A Letter from the President
Dear Readers,
Edward J. Benz Jr., MD
The founder of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Sidney Farber, MD, liked to say that, in cancer research, "the child is father to the man." He meant that advances in the treatment of children with cancer would inevitably benefit adults with the disease. As with so many of Farber's pronouncements, this one proved to be far-sighted: a large number of new therapies currently used to treat adults with cancer had their origins in pediatric treatments.
This notion applies not only to the direction of cancer research, but to the very institution he founded. The values that guided the Institute during its first quarter-century, when it specialized solely in children's cancers, reverberate through its work today when it deals with multiple varieties of cancer in patients of all ages. Those values — that sustained creative science is the surest source of new treatments, that patients gain most when all dimensions of their disease are treated, and that research is most productive when it is most collaborative — stand at the core of all we do.
Even though the Institute's mission has expanded in many directions since its early days, pediatric oncology remains a pillar of Dana-Farber's identity. The Jimmy Fund Clinic continues to be a very special place for our young patients and their families, as well as the physicians, nurses, and other staff members who work there. As you'll read in this issue's cover story, the Department of Pediatric Oncology is living up to its heritage by seeking to improve cancer treatments and the lives of those who receive them.
This issue also takes you to the frontiers of cancer research on both its smallest and largest scales. On the smaller — actually sub-microscopic — side is research into the genetic "signatures" of cancer cells. By scanning the activity of thousands of genes simultaneously, scientists hope to make cancer diagnosis more precise and treatment more effective.
On the macro level are studies that take a wide-angle look at the cancer problem. One such project, in which Dana-Farber is playing a leading role, is exploring why some demographic groups have lower cancer survival rates than others. Another set of projects is measuring how well patients fare physically, emotionally, even financially, once therapy is completed. The results of such "outcomes research" don't always coincide with conventional medical wisdom, and are causing physicians to take a fresh look at some practices with an eye toward improving patients' quality of life.
Another article describes collaborative science at its finest: the Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (or SPOREs) created by the National Cancer Institute. The Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center is the proud home of two SPOREs, one in breast cancer and one in skin cancer.
The articles in this issue provide a sense of the scope of research currently under way at the Institute. Please feel free to contact the editors or me with any feedback about the magazine, including suggestions for future articles.
Edward J. Benz Jr., MD
President, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
