Dr. Alex Spira is director of the Virginia Cancer Specialists (VCS) Research Institute and the Phase I Trial Program, where he is actively involved in advancing medicine and offering targeted treatment options for patients. He also is co-chair of the US Oncology Thoracic Oncology Committee, chair of the US Oncology Research Executive Committee, and a member of the US Oncology National Policy Board Executive Committee. Dr. Spira is a faculty member at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, where he is assistant professor of oncology. His research interests include immunotherapy, personalized medicine, gastrointestinal, thoracic, and lung cancer and sarcomas.
Throughout his career, Dr. Spira has been recognized as a Top Doctor in Northern Virginia Magazine and Washingtonian magazine for multiple years. In 2014, he received the prestigious Castle Connolly America’s Top Doctor award.
Dr. Spira earned his medical degree from the New York University School of Medicine. He completed his internship and residency at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and his medical oncology fellowship at The Johns Hopkins Hospital. He has been honored with the National Institutes of Health Medical Scientist Training Program Fellowship (1990-1997), Merck Corporation Scholarship (1995-1995), Pediatric AIDS Foundation Fellowship (1993- 1995), and Harvard University Scholarship (1987-1990). He received his PhD from the New York School of Arts and Sciences.