In Memoriam Paul Calabresi, MD (1930–2003)

Editorial Edward Chu, MD Professor of Medicine and Pharmacology Director, VA CT Cancer Center Associate Director, Yale Cancer Center Yale University School of Medicine New Haven, CT

In Memoriam Paul Calabresi, MD (1930-2003) It is with great sadness that I write about the passing of a dear friend and mentor, Dr. Paul Calabresi. Ironically, he died of cancer, a disease he had helped treat and cure in so many patients for so many years. He received his BA and MD degrees from Yale University and served his internship and residency in internal medicine on the Harvard Medical Services of the Boston City Hospital. He joined the faculty of the Yale University School of Medicine and became the chief of the Division of Medical Oncology. He holds the distinction of being the very first chief of medical oncology in the United States. It was at Yale where he began his pioneering work in the field of cancer drug development in close collaboration with his dear friend and mentor Dr. Arnold Welch, chairman of the Department of Pharmacology. At the time, the entire field of medical oncology was still in its infancy, and Dr. Calabresi helped establish the role of chemotherapy in treating patients with cancer and developed cancer clinical pharmacology as a true discipline. In 1968, he was recruited to Brown University as a professor of medicine and physicianin-chief of Roger Williams Hospital and became one of the founding members of the Brown University School of Medicine. He was the founding director of the Brown University Cancer Center, and, working together with his close colleague and friend Robert Parks, MD, PhD, he helped established one of the preeminent cancer center programs in this country. In 1974, he was named chair of the Department of Medicine, becoming the first medical oncologist to be appointed to such a prestigious position. His commitment to service with regard to the cancer community and to his nation was truly remarkable. He was the sixth president of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (1969-1970), honorary life member of the Board of Directors of the American Cancer Society, former president of the New England Cancer Society, and until his death, he served as chairman and president of the Rhode Island Cancer Council. He served on numerous external advisory committees of the National Cancer Institute and was an editorial board member

138 • Clinical Colorectal Cancer November 2003

of 13 journals. In 1991, he was appointed chairman of the National Cancer Advisory Board by President George Bush. In 1995, President Bill Clinton appointed him to the President’s Cancer Panel, and in 1998, he helped found the National Dialogue on Cancer, an organization cochaired by President George Bush and First Lady Barbara Bush. Most recently, he served on the National Cancer Legislation Advisory Committee chaired by Senator Dianne Feinstein. The list of his accomplishments and the various prestigious awards that he received over the years could go on and on. However, let me take a brief moment and give some personal reflections on this man I’ve had the privilege, pleasure, and good fortune of knowing on both a personal and professional level for more than 3 decades. Having grown up with his children since the tender age of 10, I saw his personal side. Outside of work, his main passions were his family and sailing. He was a devoted family man who took great joy and pride in the accomplishments of his 3 kids, and he was especially proud of and devoted to his 8 grandchildren. I can recall how much he looked forward to spending time at his summer home in Maine, where he could be with his family, away from the pressures of the academic world. He was a skilled sailor who, despite his hectic schedule, took every opportunity to get his yacht out on Narragansett Bay. Even during the recent summer months when his health was already beginning to deteriorate from cancer, he was out there sailing with his beloved and devoted wife Cele, who I might add was a very accomplished sailor in her own right. He even tried to get me to sail at a young age, but unfortunately, my propensity for motion sickness got in the way of my adopting this hobby. I experienced a different side of Dr. Calabresi during my years as a medical student, intern, resident, and chief resident in internal medicine. During these years, he was my professor, chairman, and mentor, and through his interactions with his patients, who loved and respected him, he instilled in me the core values of a skilled and compassionate physician. Perhaps all too few realize that Dr. Calabresi and his colleagues

at Yale and Brown in the 1960s were among the true leaders in the emerging field of cancer drug development. I think it is fair to say that he played an influential role in shaping cancer chemotherapy as we know it today. He certainly had a major influence on my own personal development as a cancer pharmacologist and medical oncologist, and it was he who strongly urged me to go to Bethesda, MD, and train at the National Cancer Institute under the careful tutelage of Drs. Vince DeVita and Bruce Chabner. Over the years, I collaborated with Dr. Calabresi on several research projects, and we worked together on several advisory boards. We also worked closely in 2 organizations that were very dear to his heart, the New England Cancer Society and the Yale Cancer Center. He was tremendously supportive of my professional career and always

ready to provide me with words of support and encouragement, as he did with so many of his colleagues in the cancer therapy world. I was privileged to work with this extraordinarily talented man, who so graciously shared his clinical and scientific insights, wisdom, and friendship with me. With his passing, the cancer community has lost a true pioneer and leader. While this is a time of mourning his untimely passing, this is also an appropriate time to reflect on the invaluable contributions of a great man to the fields of medical oncology and medicine.

Edward Chu, MD Editor-in-Chief

Clinical Colorectal Cancer November 2003

• 139