Cancer Luminaries

Season 2 of Cancer Luminaries spotlights the groundbreaking work and visionary leadership shaping cancer care and research at the University of Chicago today. Through conversations with leading faculty, the season highlights the rich history, expertise, and innovation driving progress—while exploring future ambitions as UChicago prepares to open its new Cancer Pavilion. Featuring personal stories and perspectives, this season offers insight into current breakthroughs, evolving approaches to treatment, and the people advancing the field, all while amplifying UChicago’s voice on the national stage.

2024 was the University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center’s 50th anniversary of National Cancer Institute designation, thus we planned a year full of events to honor our past, communicate our present, and envision our future. Season 1 of Cancer Luminaries Season 1 was our effort to learn more about the lives and careers of our Alumni Stars Lecture Series’ invited guests.

Episodes

May 16, 2024

32 min

Camilla Frost-Brewer talks with star alumnus Charles Rudin, MD, PhD, deputy director of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and thoracic oncologist, about choosing a career path that allowed him to sit on the fence between science and medicine. He also reminisced about how his career has been shaped by his time at the University of Chicago, working alongside mentors who taught him to think critically and creatively. He marveled at the transformation of lung cancer into a survivable disease and predicts that cancer is something we will live with but get better at controlling.
 
 
Access the full transcript here. This transcript for Episode 3: Dr. Charles Rudin Talks about Sitting on the Fence of Science and Medicine was prepared by a transcription service and edited by an individual. This version may not be in its final form and may be updated.
 
 
 
“Starday”
Podington Bear
https://www.soundofpicture.com/ 

Apr 25, 2024

38 min

This episode features alumni star and nationally renowned cancer disparities researcher Otis W. Brawley, SB’81, MD’85, the Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Oncology and Epidemiology at Johns Hopkins University. He recounts his “Forrest Gump existence,” where he was in the room when big moments happened. Dr. Brawley grew up in Detroit and completed undergraduate and medical training at the University of Chicago, where he says he met giants of cancer, Dr. John Ultmann and Dr. Harvey Golub. These early experiences with mentors set the course for Dr. Brawley’s career where he has been able to make a difference in improving outcomes for cancer patients through his research, advocacy, and mentorship of young cancer researchers from underrepresented backgrounds.
 
Audio editing provided by Kat Carlton, Senior Marketing and Communications Specialist at UChicago Medicine.
 
Access the full transcript here. This transcript for Episode 2: Dr. Otis Brawley Talks about Cancer Disparities as Barriers to Better Outcomes for All was prepared by a transcription service and edited by an individual. This version may not be in its final form and may be updated.
 
 
 
“Starday”
Podington Bear
https://www.soundofpicture.com/ 

Apr 17, 2024

33 min

The debut episode of the Cancer Luminaries podcast features alumni star Todd Golub, MD, founding faculty member and now director of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. Dr. Golub is a world leader in applying genomic tools to cancer research, having made important discoveries in the molecular basis of childhood leukemia. He talks about the emotionally intense moments of his training that inspired him to become a cancer researcher and the lessons he took from working with legendary minds at UChicago. Throughout his career, Dr. Golub has fostered interdisciplinary research that has led to truly powerful collaborations. He also encourages scientists to push the biggest, boldest, riskiest ideas forward to make a truly important contribution to the field.
 
Audio editing provided by Kat Carlton, Senior Marketing and Communications Specialist at UChicago Medicine.
 
Access the full transcript here. This transcript for Episode 1: Dr. Todd Golub Talks about Maximizing Your Impact on the World through Bold Science was prepared by a transcription service and edited by an individual. This version may not be in its final form and may be updated.
 
 
 
“Starday”
Podington Bear
https://www.soundofpicture.com/

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