In Memoriam: Daniel C. Ihde
In Memoriam: Daniel C. Ihde
Barnett S. Kramer 0 1
0 DOI: 10.1093/jnci/dji048 Journal of the National Cancer Institute , Vol. 97, No. 3, ? Oxford University Press 2005, all rights reserved
1 Journal of the National Cancer Institute , Vol. 97, No. 3
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When Dan Ihde passed the reins of the Journal of the National
Cancer Institute to me 11 years ago this very issue, he shared
several words of wisdom. ?If you make the right decision 80% of
the time,? one of his adages went, ?you?ll be the greatest editor
who ever lived.? But more than his words, it was Dan himself
who set the mark for fine editorship, exceptional scholarship, and
integrity. There could be no better mentor.
We at the Journal and in the clinical oncology community at
large mourn the loss of Daniel C. Ihde, M.D., who died
December 9 at age 61. It is a particular loss for those of us whom he
mentored and taught the value of rigorous thinking. That rigor
was complemented by his delightful dry sense of humor.
Dan graduated from Stanford University Medical School in
1969 and served as an intern and resident at The New York
Hospital and then as a resident and fellow at Memorial-Sloan
Kettering Hospital. He then went to the National Cancer
Institute, where his career spanned 21 years, from 1973 to
1994.
He began as a medical oncology fellow, later becoming a
senior investigator at the NCI-VA Medical Oncology Branch and
then deputy chief of the Navy Medical Oncology Branch at the
National Naval Medical Center. He also served as director of the
Division of Hematology and Oncology at the Uniformed
Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland.
He served as deputy director of NCI from 1991 until 1994, and
he was editor of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute
from 1989 until 1994.
During his tenure at NCI, Dan trained scores of oncology
fellows in clinical medicine and in the conduct and design of
clinical trials. Many of the people Dan worked with and trained
are now leaders in the field. He had a remarkable ability to teach,
guide, and encourage those around him. ?Dan could in a very
calm, nonjudgmental way, guide you to the right decision,? says
John Minna, M.D., who worked closely with Dan for more than
10 years at NCI.
Many of us have stories of Dan?s impressive encyclopedic
memory. Minna recalled a presentation at an international lung
cancer meeting where, after the lecture, Dan questioned the
presenter on his research, saying that it didn?t agree with that
group?s prior work. When the presenter disagreed, Dan cited the
exact paper and table number that contained the data that
contradicted the presentation that had just been made.
?The whole room was silent,? Minna recalls. ?Dan had
actually remembered the data better than the person who had
done the research.?
Dan excelled as an administrator. ?His clinical knowledge and
insights were legendary,? says Samuel Broder, M.D., who served
as NCI director from 1988 to 1995, and who appointed Dan as
NCI deputy director in 1991. ?He was an effective counterweight
to overly optimistic or enthusiastic viewpoints. You got a real
grounding in reality whenever you dealt with Dan.?
By all accounts, Dan
achieved great professional
success, largely a result of
his intellect coupled with
his kind demeanor; he never
sought credit or personal
gain. ?A lot of people ?
were mostly interested in
their own career and
getting ahead,? says Paul A.
Bunn, Jr., M.D., who was a
fellow with Dan at NCI in
the 1970s. ?Dan was the
antithesis of all that. He wanted
to get it right for right?s sake,
not for his own personal Daniel C. Ihde, M.D.
advancement.?
While he was editor of the Journal of the National Cancer
Institute, Dan set the tone for excellence with his good judgment
of data. He could recognize a truly well-designed study and turn
a good manuscript into an outstanding final product. He made
sure the Journal was a top-notch publication.
I quote Dan?s wisdom regularly, whether it is regarding a
clinical decision or an editorial decision at the Journal. Many of us
will remember Dan for his great dry wit. Although Dan never said
an unkind word, many of us will recall with a knowing chuckle
some of his anecdotes that are part of the rich oral history.
Outside of his professional life, he enjoyed a rich personal
life with his wife Mary, whom he met while at Stanford, and
their two sons, Steven and Douglas. They took many trips as a
family, visiting Maine, Nova Scotia, Yellowstone National Park,
Switzerland, and Shenandoah National Park. Mary is a
remarkable person in her own right. Dan justifiably always thought the
world of Mary.
Dan was as well versed in classic literature and classic film
trivia as he was in clinical oncology. ?When he went to college,
he majored in math and chemistry, but he read the 100 great books
on the side,? says Mary Ihde. Many of us recall having long,
in-depth conversations with Dan about history, politics, classic
literature, movies, and food perhaps as often (...truncated)