A Fresh Start to 2012

Happy New Year to all. Our family had a great week off at Deep Creek Lake, and I came back recharged and relaxed. I did get a chance to work on two papers while we were away, but came back with much more writing to do. As you know, our CCSG competitive renewal is not due until May, 2013, but Carolyn Hurley has been fabulously organized and has me working on a preliminary draft of the Director’s Overview, and Essential Characteristics of the Cancer Center. My draft is due on February 1, so I have a lot of work to do!

Tuesday was notable for a continuation of discussions with MedStar’s senior leadership about the developing MedStar Cancer Network. On Wednesday, I had a great meeting to discuss the new “Donor Wall” in the Lombardi Atrium. It will represent a real upgrade over the current wall, and will honor those individuals who have generously supported Lombardi’s efforts over the years.

That evening, Harriet and I went to the Georgetown-Marquette basketball game. We almost left at halftime, because Georgetown was getting pounded, but boy, were we glad we stayed! It was one of the most thrilling basketball games I’ve ever attended, and I could not believe that Georgetown came back to win the game.

On Thursday, I attended the inaugural meeting of the Resource Allocation Committee, which is chaired by Bruce Cheson. Other members of the committee include Kate Taylor, Todd Waldman, George Phillips and Chip Albanese. The committee is charged with providing funds to support potentially high-impact clinical trials. This is a great opportunity for clinical investigators to conduct high priority trials with scientific collaborators. I hope that many of you will consider this terrific opportunity to extend your work from the laboratory into the clinic, or from the clinic into the lab.

The rest of my time has been spent working on the CCSG. Thanks, Carolyn!