SUMC in the News (09/15/06)

Press release

$25 million gift to support bench-to-bedside research at Stanford
Jill and John Freidenrich, alumni and longtime supporters of Stanford, will give $25 million to the medical school to boost its work in translational research in cancer and other diseases. The gift is one of the school’s largest single contributions to date.

Print media coverage

Cleveland Plain-Dealer, 09/15/06
Fill-in dean to take over reins today at Case medical school
Ralph Horwitz, medical school dean at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, is coming to Stanford to head the medical school's Department of Medicine. This article mentions that today is the first day for his temporary replacement at Case.

Wall Street Journal, 09/15/06
New journals bet “negative results” save time, money (No online version available)
This article discusses scientists’ tendency to only report positive findings from a study and how a handful of scientific journals are now publishing only negative results. Although Stanford isn't referenced, this article may be of interest to readers.

Forbes.com, 09/14/06
Cancer drug Gleevec may ease rheumatoid arthritis?
A drug commonly used to treat cancer may treat and perhaps even prevent rheumatoid arthritis. William Robinson, assistant professor of medicine, is quoted in this HealthDay article, which also appears on drKoop.com and in the Austin American-Statesman (Austin, Texas), Daily Advance (Elizabeth City, N.C.), Grand Junction Sentinel (Grand Junction, Colo.), Greenville Reflector (Greenville, N.C.), Lufkin News (Lufkin, Texas), Marshall News Messenger (Marshall, Texas), Middleton Journal (Middleton, Ohio), Palm Beach Post (Palm Beach, Fla.) and Springfield News-Sun (Springfield, Ohio). WebMD.com also prepared an article quoting medical student Ricardo Paniagua.

San Francisco Business Times, 09/14/06
Stanford med school gets $25 million gift
This article, which also appears in the San Jose/Silicon Valley Business Journal, discusses the $25 million gift from Jill and John Freidenrich to the medical school. Palo Alto Online News also prepared an article which quotes Philip Pizzo, medical school dean.

Lexington Herald-Leader (Lexington, Ky.), 09/14/06
Stanford medical school bans drug firm freebies
Stanford has joined a small cadre of other major academic medical centers in enacting a policy aimed at limiting the potential influence of pharmaceutical and other biomedical companies in its day-to-day clinical and educational activities. Philip Pizzo; David Magnus, director of the Stanford Center for Biomedical Ethics; and Lawrence Shuer, professor of neurosurgery and chief-of-staff at Stanford Hospital & Clinics, are quoted in this article, which originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times. The policy was also discussed in a blog entry from the Huffington Post.

Los Angeles Times, 09/14/06
Panel challenges NIH handling of rules violations
Members of Congress aren't happy with the way NIH leadership has handled private financial deals between drug companies and numerous NIH scientists; one Congressman called the situation the worst scandal in the agency's history. Although Stanford isn't referenced, this article may be of interest to readers.

Science, 09/08/06
Faculty positions/ multidisciplinary matters (No online version available)
This article discusses how universities are increasingly emphasizing multidisciplinary research and teaching. Linda Cork, professor and chair of the Department of Comparative Medicine, is quoted here.