The big news of the week was another flood in the S-level. I met Thursday with some of the researchers and staff who were affected to discuss ways to mitigate the damages to the important science that is done there. Much work remains to be done, but significant progress has been made. I want to reiterate my gratitude to everyone who has worked to help everyone get back to work.
Besides dealing with the flood aftermath, most of the week was spent polishing drafts for the CCSG competitive renewal, namely the first draft of the Director’s Overview and the Essential Characteristics sections. Even though there are still 10 months remaining before the grant is due, we are working hard to get a high-quality, thoroughly reviewed set of drafts ready by the end of the summer in advance of our External Advisory Committee meeting in September. My sections will be reviewed in more detail on Tuesday. Meanwhile, I now am reading the initial drafts of many other sections, most of which will be formally reviewed this week as well. This will be a busy week!
By the way, my young patient with metastatic colon cancer came in for a visit last week. He has fully recovered from his surgery, and feels better than he has for a long time. He is ready to resume chemotherapy, but now with the addition of an anti-VEGF antibody to enhance the effects of chemotherapy; this will now be safe since the primary cancer has been removed. He will have a PET/CT scan done in the next week or two to provide a new baseline for therapy. We’ll see how he is doing when he has a repeat scan after an additional two months of therapy. So far, so good. But, he has a long way to go. It sure puts the challenges of running a department and a cancer center in perspective.
Have a very nice week. Stay cool and dry if you can.