and withdrew their endorsement for renewal of the center’s National Cancer Institute comprehensive cancer center support grant.
The move was prompted by the abrupt firing of center director Boris Pasche, MD, PhD, on February 10, one day after NCI renewed a multimillion dollar grant.
The Cancer Letter broke the story and published the resignation letter from the EAB. It was signed by board chair Gerold Bepler, MD, PhD, CEO and director of the Karmanos Cancer Institute, Detroit, on behalf of the board.
The mass resignation of an EAB, a panel of outside experts that help shepherd cancer centers through the NCI grant process, is “highly unusual,” according to The Cancer Letter. It also raises concerns about the “immediate future” of Wake Forest’s cancer center, the publication added.
Numerous people involved with the situation did not respond or declined to comment when this news organization requested additional information and updates, including questions about the reason for Dr. Pasche’s termination; whether or not withdrawal of the endorsement puts Wake’s NCI designation in jeopardy; and if the EAB is being reconstituted.
A written statement from Wake Forest simply said that “the situation involving Dr. Pasche is an administrative decision. Various administrative changes occur regularly in organizations across the country. Dr. Pasche remains employed by Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist. We are very grateful to Dr. Pasche for his years of service and many contributions to the mission and vision of our NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center in Winston-Salem.”
Wake’s cancer center is in the process of combining with the Atrium Health Levine Cancer Center, which is not NCI-designated, following Atrium Health system’s recent acquisition of the Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.
The NCI renewal notice, dated February 9, states that Dr. Pasche “and his leadership team have built a robust, transdisciplinary center that includes 140 scientists.”
Dr. Pasche was fired a day later.
The EAB resignation letter states that during Wake Forest’s recent NCI review process, “leadership gave their glowing endorsement of Dr. Pasche...This endorsement included unequivocal statements of support for Dr. Pasche’s oversight of the combined Atrium-Wake Forest cancer program.”
“What followed was his rapid dismissal after the...notice of award was issued, following a period during which the approach to integration was apparently being revisited,” Dr. Bepler said on behalf of the board.
“It is with sadness and dismay that we witnessed the change in approach by the institutional leadership towards” the merger, he wrote.
The Cancer Letter quotes an unnamed board member as saying, “EABs for cancer centers can only provide value to the center when there is openness and transparency in the process. In the absence of such, I believe the members felt that there was no further utility in providing guidance to the organization.”
The resignation letter was sent to the interim director of Wake’s cancer center, radiation oncologist William Blackstock, Jr, MD, and also copied to Atrium-Wake and NCI leadership.
The resignation letter endorsed Dr. Blackstock’s qualifications to run the center, and noted that as the board is reconstituted, “some of us would be honored to discuss participation...if there is unequivocal evidence from the health system’s senior management for support of a single, academically driven, comprehensive, and integrated cancer center.”
A version of this article first appeared on Medscape.com.
