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Introduction of Dr. John Edward Niederhuber

Correspondence: Address correspondence and reprint requests to: John Daly, MD, Department of Surgery, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, 1300 York Ave., Room F739, New York, NY 10021; Fax: 212-746-5143; E-mail: jmdaly{at}mail.med.cornell.edu

Ladies and Gentleman, Members and Guests,

John Edward Niederhuber will shortly give you his presidential address. But, in keeping with this Society’s tradition, it is my distinct pleasure to tell you something about this wonderful individual who has been our president this past year. Also, here today in Denver are John’s son, Matthew, and his niece, Lindsey. Matt and Lindsey, would you please stand?

John was born in Steubenville, Ohio, a small coal-mining town, which is also known for being the birthplace of Dean Martin. He was one of two children born to Helen and Bill Niederhuber. John grew up with his brother, Jim, in a loving household (Fig. 1). He attended the local high school and enjoyed playing sports, particularly basketball, and wondered what to do with his life. His grandfather had emigrated from Europe and started a printing business, which was then passed down to his father and his uncles.

View larger version (174K): [in this window] [in a new window]   FIG. 1. John (right), during high school, with his brother, Jim (left).

John entered the army and was stationed at the US Biological Laboratory in Fort Detrick. Upon leaving the army, Captain Niederhuber was offered a residency position by Dr. Gardner Child (Fig. 2) at the University of Michigan.

View larger version (125K): [in this window] [in a new window]   FIG. 2. Dr. Gardner Child, chair at the University of Michigan.

View larger version (136K): [in this window] [in a new window]   FIG. 3. Dr. William Fry, professor of surgery at the University of Michigan.

View larger version (102K): [in this window] [in a new window]   FIG. 4. Dr. Jerry Turcotte, later chair at the University of Michigan.

During these early years, John published in the Journal of Immunology and Cellular Immunology on transplant antigens which increased our understanding of cellular immunity. He is remembered at Michigan as a dedicated academic surgeon and laboratory investigator and as an individual who could truly bridge the gap between basic science and clinical surgery.

After a Visiting Research Fellowship at the Karolinska Institute, John returned to Michigan, where he completed his chief residency in surgery in 1973. With his basic science achievements, he was appointed assistant professor of surgery and microbiology and later became chief of the Division of Surgical Oncology and Transplantation. He was so well respected that John was also named associate dean for research at the University of Michigan from 1982 to 1985. John met and married Tracey Williamson, a vibrant, self-assured woman who owned her own business and saw life as a continuing opportunity to help others.

In 1986, they went to Baltimore where John was a visiting professor at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at Hopkins. He stayed in Baltimore until 1991, becoming friends with Marty Abeloff, who later became the director of the Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins. It was during this time that John and Tracy’s son, Matt, was born. John Cameron remembers him as an excellent technical surgeon. Marty Abeloff remembers him as a compassionate clinician and dedicated surgeon-scientist. He always had time to "give guidance to young Ph.D.’s and residents." He was so highly respected, in fact, that John could have stayed at Hopkins as the director of their Cancer Center.

However, in 1991, John and Tracey were recruited to Stanford, where he became chairman of the Department of Surgery and head of surgical sciences. It was during this time that John set a new academic tone at Stanford. He did so through rigorous development of the clinical and scientific conferences, Visiting Professor programs, and faculty recruitment. It was his vision that Stanford would become the number one academic surgery program in the West. He recruited individuals like Dafoe from Penn, Weigelt from Duke, Bastides from Hopkins, Alfrey from Penn, and Zarens from Chicago. He increased research support in the department 5-fold. He was known as a superb surgeon and a warm human being with outstanding leadership skills and an enormous drive to achieve his academic vision for that department.

In 1997, John came to the University of Wisconsin as the assistant dean for oncology, professor of surgery, and director of the University of Wisconsin Comprehensive Cancer Center. The latter was no easy task, as John had to meld two major cancer centers into one within a single institution. Where there was little communication, John created partnerships. Where there were rivalries, he created collaborations, and where there were differences, he sought understanding.

During his career, he has received various awards, including the Distinguished Faculty Service Award from the University of Michigan, the Alumni Achievement Award from Ohio State, and the Distinguished Alumni Award from Bethany College. Of major importance, he was given the John Collins Memorial Award for Outstanding Teaching at Stanford University in 1996, perhaps the greatest legacy that one can leave at any institution and in any career.

He has been a member of 14 editorial boards and principal investigator on 12 major research and training grants. John has trained more than 4 doctoral and 18 postdoctoral students. He has been chairman of the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer, a member of the nominating committee of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and president-elect of the Association of American Cancer Institutes.

Along with Bill Ensminger and others, he reported a drug delivery system for hepatic arterial chemotherapy in 1981. It was that year that I first came to know John, as I traveled from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center to Michigan, to watch him place one of these pumps. Spending the day in Ann Arbor, John was extraordinarily hospitable, sharing his surgical techniques for catheter and pump implantation along with his personal description of the advantages and disadvantages of this modality. John attacked the clinical basis of regional infusion chemotherapy with the same scientific vigor that he used for studying cell signaling systems.

He has published over 115 unique scientific articles, including publications in Science, Annals of Surgery, The Journal of Immunology, and the Journal of Experimental Medicine. He is coeditor of Clinical Oncology, one of the major references in oncology, along with Abeloff, Armitage, and Lichter.

Don Dafoe, now professor and chairman of the Department of Surgery at Jefferson Medical College, remembers John from Stanford. On research, Don remembers Dr. Niederhuber noting, "that’s what nights and weekends are for." At Morbidity and Mortality conference, John would suggest, "do I need to come to the O.R. and show you how?" One of his frequent faculty recruitment conversations was "that’s fine . . . except then you’d be making more than I do!"

John has a warm and wonderful personality. He is an extremely caring individual, a terrific husband, and a wonderful father (Fig. 5). Tracey Niederhuber was a very special person with an indomitable spirit, a ready smile, and an ongoing offer to be your friend, no matter what the circumstance.

View larger version (126K): [in this window] [in a new window]   FIG. 5. Tracey, John, Matthew, and Lindsey in the Fall 1998.

Ladies and Gentleman, I give you the 55th president of the Society of Surgical Oncology, Dr. John E. Niederhuber (Fig. 6), a truly remarkable, compassionate, and skilled surgeon, a basic scientist at ease with studying fundamental biology, and a warm, caring administrative leader. He is also my great friend.

View larger version (94K): [in this window] [in a new window]   FIG. 6. John E. Niederhuber, MD, 55th president of the Society of Surgical Oncology.

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