Memorial for Laird G. Jackson
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Born in Seattle, Washington on Oct. 10, 1930
Departed on Oct. 17, 2019 and resided in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
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Professor Laird Jackson, M.D., FFACMG
1930-2019
Physician, Scientist, Educator and Advocate.
It was with great sorrow that the Genetics community learned that a valued member and colleague, Laird G. Jackson, M.D., passed away on October 17th at the age of 89. At the same time there is so much to celebrate in a life lived so fully with great passion and numerous accomplishments.
Dr. Laird Jackson was born in Seattle, Washington, October 10, 1930. He received his B.A. in 1951 from Pomona College in Claremont, Calif., and his M.D. in 1955 from the University of Cincinnati School of Medicine. From 1956-59 he served as Captain in the United States Air Force (MC), OIC Medicine, Surgery & Psychiatry Section, School of Aviation Medicine, Gunter AFB, Montgomery, Alabama. He undertook an internship year at Sacramento County Hospital and completed his Residency training in Internal Medicine in 1961 at Thomas Jefferson Hospital and Medical College. From 1961-1962 he was an NIH Postdoctoral Fellow and from 1963-1965 a Leukemia Society Fellow, and Leukemia Society Scholar from 1965-1970, also at Thomas Jefferson Hospital and Medical College. He was board certified in internal medicine and was an FACP member.
Dr. Jackson’s academic career was launched at Thomas Jefferson Medical College, and he rapidly rose through the ranks on the faculty beginning as an instructor from 1962-1964, Associate in Medicine from 1964-1966, Assistant Professor of Medicine from 1966-1969, Associate Professor of Medicine, Pediatrics and Obstetrics and Gynecology from 1969-1978 and he was promoted to full Professor in 1978. He was the founder and Director of the Division of Medical Genetics from 1969-1998. In 2001, he was appointed as a Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology (in Genetics) at The Drexel University College of Medicine and a Research Associate in Pediatrics, Division of Human Genetics, at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. He also served as an Adjunct Research Scientist at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine in New York, as a consultant to the Genetics Department of the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.
Dr. Jackson's introduction to the then-emerging field of Medical Genetics was serendipitous while at Jefferson Medical College (now Thomas Jefferson University) in Philadelphia. Through his care of a seven-year-old patient with chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) he was able to collaborate with Drs. David Hungerford and Peter Nowell, who were just establishing a connection between CML and a chromosomal translocation that became known as the “Philadelphia Chromosome”. This experience led Dr. Jackson to start looking at chromosomes and to set up a lab to perform karyotypes. This expertise resulted in other physicians consulting him on children suspected to have Down syndrome, and as a result he became one of the earliest practicing geneticists before there was an official genetics specialty. In addition to his early forays into the nascent field of Medical Genetics, Dr. Jackson became a champion of genetic counseling as a critical component of effective and ethical patient care, long before the field and specialty of Genetic Counseling became established.
His sense of mission for genetics and interest in serving the community led to his being a member of the organizing committee for the American Board of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ABMGG). He was a past director and treasurer of ABMGG (1980s). He was on the Founding Executive Board of Directors and Treasurer of the American College of Medical Genetics (1991-97). He served on the Board of Directors of the American Society of Human Genetics (1989-1991).
Dr. Jackson’s career was driven by his fascination and love for the work both in genetic diagnostics and research. He was in the earliest cohort to be certified in clinical genetics and clinical cytogenetics by the ABMGG and FACMG, and a founding member of the Board of Directors for the International Society of Prenatal Diagnosis (1992-1996). He served on numerous editorial boards and authored over 150 scientific articles. He was honored with numerous awards in Genetics including the 2017 ACMG Foundation David L. Rimoin Lifetime Achievement Award. A testament to his many interests Dr. Jackson was inducted into the National Control Line Racing Association Hall of Fame in 1977 and awarded the Federation Aeronautique Internationale Gold Medal in 2010.
Dr. Jackson was remarkable for his incessant originality and thoughtfulness, his interest in stepping in to move science forward in any role, and his strong support of trainees and junior faculty. His extensive contribution towards education is highlighted by his over 30-year involvement in the storied Short Course on Medical and Mammalian Genetics given at the Jackson Labs in Bar Harbor Maine. His interests were in prenatal genetic diagnosis, including development of non-invasive methodologies, microarray cytogenetics technology and genetic pathways in childhood developmental disorders. He also chaired the Philadelphia Genetics Group for many years, encouraging trainees to attend and present, and aiding in collaboration between centers. Dr. Jackson was also a dedicated educator and mentor to many young and aspiring clinicians and served as an inspirational role model for what is good in academic medicine.
Few people can look back over a career spanning more than 60 years in medicine and be rewarded by so many major accomplishments and contributions spanning such a wide range of topics in Medical Genetics. Dr. Jackson was one of those people. He was a lifelong advocate for children with developmental disorders and was a driving force in helping establish and grow the Cornelia de Lange Syndrome Foundation, as the first medical director and scientific advisory leader, and building the Center for Cornelia de Lange Syndrome and Related Diagnoses at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. One of his life’s missions was to determine the cause for Cornelia de Lange syndrome, and he not only searched the world for families with more than one affected individual, but also recruited researchers and encouraged work and devotion towards successful achieving this goal. While Dr. Jackson spent his younger years pioneering techniques and treatments in so many vital areas, his later years were devoted to mentoring his former students and current colleagues, always making himself available to guide and encourage others.
Dr. Jackson was a true Renaissance man with many and varied interests and passions ranging from medicine and genetics to model airplanes and the ballet. For those who have had the pleasure to be in Dr. Jackson’s company over the years, the rewards were plentiful - not only in academic accomplishments, but also in being able to enjoy his enthusiasm, mentorship, friendship and joie-de-vivre. For those of us who had the pleasure to work personally with Dr. Jackson, we knew that any session would be peppered by stories of new and improved model airplane engines, highlights of the New York City ballet or some spectacular mountaineering feat. And this is exactly what made Dr. Jackson so exceptional and such a pleasure to know and to work with - his ability to find poignancy and beauty in everything he did - from a novel cytogenetic diagnosis, to a new microfluidic approach to separate fetal cells from maternal circulation, from comforting a family who has lost a child with a rare diagnosis to identifying a novel cause for that rare diagnosis and the promise it brings to affected families. And all of this was packaged into an unassuming, easy-going persona quick with a joke or encouragement, sharing and open, giving and encouraging, tireless and dedicated. Dr. Jackson was equally comfortable splitting wood on his farm in Lambertville, New Jersey, as he was walking the family dogs in Fairmount Park, Philadelphia, where he spent his final years. Above all else Dr. Jackson was a loving and devoted husband to his beautiful and endlessly energetic wife Marie.
Dr. Jackson’s desire to promote Medical Genetics Education prompted him to create the Laird and Marie Jackson Award for Continuing Medical Genetics Education. He was able to see these efforts at work most recently in contributions to Cool Cars for Kids, the Bar Harbor Short Course, the David W. Smith Workshop, and more.
He will be sorely missed and well-remembered. His work and spirit will be carried on through all those whom he touched.
Laird is survived by his wife, two sons and two granddaughters. Services will be private at the request of the family. In lieu of flowers, the family is asking that contributions be made to Cool Cars for Kids (https://coolcarsforkids.org) specified for the Jackson Award.
Funeral arrangements entrusted to Caramenico Funeral Home, Inc. (610) 275-7777
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