Joaquín Gómez Mira (born 26 April 1941) is a scientist and physicianspecialized in radiation oncology. Born and raised in Spain, he completed his studies and developed his career in the United States, where he moved in 1967. He is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology,[1] and a Fellow and appointed councilor of the American College of Radiology. His work, achievements and lectures in the field of radiation oncology are held in high regard.
Joaquín Mira was born in Madrid on 26 April 1941. He is the son of Joaquín Gómez Mira, an industrial engineer, and Juana Garcia Gobantes, a teacher.
He completed the Bachillerato in the Colegio del Pilar de Madrid from 1946 to 1958. He was part of a successful classthat included a number of distinguished alumni.[2]
While attending secondary school, he felt a special attraction for the subject of biology, and had access to books on surgery and medicine in the home of a friend whose father was a doctor. After this first contact with the subject, he had the opportunity towitness live surgeries from the observation seats for students in the operation theater. The dissection classes he attended as an observer were another convenient place to expand his knowledge before embarking on a medical career.
He completed his undergraduate studies at the Complutense University of Madrid School of Medicine, where he obtained a bachelor's degree in 1965. From October of that year to June 1967 he completed aninternship at the Clínica de la Concepción, Carlos Jiménez Díaz Foundation, under the supervision of Jiménez Díaz himself, and specialized in Internal Medicine. During this time he passed the required examinations to obtained his American Medical Degree (M.D.), allowing him to be able to continue his training in the United States.
In July 1967 he arrived in Seattle (United States) to continue his medical training by doing a one-year rotating internship at the Providence Hospital, under the direction of Dr. Paul E. Hardy. This step was essential to advance his career. He went on to a residency on radiotherapy in Colorado with Dr.Juan del Regato and completed a Fellowship at the Memorial Cancer Hospital in New York under the direction of Dr. Giulio D' Angio.
He started his professional career at the Houston Methodist Hospital, part of the Texas Medical Center, where he worked for two years. In 1975 he moved to San Antonio, becoming the interim Head of Radiotherapy at the University of Texas in that town. During the period between 1973 and 1983 he also carried out academic research and published scientific articles in several peer-reviewed journals. He was named Director of Radiotherapy in the Cancer Therapy & Research Center, under the National Cancer Institute, where he led a team of professionals that achieved optimal results within the field.For 21 years, up to 1999, he successfully renewed an annual fellowship of the National Institutes of Health to be a principal investigator in the field of radiotherapy in one of the world's largest oncology groups, the SWOG the Southwest Oncology Group) with seat in San Antonio. He was the responsible for the treatment of the radiotherapy patients in protocols at that town, as well as the recruitment of qualified personnel.
He pioneered the use in Texas of a robotic tool for radiosurgery, Cyberknife. In the last stage of his professional career, since 2005, he focused on his private practice in the South Texas Oncology Hematology Group (STOH) and South Texas Accelerated Research Therapeutics (START),[3]
Joaquín Gómez Mira has authored about 74 publications in journals and books, and over 150 presentations in national and international meetings and invited talks.[4] which include the following:.