John D. Baxter Prize for Entrepreneurship

The John D. Baxter Prize for Entrepreneurship was established to recognize the extraordinary achievement of bringing an idea, product, service, or process to market; which ultimately elevates the field of endocrinology, and positively impacts the health of patients.

The award recipient of the biennially  Baxter Prize receives a $50,000 award, the John D. Baxter Medal for Entrepreneurship, and global acclaim. The winner is awarded at the Society's annual meeting, ENDO, the largest gathering in the world of endocrinologist and professionals working in hormone health.

2023 Baxter Prize Recipient: R. Scott Struthers, PhD 

R. Scott Struthers, PhD, has been awarded the Society’s John D. Baxter Prize for Entrepreneurship for his contributions to drug discovery and development programs for endocrine diseases. The award recognizes extraordinary achievement of bringing an idea, product, service, or process to market. This work ultimately elevates the field of endocrinology and positively impacts the health of patients.

Struthers is recognized also for his entrepreneurship in founding companies, including Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, and leading the team that created a first-in-class therapy for the treatment of endometriosis and uterine fibroids during his time at Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc.

As a founder and CEO of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals Inc., Struthers built an important company that is developing much-needed therapies for people with endocrine disorders such as acromegaly, carcinoid syndrome, Cushing’s disease, congenital adrenal hyperplasia and congenital hyperinsulinism. He is also a founder of Radionetics Oncology, which focuses on novel radiotherapeutics to treat a wide range of cancers. Struthers also co-founded the San Diego Entrepreneurs Exchange, a nonprofit organization that provides networking and resources for early-stage start-ups.

Award Winners

Background

John D. Baxter, MD, was a renowned endocrinologist who rose to prominence as a researcher with breakthroughs in molecular biology and early recombinant DNA technology, leading to the first successful gene cloning for rat, bovine, and human growth hormone. His dedication to scientific and clinical research garnered numerous awards and recognition. As President of the Endocrine Society from 2002 – 2003, Dr. Baxter shared his passion for advancing research that would lead to effective clinical applications.

Eligibility Criteria 

• Nominee(s) must have demonstrated a record of scientific innovation as evidenced by research that has resulted in the development of new products, techniques or approaches to diagnostic or therapeutic patient care in the field of endocrinology.
• Nominee(s) must be established career scientists and/or clinicians whose work has significantly advanced the translation of research findings to patient care.
• Teams of scientists/entrepreneurs are eligible, with one team member designated as the lead nominee.
• Self-nominations are accepted and encouraged. 
• Nominees are not required to be Endocrine Society members, although membership is strongly encouraged.
• The Baxter Prize will not be awarded posthumously.

Nomination Instructions

Nomination packages must be submitted as a single file in the nomination form and must include:

• The nominee's responses to the Baxter Prize Application Question
• Three letters of support from the nominees' colleagues (each letter not to exceed one page)
• List of any patents held by the nominee
• The nominee's CV and/or resume
• Nominee(s) and those submitting will need to have an Endocrine.org account. Accounts can be created any time at Endocrine.org by logging in through the "Your Account & Tools" section of the homepage.
• Questions – please email baxterprize@endocrine.org