Wendy Chung, MD, PhD is a clinical and molecular geneticist who directs the clinical genetics program at Columbia University and performs a wide range of human genetic research. She directs research programs in human genetics of obesity, type 2 diabetes, breast cancer, pancreatic cancer, pulmonary hypertension, cardiomyopathies, arrhythmias, neurodevelopmental disorders, and birth defects including congenital diaphragmatic hernia and congenital heart disease. She identifies novel genes for human disease, characterizes the associated clinical phenotypes and penetrance, determines the correlation of genotype and phenotype, and determines mechanism of disease. She leads the Simons VIP study characterizing genetic forms of autism and tests novel treatments for autism in clinical trials. Dr. Chung is renowned for her teaching and mentoring. She is a member of the Glenda Garvey Teaching Academy and has won many awards for teaching including the Charles W. Bohmfalk Award for Distinguished Contributions to Teaching, American Medical Women’s Association Mentor Award, and Columbia University Presidential Award for Outstanding Teaching. She was the original plaintiff in the Supreme Court case that overturned the ability to patent genes and is a member of the National Advisory Council for Human Genome Research and the Genomics & Society Working Group. Dr. Chung enjoys the challenges of genetics as a rapidly changing field of medicine and performs implementation research to develop methods to facilitate the integration of genetic medicine into all areas of health care in a medically, scientifically, and ethically sound, accessible, and cost effective manner.