Academic Profile

Dr. Johannes Vieweg (born 1958) is the Professor and Founding Chairman of the Department of Urology at the University of Florida (UF), Gainesville, Florida. He also holds the Huizenga Eminent Scholar Endowed Chair in Urologic Oncology at UF and is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons http://facs.org/. Dr. Vieweg received his medical degree from the Technical University of Munich, Germany and began his residency training at the University of Ulm, Department of Urology. After relocating to the United States, he received three years of postdoctoral training at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY prior to completing his urology residency training at Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC. After a 9-year tenure on the Duke Urology faculty, he joined the University of Florida in July 2002.



Under Dr. Vieweg’s leadership, the UF Department of Urology has witnessed considerable growth through the successful recruitment of numerous outstanding, fellowship-trained faculty. Over the past four years, twelve fellowship-trained urologic subspecialists have joined the UF Urology faculty. Today, the Department offers a full-service Urologic Oncology Division, a Minimally Invasive/Robotics Surgery Division, a clinical program focused on Urinary Stone Disease, a program in Female and Reconstructive Urology, a Male Infertility and Microsurgery program, a multidisciplinary Genitourinary Oncology Center, the implementation of a Urology Quality and Outcomes Research Program, and institution of an Evidence-Based Urology Curriculum for residents. The department offers the highest level of comprehensive compassionate care urologic care, and UF Urology's recent #23 ranking in the 2011/12 US News and World Report is evidence that its premium brand of urology is recognized at a national level. Basic scientists studying carcinogenesis, angiogenesis, stem cells, developmental biology, urothelial biology, immunology and receptor transcriptional regulation have joined the UF Urology Research program. The department's philanthropic efforts, supported by hundreds of grateful patients, have raised over $10 million, supporting UF Urology's integrated, multidisciplinary team of research scientists and clinicians. Spurred by a grant awarded by the Florida Department of Health, Dr. Vieweg’s goal was to build a collaborative network of programs across the State of Florida that leverage the tremendous advances of biomedical research for the improvement of prostate cancer

Prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is a form of cancer that develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. Most prostate cancers are slow growing; however, there are cases of aggressive prostate cancers. The cancer cells may metastasize from the prostate to other parts of the body, particularly...

 care, research and education. In 2009, that goal was brought to fruition with the creation of the UF Prostate Disease Center http://www.ufpdc.ufl.edu. The Center promotes multidisciplinary team research on urologic disease across departments.


Much of Dr. Vieweg’s scientific efforts have centered on developing cell and gene-based approaches for prostate cancer

Prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is a form of cancer that develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. Most prostate cancers are slow growing; however, there are cases of aggressive prostate cancers. The cancer cells may metastasize from the prostate to other parts of the body, particularly...

 and renal cell carcinomas, including the discovery and clinical testing of genetically engineered dendritic cells, the discovery of universal tumor antigens  and the modulation of regulatory T cells.
As PI, Dr. Vieweg has received uninterrupted NIH funding for the past 12 years and has frequently served as chair or senior member of the NCI’s SPORE and other review panels. Dr. Vieweg has published more than 150 manuscripts and book articles in high-impact journals including Nature Medicine, Journal of Clinical Investigation and the Journal of Urology. He serves as editor in chief for Current Opinion in Urology and section editor for Urologic Oncology. His translational work established the foundation for several NIH-funded clinical trials which he is conducting under FDA-approved investigator-sponsored new drug applications. Dr. Vieweg's projects also involve the development and clinical testing of targeted therapy

Targeted therapy

Targeted therapy is a type of medication that blocks the growth of cancer cells by interfering with specific targeted molecules needed for carcinogenesis and tumor growth, rather than by simply interfering with rapidly dividing cells...

as well as improved prediction models for therapeutic success, an effort to better identify which patients will respond to treatment and which will be unresponsive. Aside from his groundbreaking research, Dr. Vieweg chairs a rapidly growing urology department and maintains an active clinical and operative practice at Shands Hospital http://www.shands.org/hospitals/UF/ and the Malcom Randall VA in Gainesville, Florida.



In addition to his responsibilities at the University of Florida, Dr. Vieweg presently serves as the American Urologic Association (AUA) Foundation Research Council Chair http://www.urologyfoundation.org/PDF/DecemberAUAnews2009uroimaging.pdf and demonstrates intense commitment to the invigoration and growth of the urologic sciences. In executing responsibilities, he directly reports to the AUA’s Board of Directors, chairs the Research Council, and oversees the various subcommittees of the Research Council. He works collaboratively with AUA Foundation staff, researchers and clinicians to advance research across the entire spectrum of urologic disease, increase and diversify funding opportunities, and serve as a liaison with external organizations such as the NIH and its institutes, and other federal agencies such as the VA and the Department of Defense. Accordingly, he periodically meets with NIH leaders to discuss new research directions, grant opportunities, and funding in the urologic sciences, and attend both NIDDK and NCI advisory board meetings. Dr. Vieweg is highly committed to the field of Urology and is seeking to make impactful contributions towards the advancement of urologic care, research and education.
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