UP FRONT
What kept drawing you back to
hematology?
My internal medicine training in Austria
and my exposure to hematology/oncology
during that training triggered my desire to
eventually focus in malignant hematology. I
loved what I did there – the contact with the
patients, the opportunities to improve their
lives, and the complexity of the hematologic
diseases.
I also liked that hematology seemed
to be an intellectual field. Surgery is
as well, of course, but it’s also physi-
cal. From the outside, hematology
appeared more concerned with under-
standing the disease and translating
those insights into better treatments
– which attracted me instantly.
And, of course, the patient interac-
tion is much different in hematology
than in heart surgery. Hematology of-
fered intimate contact with patients.
I’m a very social person, so I enjoy
taking care of patients, helping them,
and learning about their lives while I’m
trying to get rid of their cancer. In most
cases, their disease is not acquired – pa-
tients don’t develop cancer because they
smoke or are exposed to too many tox-
ins. It develops naturally and unexpect-
edly, and it can devastate them emotion-
ally. I wanted to be a part of fixing that.
In your position now, what
is your rose and what is your
thorn?
Each day is different, but the best part
is always the time spent sitting with my
team to catch up on ongoing projects
and make plans for the future. Our con-
versations can generate crazy ideas; it’s
wonderful to see them go from wishful
thinking, to grant proposal, to fully
funded project. And then the absolute
greatest feeling is when we can offer
patients an exploratory treatment and
see them benefit from it.
If I’m being honest, the worst part
of the days is handling the bureaucratic
issues involved with clinical research.
There are endless forms that need to
be signed and constant interactions
with the contract research associates
that can get in the way of actually
conducting research. Our health-care
system in Germany is different than
the United States, but I think this is a
problem that we all have in common.
What career advice do you give
to early-career hematologists/
oncologists?
From the beginning, focus. If you want
to be good at something or considered
an expert in a particular field, you
need to singularly focus on that.
Don’t expect yourself to become an
expert without dedicating time and
effort to it. To truly excel at some-
thing requires extra engagement and
initiative.
ASHClinicalNews.org
When you have time outside of
work, what do you like to do?
I like to travel with my wife and children.
We try to discover new places each year,
but our favorite place we keep returning
to is Paris.
I also play bass guitar in my spare
time. It’s not completely outside of work,
because I play in a band with other clini-
cians and researchers from the University
of Dresden.
Is that yet another career you
might consider in the future?
Not yet – before meeting them, I was
never much of a musician, so I taught
myself how to play in the last few years.
I don’t think I’m quite good enough to
consider a career switch, so I’ll leave that
to the professionals. ●
FIGHTING
CANCER
WHERE IT’S
AT ITS WORST
MARKEY CANCER CENTER
See how at ukhealthcare.com/lesscancer