Page 8 - HNW Spring Magazine 2024

Meet the Man fingertips, and still so many don’t know how Sloan Kettering Cancer Center has been doing,
At Vanderbilt we’ve modeled what Memorial
to access it and interpret it. For years I’ve
Who Wants to been part of these virtual cancer boards that and we’ve expanded on it. So now we have
discuss challenging cancer cases. (I was early
systems in place to streamline the process of
Democratize to the virtual meeting party—I should have genetic sequencing, and we have ways to
bought stock in Zoom!) In 2016, through this
capture the clinical and research data. We’ve
Precision Oncology international cancer board, we were able to also expanded these systems to include RNA
analysis. We were one of the first, if not the
help a young girl in Bangladesh. I happened to
know the rare type of breast cancer she had. first, to utilize this kind of data and put it into
We got her flown over, got her on this trial, electronic system and get results immediately.
f you know anyone who has had
I breast cancer in the last decade BEN HO PARK, MD, PHD and now she’s back home, alive, and just takes It sounds simple but it’s absolutely game
a daily pill. I could not stop thinking about
changing. It positions us to be able to do what
or so, chances are high that
person’s treatment had Dr. Ben Director, Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center how many patients like her are out there. If I dream of—democratizing precision oncology.
they knew about us and we knew about them,
Benjamin F. Byrd, Jr. Chair in Oncology
Ho Park’s fingerprints on it in some way. Dr. Professor of Medicine, we could help so many. HF: How does private philanthropy help you
Park’s research team at Johns Hopkins identified Division of Hematology/Oncology do what you do?
a high frequency of PIK3CA mutations in breast Vanderbilt University Medical Center BP: We would not be where we are today in
cancer that ultimately led to the development HEALTHNETWORK We would not be where we are today in oncology without private philanthropy. I dare
of PI3K inhibitors, approved by the FDA in SERVICE EXCELLENCE oncology without private philanthropy. say every major discovery that has led to a
2019. Dr. Park also pioneered cell-free DNA AWARD WINNER new test or drug has had the backup of private
“liquid biopsies” that use mutations as I dare say every major discovery that philanthropy. It’s alarming how few want to
diagnostic tools. Most recently, as Director has led to a new test or drug has had pursue a career in cancer research these days,
of the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, he BP: After my clinical training, I did my the backup of private philanthropy. yet understandable. We in academics could
spearheaded a monumental change in how postdoctoral research fellowship in cancer make three to five times our salary in industry
gene sequencing is done. And that’s just the genetics in a John Hopkins lab—and that’s or private practice. Private philanthropy
tip of the iceberg of oncology advancements when I had this “aha” moment about precision There are two parts to precision oncology: organizations have really stepped up for people
Dr. Park gets credit for. We are honored to be oncology. This was right around the time 1) What test did you order and how good is like me who choose a career in academic
partnered with this brilliant physician-scientist. NextGen sequencing was coming into it for finding what you’re looking for? 2) Who research. Healthnetwork pulls together people
As Gina Santel says on the previous page, oncology, and for the first time I started is helping interpret the results? Number two who have had common experiences and pays
“He’s the guy you want in your corner.” thinking about how we could understand each is where we can really help. And because it forward to benefit others. ✦
patient’s cancer at an individual DNA level of the changes we made recently, Vanderbilt
Healthnetwork Foundation (HF): How did you and then attack the molecular underpinnings is positioned to fill that gap.
end up in medicine? of their cancer. When I first went to college,
Dr. Ben Ho Park (BP): I grew up in Michigan in I was thinking I’d be a physician like my dad. HF: Let’s talk about those changes. You’ve
a GM town during the 70s and 80s. My father But then I saw what research can do, how only been at Vanderbilt a few years but you’ve
was a surgeon in private practice, and he we can use science to make new discoveries. been busy! Tell us what you’ve been up to.
always discouraged my twin brother and me And at the time, I was working in a tumor BP: Until recently the standard practice for
from going into medicine. He didn’t think it immunology lab where I learned that maybe getting a tumor sequenced was cumbersome
was worth it. He told us, “There are faster, the immune system could be trained to kill and limited. It still is at many places, even at
easier ways to make a living.” He was right cancer cells in a patient. Turns out both state-of-the-art medical centers. Just ordering
about that, but not right on the “worth it” approaches have had a lot of success over the the test is a challenge at many places. You
part. My brother went into business and he’s past 40 years. Once I got bit by the research have to order a special form, print it, fill it out,
been retired for 10 years. But even if I could bug, there was no going back. I recognized fax it somewhere—then the results come back
retire, I wouldn’t. I can’t imagine not doing this is what I wanted to do with my life. by fax and you scan it in to that patient’s
what I’m doing every day. file. Many providers don’t understand what’s
HF: What are you working on now that you’re on the reports so the data has limited value.
HF: You still take care of a handful of patients excited about? And because it’s not in an electronic format, Dr. Park and his wife of 10 years, Paula Hurley, PhD,
but most of your time is on the research side. BP: I want to democratize precision oncology. it can’t be searched, indexed and mined for enjoy some rare free time on vacation in Miami
Tell us how you landed in the lab. There are tremendous resources at our clinical research purposes. in March 2022.

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