• © 2003 by American Society of Clinical Oncology

Paul Peter Carbone, MD

Paul Peter Carbone, MD

IT HAS been over a year since Paul Carbone died suddenly of cardiac disease while in Singapore. Since his death, we feel his absence regularly, talk about him frequently here at the University of Wisconsin, and miss him even more when met with inquiries about his wonderful wife, Mary. Paul’s influence on the oncology world, as for others of his stature, is not easy to measure, but it is clearly broad and deep. He had a career-long involvement in shaping the professional growth of numerous trainees, and demonstrated consistent, significant leadership in clinical cooperative groups, cancer centers, and national and international cancer-related activities.

Paul Peter Carbone, MD, MACP, DScHon, Director Emeritus of the University of Wisconsin Comprehensive Cancer Center, was born in White Plains, New York, on May 2, 1931. He received his medical degree from Albany Medical College and his internal medicine residency training at the US Public Health Service hospitals in Baltimore, Maryland and San Francisco, California. During his time at the National Cancer Institute, he became known for the development of new cancer chemotherapy drugs, as well as for treatment programs for Hodgkin’s disease and breast cancer. In 1972, he shared the Lasker Award for these accomplishments. Among other acknowledgments of his work were the Richard and Hinda Rosenthal Award of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) and the Medal of Honor for Clinical Research from the American Cancer Society. He was a Master of the American College of Physicians, and was awarded the Health Medal of the First Order, Executive Yuan, Republic of China, and the Distinguished Service Award for Scientific Achievement from the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).

He served as President of both ASCO (1972 to 1973) and AACR (1979 to 1980). In 1976, Dr. Carbone joined the University of Wisconsin in Madison as head of medical oncology. In 1977, he became chair of the Department of Human Oncology and served as director of the University of Wisconsin Comprehensive Cancer Center from 1978 to 1997. He chaired the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) for over 20 years, and through that organization promoted the careers of numerous oncologists, much as he did through the fellowship training program at the University of Wisconsin. He was a driving force in the initial studies of adjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer, and chaired the Breast Cancer Task Force. He was a member of the board of directors of the nonprofit Frontier Science and Technology Research Foundation for over 20 years, working on large clinical trials and developing cancer and AIDS treatments through this organization up until his death.

Paul Carbone was a hard worker and a person who cared about people. He was efficient and a consummate multitasker. He learned early the art of mentoring without micromanaging, which is perhaps one reason why he accomplished so much. We might ask just what the characteristics were that made him a good mentor and role model—those who were close to him professionally at the University of Wisconsin, ECOG, and elsewhere perhaps say it best: “He always had time for people, no matter where they were in an organization’s hierarchy”; “He was a great supporter of young people”; “He had great loyalty to people who worked with him”; “He kept personal thoughts to himself and didn’t gossip or speak ill of others”; “He set high standards and provided encouragement for achievement to those around him”; “He could make decisions and stick to them.”

At times, Paul was hard to read, but there was no missing his passion for the latest advances in technology. He had the first fax machine at University of Wisconsin Hospital and was always updating his personal computer knowledge and equipment. Many of us were irritated by how good a golfer he was, an irritation not soothed by his ready willingness to give us a “lesson.” Soon we learned to always include a new golfer in the foursome. He loved to travel with his wife, Mary, and developed a particular love for visits to Italy.

Paul was a member of the first certifying committee for the American Board of Internal Medicine for Medical Oncology, and helped develop Medical Oncology as a boarded specialty. He enjoyed writing and teaching, and authored more than 300 papers and chapters. He was on the editorial boards of numerous journals, and was the Editor-in-Chief of the journal Oncology. His work with fellows and residents at the bedside was outstanding. He had an impressive internal medicine knowledge base and an obvious wealth of medical oncology experience and history. It was a difficult day for the University of Wisconsin fellowship program when he moved to emeritus status and stopped rotating on the in-patient clinical service. He did, however, continue his clinic, and he was only a few weeks away from getting back to his patients when he died during his last sojurn to Singapore where—as always—he was helping to build programs to reduce the cancer burden.

He provided a lifetime of lessons in hard work, perseverance, and kindness. His wife Mary, children, grandchildren, patients, and colleagues miss him greatly.