Martha Zeiger

Martha A. Zeiger is an American endocrine surgeon and scientist. She is currently Director of the Center for Cancer Research Office of Surgeon-Scientist Career Development at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). She is also an adjunct investigator in the Surgical Oncology Program at NIH's National Cancer Institute, where she previously served as director. She was the S. Hurt Watts Professor and Chair of the Department of Surgery at the University of Virginia. Prior to joining academia, Zeiger spent six years in the United States Navy as General Medical Officer, Commander and Surgeon in San Diego, Hawaii and Washington, D.C.

Early life and education Zeiger was born to a war veteran father who served in World War II as an engineer on the USS Indianapolis. She enrolled at Brown University for her undergraduate degree and the Robert Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont for her medical degree before entering the United States Navy. Her surgical training included a surgery residency at Maine Medical Center and a surgical oncology fellowship at the National Cancer Institutes, NIH. She spent six years with the navy as a General Medical Officer, Commander and Surgeon in San Diego, Hawaii and Washington, D.C before joining academia. During the same year, Zeiger began a one-year term as president of ATA's board of directors. In August 2019, Zeiger accepted a position as the Director of the Surgical Oncology Program at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) at the National Institutes of Health. By 2022, Zeiger began a new position as the Director of the Surgeon-Scientist Career Development, where she has created grant programs to train and support new generations of surgeon-scientists, including the NCI Early-Stage Surgeon Scientist Program.

Personal life Zeiger is married to John Britton, a pediatric anesthesiologist, and they have two children together, Tenaya and Zachary Britton.