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Photo by Reed Hutchinson |
Frederick Eilber and his son, Fritz, often operate elbow-to-elbow. |
They share common enemy
By Kim irwin
UCLA TODAY
When Frederick Eilber first began operating on sarcoma patients in the early 1970s in the new surgical oncology division at the UCLA Medical Center, most of his procedures were limb amputations. Patients weren’t given chemotherapy or radiation, and, sadly, many died when their cancer returned.
So Eilber decided to follow a different model to treat these malignant tumors arising from connective tissues, one that he learned in Texas as a senior surgical fellow at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, using radiation and chemotherapy before surgery to shrink the tumor.
“Everyone said it would fail,” recalled the oncologist, who had to administer the chemotherapy himself because he couldn’t interest any medical oncologists in his new treatment model. “I had to call an oncologist friend in New York to make sure I was giving the right amount.”
Over time, with this treatment plan, surgeons have saved the limbs of about 95% of sarcoma patients.
Now, three decades later, Eilber’s son is preparing to take over the UCLA Sarcoma Program that his father founded. Fritz Eilber, a surgical oncologist and trailblazer like his father, is looking in a different direction for new therapies.
Together with colleagues, Fritz Eilber is creating a translational research program that will utilize experts from different disciplines to test new therapies that will home in on what is causing the cancer. “My hope is that within two years, we’ll have a series of new, more effective therapies to offer patients,” said the assistant professor of surgery.
The Eilbers discovered their interest in sarcomas walking different paths. Following his surgical residency, the elder Eilber was accepted into an elite training program at the National Institutes of Health, where he became interested in cancer research.
In contrast, his son, Fritz, a self-described surfer boy, graduated from the University of Pennsylvania as an anthropology major, then worked as a ski instructor for a year. That experience made him realize that he wanted to do something more meaningful with his life. He decided to attend medical school at UCLA, but before enrolling, he worked with a prominent surgical oncologist during a summer American Cancer Society fellowship.
That sealed it. After completing his internship and residency at UCLA, he studied sarcomas during a two-year research fellowship with his father and James Economou. He then became a surgical oncology fellow at Memorial Sloan-Ketter-
ing Cancer Center, which tried to persuade him to stay on.
Today, the Eilbers often operate elbow-to-elbow. “I was glad he went into medicine. It’s been very rewarding for me,” said Frederick Eilber, a professor of surgery. “There was no pressure for him to do what I do, but when he chose to be involved in cancer and surgery, it was fine with me.”
Both downplay their unique situation. “The opportunity to work with my father and to make a smooth transition into running the sarcoma program here is great, but it’s not why I’m here,” said Fritz Eilber.
It’s the chance to do research alongside surgeons, oncologists, imaging experts and basic scientists, demonstrating UCLA’s strength in multidisciplinary research, he said.
There’s another benefit, Fritz Eilber concedes. “When you’re working with senior colleagues and mentors, there are certain barriers. Those don’t exist with us. He’s my dad. I can just pop into his office if there’s something I want to talk about.”
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