Physician Named to Cancer Center Board

A Calabasas resident was elected recently to the board of directors of the Assn. of American Cancer Institutes, becoming the first woman in the nation to be named to the prestigious board.

Dr. Judith C. Gasson, director of the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center at UCLA, was also the first female cancer center director in the country.

Gasson has been director of the Jonsson Center at UCLA since September. She said she considers the board an opportunity to make changes and educate the public about cancer.

“We want to tell the nation what we have accomplished in the 25 years since the National Cancer Act was passed,” she said. “And this allows me to have an impact on cancer at a national level.”

The AACI is a national association of cancer center directors that was established to foster communication among cancer centers, collective research and information sharing.

The organization also lobbies government officials for laws concerning cancer-related issues.

Dr. Joseph S. Pagano, president of the AACI and director of the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of North Carolina, said in a release that Gasson would be a welcome addition to the board.

“[Her] combined skills as a teacher, researcher and administrator make her an ideal board member for our association.”

Gasson, 44, also serves as a full professor of medicine and biological chemistry at UCLA. She also heads a 10-person laboratory that investigates the use of stern cells--those that help create new blood cells--in the treatment of women’s cancers, leukemia, bone marrow transplants and other aspects of blood cell production.

Despite an already full calendar, Gasson said she expects to be able to incorporate her board duties into her schedule with relative ease.

“A lot of it is what you do as a good cancer center director anyway,” she said.