From the Editor

Staying Power

This issue is hitting the press just as alumni from all over the country—and around the world—are arriving on the East Baltimore campus to celebrate Reunion and Alumni Weekend. This year marks a move to an annual celebration (from a biannual event) and, judging by the enthusiastic response, the change is a welcome one.

Of course, not all of our alumni are scattered to the wind. A good number never left and we are all the richer for those who have put down deep roots here at Johns Hopkins after completing medical school and/or residency training. By way of example, look no farther than our story on p. 16, about a team of Johns Hopkins’ greatest minds that is on the brink of a major breakthrough in the early detection of pancreatic cancer.

“Fun fact,” author Catherine Gara pointed out to me after completing the article. “Five of those leading The Felix Project are Johns Hopkins ‘lifers’—Bert Vogelstein, Ken Kinzler, Elliot Fishman, Karen Horton and Ralph Hruban. Collectively, they bring 150-plus years of Johns Hopkins experience to the table!” Fun fact, indeed. With that collection of institutional expertise concentrated on vanquishing one of cancer’s most pernicious foes, it should be no surprise to any of us that the team expects to have marketable results within two years.

The Felix Project is but one example of the immense power of our homegrown talent here at Johns Hopkins—talent that is an additional cause for celebration this Reunion and Alumni Weekend.