MD Anderson's Peter Pisters receives top service award from surgical oncology society

Peter WT Pisters has spent more than three decades in surgical oncology, moving from a fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering to a faculty position at UT MD Anderson Cancer Center in 1994, then to the presidency of Canada's largest research hospital, and back to MD Anderson as its president in 2017. On March 6, the Society of Surgical Oncology recognized that trajectory with its highest honor: the Charles M. Balch, M.D., Distinguished Service Award, presented at the SSO's 2026 Annual Meeting.

The award and its namesake

The Balch Award recognizes physicians, scientists, and physician-scientists who have made outstanding contributions to surgical oncology through service, research, training, or advancing clinical care and health policy. Its namesake, Charles M. Balch, is a professor of Surgical Oncology at MD Anderson who served as SSO president in 1991 and has been active in the society for 30 years.

Balch described Pisters as possessing "exceptional clinical skill, intellectual rigor and the heart of a true leader," placing him among what Balch called the most influential surgical leaders of the 21st century.

A career across institutions

Pisters earned his medical degree at Western University in Ontario, completed postgraduate training at Memorial Sloan Kettering (where he served as chief administrative fellow), and holds a master's in health care administration from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. His research has focused on sarcomas, gastrointestinal cancers, and other malignancies, producing nearly 400 peer-reviewed articles and additional publications.

He joined MD Anderson's faculty in 1994 as an assistant professor of surgery and reached full professor with tenure by 2004. During more than 20 years as faculty member and medical director, he helped guide the institution's expansion across the Houston metropolitan area. He then served as president and CEO of University Health Network in Toronto before returning to lead MD Anderson in 2017.

MD Anderson under his leadership

Under Pisters' presidency, MD Anderson has maintained its position as the top-ranked cancer center in the U.S. News & World Report "Best Hospitals" survey for 11 consecutive years. The institution has earned a five-star Vizient Quality and Accountability rating for five straight years and received its sixth consecutive Magnet nursing recognition -- the first with Distinction -- in 2025.

"I'm deeply appreciative of this recognition from SSO, an organization that plays a vital and influential role in the field of oncology," Pisters said. "I want to acknowledge and thank my mentors, colleagues and trainees whom I've had the privilege to work with to advance patient care and research throughout my career."