DePinho's top lieutenants out at MD Anderson Cancer Center Provost and physician in chief relieved of duties as part of restructuring

Continue clicking to see the best and worst hospitals in Texas, according to consumer reports. less Ethan Dmitrovsky, from left, M.D., Ronald DePinho, M.D., Beverly Randall, Ehab Hanna, M.D., Jack Randall and Thomas Buchholz, M.D. at UT MD Anderson Cancer Center at the Third Annual President’s Recognition for Faculty Excellence Awards Ceremony. Ethan Dmitrovsky, from left, M.D., Ronald DePinho, M.D., Beverly Randall, Ehab Hanna, M.D., Jack Randall and Thomas Buchholz, M.D. at UT MD Anderson Cancer Center at the Third Annual President’s Recognition ... more Photo: F. Carter Smith Photo: F. Carter Smith Image 1 of / 59 Caption Close DePinho's top lieutenants out at MD Anderson Cancer Center 1 / 59 Back to Gallery

In a move that guts deposed president Ron DePinho's leftover executive leadership team, MD Anderson Cancer Center's provost and physician-in-chief have been relieved of their duties.

Dr. Ethan Dmitrovsky and Dr. Thomas Buchholz will return to their faculty positions as part of a restructuring announced Thursday by Dr. Marshall Hicks, who became interim president after DePinho resigned under pressure in March. Dmitrovsky and Buchholz were two of DePinho's top lieutenants.

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"This change is being made so we can make decisions closer to where the work is done and create an environment where all views are considered," Hicks said in a video announcement on MD Anderson's website. "To support more nimble decision making, we have flattened the leadership structure and will no longer have executive vice president roles."

Hicks noted that Dan Fontaine, M.D. Anderson's former chief financial officer, previously had announced his retirement and will serve as a senior advisor until January 2018.

Dr. Stephen Hahn remains the chief operating officer. He was promoted to the job a month prior to the ouster of DePinho.

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Dmitrovsky, who was recruited by DePinho to become provost in 2013, will continue his research in pharmacology and toxicology and support the institution's Cancer Center Support Grant, Hicks said. Buchholz, a veteran MD Anderson administrator promoted to physician in chief by DePinho in 2013, will continue as a professor of radiation oncology and remain engaged in the institution's philanthropic and corporate sponsorship activities, said Hicks.

A University of Texas System-appointed search committee currently is narrowing the candidates for the new presidency. Dr. Ray Greenberg, the system's executive vice chancellor for health affairs and the search committee chairman, said in May he hopes the panel can produce a finalist or finalists by late August or early September.

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