Discussing the Mission of CURE With Our Former and New Editors-In-Chief

The new editor-in-chief of CURE, Dr. Joshua K. Sabari, recently sat down for a wide-reaching conversation with his predecessor, Dr. Debu Tripathy, to discuss their vision for CURE, how cancer care has evolved over the years and much more.

Tripathy has retired after 18 years as the editor-in-chief of CURE. The staff of CURE is incredibly grateful for the insight, guidance and inspiration offered by Tripathy, formerly a professor and chairman of the Department of Breast Medical Oncology in the Division of Cancer Medicine at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

Sabari is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine at NYU Grossman School of Medicine and Director of High Reliability Organization Initiatives at NYU Langone’s Perlmutter Cancer Center.

Watch the full conversation with Tripathy and Sabari on CURE’s YouTube channel.

Transcript:

Sabari: Dr. Tripathy, asking for myself, what advice [do you have] for me moving forward into this role that you so eloquently led for the last 18 years? What do you charge me and with patients, our readership moving forward into hopefully the coming 18 years?

Tripathy: Well, one thing that I have really enjoyed about my tenure as the editor-in-chief is that I have learned more about other cancers through CURE itself and through my patients. And of course, we do have to study for the board, so I do learn it that way.

But as an example, lung cancer really took the lead when the molecular revolution came around. It was one of the transformers. And boy, did it make a difference. Look at the statistics now in terms of how much better individuals with lung cancer are surviving, and it has really made a big difference.

So, communicating all of this and having patients aware of their options and what lies behind it is so important. So the one piece of advice is, is to make this understandable, be out in front of where the patient needs to be. I think that when a patient reads an issue of CURE magazine — let's say they've been recently diagnosed, or they're moving on to a different line of therapy, I think that what we can provide them can complement what they're hearing from their care team.

It is very involved and very sophisticated material that we are expecting them to know, but I know they're up for the challenge. And if they're able to read an article that coincides with what they have, or if they can even go back to back issues online or in print, I think it will help them ask the right questions and understand a little bit better what they're hearing from the physicians.

So, I think that that is an important thing to keep in mind. Again, this is a patient-driven effort we're living with and we're contributing to. And I think that those really are our guiding principles. I look at CURE magazine sort of as the third rail, and to really help provide that information and perspective that is unique, that uniquely can come from this particular venue, and the way we state it and communicate it.

Transcript has been edited for clarity and conciseness.

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