Letters to the Editor
Can ’ t We All Get Along ?
In his August 2017 editorial (“ Musing on Medical Marvels ”), Keith Stewart , MBChB , MBA , recounted the amazing innovations in cancer treatment in the past 20 years and acknowledged the hard work of every member of the medical-marvels team – including “ Big Pharma .” Here , a hematologist in industry writes to thank Dr . Stewart for extending the olive branch .
Like Dr . Stewart , I too have marveled at the remarkable pace of change in the development of novel therapies for hematologic malignancies , and have enjoyed feeling the “ wind in our hair ” as past American Society of Hematology annual meetings have highlighted the evidence of that pace .
As a pediatric hematologist / oncologist who has worked on a dozen drug development programs over the past 10 years , it was particularly satisfying to have Dr . Stewart argue for an attitude of inclusiveness toward me and my industry colleagues , and for recognizing our collective contributions to the renaissance we are living in . It bears remembering that many of us were medical and / or graduate students , residents , fellows , post-docs , and academic colleagues at one point . We ’ ve simply chosen to occupy a different – but equally crucial – role to apply our education , training , and passion in this shared mission . Constructing or propagating artificial dichotomies ( e . g ., “ academia vs . industry ”) wastes time and energy that could otherwise be spent collaborating on that next protocol design , clinical development plan , or investigatorinitiated study .
Sincerely ,
Samuel C . Blackman , MD , PhD Senior Vice President , Clinical Development
Silverback Therapeutics , Inc . Seattle , WA
Have a comment about an article ? Let us know what you think ; we welcome your feedback . Email the editor at ACNEditor @ hematology . org .
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8 ASH Clinical News