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Tribute: ASCO Remembers Dr. Heine H. Hansen

Feb 07, 2012

Heine H. Hansen, MD, PhD, FRCP—whose name is synonymous with the development of medical oncology as a specialty in Europe and who was an ASCO member for nearly 40 years—passed away on September 16, 2011.

Dr. Hansen placed a major emphasis on lung cancer throughout his career. In 1972, he arrived at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) as a visiting fellow from Denmark. During that time, “NCI was doing a lot of studies in lymphomas and Hodgkin disease. These of course were not the most common cancers,” said Paul A. Bunn, Jr., MD, of the University of Colorado, in an interview with ASCO Daily News. Dr. Bunn is a former colleague of Dr. Hansen through NCI and the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC), and is a Past ASCO President.

NCI soon started an intramural program with branches in breast cancer and lung cancer. The lung cancer branch, where Dr. Hansen worked, was located at the Washington, DC, Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center. Eventually Dr. Hansen returned to Denmark, where he continued his work at the Finsen Institute on clinical trials in lung cancer. The studies led by Dr. Hansen established the role of etoposide in small cell lung cancer, the importance of staging lung cancers before therapy, the importance of response evaluation and rebiopsy, the importance of the central nervous system as a sanctuary site, and the importance of prognostic features and study design, explained Dr. Bunn.

Dr. Hansen’s work at NCI took place during the early stages of development of medical oncology in the United States. Accordingly, medical oncology was yet to be recognized as a specialty in Europe. “Thoracic surgeons largely took care of patients with lung cancer, and breast cancer surgeons largely took care of patients with breast cancer, etc.,” said Dr. Bunn. “It would be fair to say that Dr. Hansen was really the father of medical oncology in Europe, where only recently it was recognized as a defined medical specialty.”

In addition, Dr. Hansen was instrumental in creating the European Society of Medical Oncology [ESMO]-ASCO Recommendations for a Global Curriculum in Medical Oncology—a set of common guidelines with a global perspective for the clinical training required for a physician to qualify as a medical oncologist.

“He was a kind and generous man who had a passion for the specialty of medical oncology and how standards were set for educating the next generation of medical oncologists,” said Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) CEO Paula Rieger, RN, MSN, CAE, FAAN, who worked with Dr. Hansen on the Curriculum. She noted how through his involvement with ASCO and through his contacts and past leadership positions in ESMO—where he served as President and Chair of the ESMO Central Eastern European Task Force—Dr. Hansen helped to create “one unified curriculum that was consistent between the two organizations.”

He also served ASCO as Chair of the International Affairs Committee; he was a member of the Scientific Program Committee (Lung Cancer Subcommittee); and was recipient of the 2011 Distinguished Service Award for Scientific Achievement.

Beyond his ASCO service, Dr. Hansen was instrumental in developing the IASLC in 1974. He served in various capacities including President, Executive Director, and member of the Board of Directors. In 1985, he founded Lung Cancer, the official IASLC journal, and was Editor-in-Chief until 2005. Furthermore, he was President of the IASLC’s 2nd World Conference on Lung Cancer, held in Copenhagen in 1980.

In 2008, Dr. Hansen was honored with the IASLC-ESMO Lifetime Achievement Award for his work in the field.

“He had a huge interest in disseminating information about lung cancer on a worldwide basis and multidisciplinary care of lung cancer so that he was able to bring together people from diverse backgrounds, including pathologists, surgeons, pulmonologists, oncologists,” said Dr. Bunn.

Dr. Hansen leaves behind his wife, Lise, as well as his two children, Thomas and Marie, and their families, according to IASLC Newsletter.


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