Maria T. Abreu, M.D., director of the Crohn’s and Colitis Center and professor of medicine, microbiology and immunology at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, has assumed the role of president of the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA).

While Dr. Abreu, the first Latina to take the AGA’s helm, has worked her way to this pinnacle position in the specialty, becoming the Association’s president is no small accomplishment. Founded in 1897, today’s AGA has more than 16,000 members worldwide who engage in the science, practice and advancement of gastroenterology. And with more than 13,000 attendees, 4,300 oral abstract and poster presentations and 400 original lecture sessions, DDW is the world’s premier gathering of gastroenterology clinicians, researchers and industry.