Striving for more
J. Dirk Iglehart, MD
Living with metastatic breast cancer is a challenge that many women face – though none as publicly as Elizabeth Edwards, wife of presidential hopeful Sen. John Edwards. Her determination to keep the disease from restricting her life has been a beacon of hope for others in her situation. In "Living well" and the accompanying stories, we hear the voices of women with metastatic disease as they describe how they cope, and the encouraging words of Dana-Farber physicians. For example, you'll meet Miriam Shafner, a woman who maintains a remarkable, active lifestyle seven years after her cancer spread. Patients like her continually inspire us to strive for more. We are always learning from them, as you'll read in the article "Patients are teachers, too."
Vitally important knowledge is gained in part from analyzing DNA in blood and tissue samples from patients with and without cancer: They give us a window into abnormal genetic activity. The Dana-Farber and Brigham and Women's Hospital tissue banks help make this research possible by storing donated samples for scientific use. Samples are also kept at the new Center for Molecular Oncologic Pathology at DFCI. But this is not just a repository, it's also a state-of-the-art facility for investigators to seek answers.
"Fingerprinting drug resistance in ovarian cancer" is a good example of how withdrawals from these storage facilities move research forward. We hope that you will find this issue of Turning Point informative and that you will come away with a greater understanding of our work in the Women's Cancers Program.
J. Dirk Iglehart, MD
Director, Women's Cancers Program
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Chief, Surgical Oncology
Brigham and Women's Hospital
