Remembering the Life and Legacy of Dr. Joe W. Grisham
Dr. Joe W. Grisham, Kenan Distinguished Professor Emeritus and Past Chair of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine (Chapel Hill, NC), passed away on January 29, 2025. Dr. Grisham was an extraordinary physician-scientist, educator, and administrator. His research focused on liver cancer, liver regeneration, and liver stem cells, and he was considered to a world leader in these fields of biomedical research. His remarkable career spanned many decades, and he was considered a leader within the broader field of pathology.
Dr. Grisham served as President of the American Society for Investigative Pathology (ASIP) from 1984-1985, and President of the Federation of Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) from 1984-1985. Dr. Grisham received the ASIP Gold-Headed Cane Award in 2002. Dr. Grisham also served on the Editorial Board of The American Journal of Pathology from 1982-2004.
Dr. Grisham was a native of Tennessee and earned a BA in chemistry (1953) and an MD (1957) from Vanderbilt University (Nashville, TN). He then moved to Washington University School of Medicine and Barnes Hospital (St. Louis, MO) to complete his residency training. Dr. Grisham subsequently became a member of the faculty in the Department of Pathology at Washington University School of Medicine and quickly ascended to the rank of Professor. Several years later, Dr. Grisham was recruited to serve as Chair of the Department of Pathology at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. He remained in this position from 1973 until 1999. Dr. Grisham worked for four years at the National Cancer Institute (Bethesda, MD) after completing his time as Chair and then fully retired some years later.
During his time as Chair of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of North Carolina, Dr. Grisham expanded and diversified both the clinical and basic science faculty, adding a great number of women faculty and faculty from underrepresented groups, and expanding the research portfolio to encompass a wide range of major human diseases. This was one of his self-described major career accomplishments. In his own words, Dr. Grisham “…encourage[d] and support[ed] faculty members who were eager to pursue the objective to make all positions in the Department of Pathology open to all qualified persons, irrespective of their race, gender, or national origin, with appointments based only on the candidates’ perceived ability to meet institutional needs and objectives…” and “…that all comparable positions were to receive equivalent salaries blinded to the gender of the occupant…” In this regard, Dr. Grisham established a remarkable track record that has been maintained by his successors.
Dr. Grisham also expanded the PhD program that was housed within the department. He recognized that the future workforce in pathobiology research (and biomedical research in general) would depend upon PhD scientists who had robust training in the laboratory, an understanding of the broader context of human diseases, and access to cutting-edge approaches and technologies. He also supported training of MD and MD-PhD students in the research laboratory. In recognition of Dr. Grisham’s leadership in education and his contributions to the success of the Molecular and Cellular Pathology PhD Program, the Joe W. Grisham Award for Excellence in Graduate Student Teaching was created in 2000. The Joe W. Grisham Award for Excellence in Graduate Student Teaching is given annually by the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine to a member of the faculty that is selected by the graduate students.
Dr. Grisham is remembered by all those who worked with him in research or served as faculty members in his department as an exceptional mentor who provided strong support for their professional development. He provided quiet advice and opportunities for faculty members to engage professionally. When one of his faculty members was leaving UNC to take a Chair position at another institution, the departing faculty member asked Dr. Grisham for his top ten tips for being a successful department chair. Dr. Grisham responded: “…There’s only one…Put the effort to develop your faculty members’ career above all else...” Dr. Grisham certainly made this effort on behalf of those he nurtured as faculty, and always shunned credit for what he did behind the scenes. Professor Emeritus Dr. Nadia Malouf Anderson described it best when she said that Dr. Grisham preferred to “…let the flowers bloom without taking credit as the gardener…”
Dr. Joe Grisham’s obituary can be found here: https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/newsobserver/name/joe-grisham-obituary?id=57509440
Additional tributes to Dr. Joe Grisham can be found at: https://news.unchealthcare.org/2025/02/remembering-dr-joe-grisham/ and https://northraleightoday.com/stories/669777577-pathologist-dr-joe-grisham-remembered-for-leadership-and-mentorship.
Some of the biographical information contained here was taken from https://www.med.unc.edu/pathology/about-us/history-of-the-department-1/, https://uncrfpa.web.unc.edu/why-we-chose-dr-grisham/ and https://www.med.unc.edu/pathology/about-us/history-of-the-department-1/howes-lecture/.