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Hopkins GIM Mourns the Loss of Dr. Martin Abeloff

Dr. Martin Abeloff provided support and encouragement to GIM's plans to contribute to cancer research, practice, and prevention. He was also a model of Hopkins warmth, colleagiality, and personal integrity. He will be sorely missed.

CHIEF ONCOLOGIST MARTIN ABELOFF DIES OF LEUKEMIA

Martin D. Abeloff, M.D., the chief oncologist and director of the Johns
Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center for the past 15 years, died Sept. 14 of
leukemia. Abeloff, 65, was an international authority on the treatment of
breast cancer.

He is remembered by his colleagues and friends across the globe for his
characteristic humility, wry sense of humor and extraordinary devotion to
his patients, students and the collaborative spirit he nurtured in his long
tenure at Johns Hopkins, where he spent most of his career.
 
"Marty was that iconic Hopkins physician, scientist, educator, leader and
good citizen rolled into one," said Edward D. Miller, M.D., Dean/CEO of
Johns Hopkins Medicine.  "He was there for his patients, his residents and
fellows, his colleagues and at so many challenging times, the institution he
graced for so long."

"All of the Johns Hopkins Medicine family will miss his presence and his
wisdom," said Ronald R. Peterson, president of The Johns Hopkins Hospital
and Health System.  "He was the consummate quiet man who worked tirelessly
to achieve greatness in his field."

In typical Abeloff fashion, he recently credited the Cancer Center's growth
and advances against malignant disease to the faculty and staff, counting
himself "lucky" to work among individuals whose intellect and values made
coming to work "an absolute joy."

"He was the ultimate role model," said friend and Hopkins colleague Stephen
Baylin, M.D., Virginia and D.K. Ludwig Professor of Oncology and Medicine,
and deputy director of the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center.
"What he didn't know, he took the time to learn.  And with a combination of
qualities best summarized as wisdom, he helped transform both the treatment
of cancer and the way that Johns Hopkins delivers that care.  These are his
legacies."

During his 15-year tenure as Cancer Center director, Abeloff doubled the
size of the center's faculty, increased research funding sixfold since 1992,
and saw it consistently ranked among the nation's top three cancer centers
in U.S. News & World Report surveys.
"Marty built an impressive and unparalleled team of cancer experts and a
world-class reputation for the Kimmel Cancer Center," Miller added.

Under Abeloff's direction, the cancer complex at Johns Hopkins expanded to
include nearly 1 million square feet of treatment and research space.
Inside the Center's Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Building, Abeloff revealed
his passion for the arts, where he established the Art of Healing program,
which includes a performing arts series and a collection of more than 100
works of museum-quality art by Maryland and other nationally known artists
for the enjoyment of patients, visitors and staff.  He also was instrumental
in bringing the largest single gift to Johns Hopkins, the $150 million
donation from philanthropist and fashion entrepreneur Sidney Kimmel, for
whom the cancer center is now named.

Abeloff received his medical degree from Johns Hopkins in 1966.  After
residency and fellowship training in Boston's Beth Israel Hospital and
Tufts-New England Medical Center, he returned to Baltimore for an oncology
fellowship at Johns Hopkins.  He joined the Hopkins oncology faculty in
1972, focusing on lung and breast cancer research, then heading the medical
oncology department before directing the entire cancer center.
Abeloff served as president of the American Society of Clinical Oncology
(ASCO) and chairman of the FDA Oncology Drug Advisory Committee.  He also
had been the chairperson of the Board of Scientific Counselors to the
Intramural Division of Clinical Science at the National Cancer Institute
(NCI) and a member of the NCI Executive Committee.

The funeral service will be held at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 16, at the Sol
Levinson and Brothers funeral home, 8900 Reisterstown Road (corner of Mt.
Wilson Lane), Pikesville, Md. Interment will be at Oheb Shalom Cemetery, 318
Berrymans Lane, Reisterstown, Md. A memorial service at Johns Hopkins is
being planned.

Martin David Abeloff was born in Shenandoah, Pa.  He is survived by his
wife, Diane, a medical illustrator; daughters Elisa Abeloff and her husband,
George Landau, and Jennifer Abeloff and her husband, Howard Wasserman; three
grandchildren; and his sister and brother-in-law, Marilyn and Morrell Fox.

The Abeloff family has requested that in lieu of flowers or gifts, donations
be sent to the Martin D. Abeloff, M.D., Scholars Program in Cancer
Prevention and Control at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, Suite
234,100 N. Charles St., Baltimore MD 21201. Tributes and notes of sympathy
may be submitted to kpr@jhmi.edu for posting on the Kimmel Cancer Center Web
site at www.hopkinskimmelcancercenter.org.