Susan Halabi, PhD, thinks in terms
of probabilities. Based at Duke University School of Medicine,
where she is an Associate Professor of Biostatistics and
Bioinformatics, Dr. Halabi specializes in the design and analysis
of clinical trials, statistical analysis of biomarker and
microarray data, and development and validation of prognostic
models of clinical outcomes. She knows that realizing the Conquer
Cancer Foundation's vision-a world free from the fear of
cancer-is ultimately a numbers game.
Every individual who
joins the Conquer Cancer Foundation team-whether he or she
dedicates time, creativity, and expertise to conduct or encourage
cancer research; helps to raise funds to support research; or makes
a direct financial contribution-brings us a step closer.
"The value of human
capital is enormous," says Dr. Halabi. "Time is just as important
as money. It's not necessarily a matter of making large financial
contributions. Volunteering-whether you're giving time or
money-makes a quantitative, effective, meaningful impact."
"I support the Conquer
Cancer Foundation because its goals align with mine," she says.
"I'm more committed than ever to advancing cancer research, as is
the Foundation."
Advancing
Knowledge through Donation of Book Proceeds
Dr. Halabi has come up with an innovative way to
contribute to the Conquer Cancer Foundation-one in which the
vehicle for her philanthropy is in perfect alignment with the
program it supports. She and her co-editor, Kevin Kelly,
DO, are donating all proceeds of their book Oncology
Clinical Trials: Successful Design, Conduct, and Analysis to
the Foundation-with the gift earmarked specifically for use in
funding its Young Investigator Awards.
"The book is intended to
serve as a guide for junior faculty members who may be conducting
their first-or one of their first-clinical trials," Dr. Halabi
says. "There's a great synergy, in that both the book and the Young
Investigator Awards support the work of our young colleagues as
they embark on their careers."
"I know that my early
career experiences really shaped my future," she continues. "The
importance of excellent mentors, institutional support-in terms of
protecting research time for junior faculty-and the kind of early
funding that we provide through the Young Investigator Awards
cannot be overstated. It's essential that we support and prepare
the next generation of cancer researchers."
Nurturing the
Next Generation of Cancer Researchers
Growing up in a family of
engineers in Venezuela and Lebanon, Dr. Halabi's aptitude for
math-she was one of the first students in the undergraduate
biostatistics program at the American University of Beirut-was
complemented by an interest in medicine. "I liked math and I was
interested in research," she recalls. "And there are synergies.
Both math and medicine are fields in which you need to be
comfortable with uncertainty."
Dr. Halabi's passion for
cancer research took hold while she was completing her doctoral
work at The University of Texas Health Sciences Center at Houston
and collaborating on breast cancer and lung cancer studies with
researchers at MD Anderson Cancer Center. During that time, her
best friend was diagnosed with breast cancer that would eventually
claim her life. She was the first of Dr. Halabi's friends and
colleagues to be affected by the disease-but not the last.
"As I was growing older,
I would encounter more and more people, including family members
and friends who were diagnosed with cancer," she says, remembering
her intensifying awareness of the desperate need to find
answers.
At Duke, Dr. Halabi works
on clinical trials for prostate cancer, bladder cancer, and renal
cancer. She has developed a nomogram, or multivariable model, for
calculating probability of survival among patients with prostate
cancer-a tool that may ease treatment decisions and help improve
quality of life. A recent Research Project Grant (RO1) from the NCI
is funding 4 more years of research as Dr. Halabi works to develop
new prognostic models for use in treating men with advanced
prostate cancer.
Off-campus, Dr. Halabi is
working with a team of researchers in another nonprofit
organization, on a public health project addressing residential
mercury-a potent carcinogen-in Peru and Bolivia. She is also active
with ASCO and the Society for Clinical Trials-serving on the
Society's Board of Directors and on the program committees of both
organizations, with plans to host their first joint workshop at the
2012 ASCO Annual Meeting. Dr. Halabi has served on the Grants
Selection Committee for the Conquer Cancer Foundation of ASCO's
Young Investigator Awards and Career Development Awards for the
past 4 years.
"As we move deeper into
the world of personalized medicine, biostatistics will play a huge
role," she says. "Both need and opportunity will be enormous in the
very near future."
Growing the next generation of cancer researchers
is very much on Dr. Halabi's mind-and she believes that the Young
Investigator Awards play a crucial role.
"The pioneers who led the
work that has contributed to our great progress in cancer research
over the past 30 or 40 years-will be retiring in the next few
years. It's critical that we support the people who will lead us
into the future." ■
