Dr. Blumenthal served across four US presidential administrations, launching landmark initiatives like “Missiles to Mammograms,” which adapted defense imaging technology for breast cancer detection. She has held numerous academic and advisory positions and now plays an active role at the MIT Media Lab, where she serves as Visiting Professor, Director’s Circle Member, and Honorary Chair of the WHx Program for Women’s Health, a major effort to advance innovation and equity in women’s health.

She was also recently named a Knight (Chevalier) in the French Legion of Honor—France’s highest civilian award.

The evening featured a keynote by acclaimed author Walter Isaacson and raised vital funds for Institut Curie’s new Chemical Biology of Cancer Research Center in Paris.