Winship Chief Medical Officer Sagar Lonial, MD, FACP, FASCO, has been named the 2025 recipient of the Robert A. Kyle Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his contributions to advancing treatment and research in multiple myeloma.
Sagar Lonial, MD, FACP, FASCO, chief medical officer of Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University and chair of the Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology at Emory University School of Medicine, has been named the 2025 recipient of the Robert A. Kyle Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Myeloma Foundation (IMF). The award recognizes his career-long contributions to advancing treatment and research in multiple myeloma.
Lonial received the honor at the 16th Annual International Myeloma Working Group Summit, held June 10 in Milan, Italy.
A globally recognized leader in multiple myeloma, Lonial has helped develop and refine many of the current treatment standards for patients with the disease. In addition to his leadership roles at Winship and Emory, he serves as co-chair of the National Cancer Institute’s Myeloma Steering Committee and sits on the IMF Scientific Advisory Board and the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF) Scientific Advisory Board.
“Dr. Kyle is such a giant in the myeloma field. To have my name associated with an award that honors his legacy is an incredible honor,” says Lonial. “I am proud of our team at Emory and Winship for doing important work to improve outcomes for myeloma patients and expand their treatment options.”
The IMF established the Robert A. Kyle Lifetime Achievement Award to recognize individuals whose work has significantly advanced the research, treatment and care of patients with myeloma. Named for renowned Mayo Clinic hematologist Robert A. Kyle, MD, the Lifetime Achievement Award is considered one of the field’s most prestigious honors.
“Sagar Lonial’s work has led to the development of several new drugs for myeloma and transformed care for patients worldwide,” says IMF Chairperson of the Board S. Vincent Rajkumar, MD. “He also built a world-class myeloma program at Winship Cancer Institute in Atlanta and mentored numerous scientists in the field.”
Lonial has authored or co-authored more than 400 scientific publications and has held editorial positions with several major oncology journals. His research has focused on combining novel agents for synergistic effect in myeloma and lymphoma, as well as on immunotherapy and targeted pathways such as PI3-K/Akt. He holds the Anne and Bernard Gray Family Chair in Cancer and is the recipient of numerous honors, including the Celgene Young Investigator Award, the Indo American Cancer Association Lifetime Achievement Award and the COMy Multiple Myeloma Excellence Award for Clinical Science. He is also an inductee of the Giants of Cancer Care.
Also recognized at the IMF ceremony was Sonja Zweegman, MD, PhD, who received the 2025 Brian G.M. Durie Outstanding Achievement Award for her clinical and translational work to improve treatment strategies and quality of life for older and vulnerable patients with multiple myeloma. Zweegman is head of the Department of Hematology and vice chair of the Cancer Center Amsterdam at Amsterdam University Medical Center in the Netherlands.
The IMF’s annual awards recognize exceptional leaders whose research has advanced the diagnosis, treatment and care of people with multiple myeloma. Founded in 1990, the IMF reaches more than 500,000 members across 140 countries and leads global efforts to improve patient outcomes through research, education, support and policy initiatives.