A Stanford doctor has achieved a historic first in the medical community. Michael Link, M.D., a professor in Pediatric Cancer at the School of Medicine, is the first pediatric oncologist to be named president of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).
While the majority of ASCO presidents have been medical oncologists, who care for adults with cancer and who also make up the bulk of ASCO membership, Link’s election as a pediatric oncologist highlights the importance of children’s cases in cancer research and care, as well as the value of unity among all disciplines related to cancer.
“This reflects, I think, how pediatric oncology in many ways has led the whole field of oncology,” said Dr. Bertil Glader, a fellow professor and doctor in pediatric oncology.
“I couldn’t be more pleased or proud,” added Dr. Harvey Cohen, professor of pediatrics. “In my opinion, he is the best pediatric oncologist in the country.”
ASCO, an international nonprofit, dedicates itself to uniting cancer physicians and researchers to improve cancer prevention and care, as well as to educate physicians about the newest research developments.
Link looks toward assuming the role of president-elect in June, and he sees a particular opportunity for a global focus.
“It’s called the American Society of Clinical Oncology, but more than one-third of its members are from other countries,” Link said. “We can’t be so narrow-minded as to only focus on our own problems.”
While doctors have made significant advancement in furthering cancer technology, new procedures often remain unaffordable for developing countries. Many of the newest therapy technologies are not only extremely expensive, but also difficult to transport, and Link believes the ASCO holds a responsibility to pave the path toward greater equality.
“We can’t just be focused on the new, the more expensive, the most high-tech—we have to focus on the exportable,” he said.
In a nation engulfed in debate over healthcare, Link hopes to shape ASCO to encourage greater understanding of Medicare and Medicaid patients’ needs.
“We want to make sure these children have access to the best care, that that choice is made not on the basis of how expensive it is, but on quality,” he said.
On the other hand, he added, “We don’t want to advocate doing things just for the sake of doing them.”
Several other doctors from Stanford have served as ASCO president before, and Link’s colleagues from the Stanford School of Medicine are thrilled about his ascendency.
“This is kind of a situation where the student does better than the teacher,” said Cohen, who taught Link as a student and resident. “He has always been brilliant, and he asks incredibly good questions. He’s done earth-shattering work with children with cancer.”
“We should all be honored—this is a great tribute to his accomplishments,” Glader said.
An active member of the ASCO for years, Link has served on several committees and is currently an associate editor for the organization’s Journal for Clinical Oncology. Yet, Link says pediatrics have provided his driving passion ever since his medical school days.
“You develop a very intense relationship with the family,” he said, “taking them through a dark hour and hopefully bring them back into the light, bring back a cured child. It’s the most satisfying thing you can imagine.”
For Link, the combination of working with children in a scientific environment and fostering lifelong relationships with the whole family proved “almost an irresistible combination.”
Link sometimes hears from his patients years later as adults, and several have even become doctors themselves. “What more fun could there be?” he asks himself.
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