When Dr. Nicholas Vogelzang arrived at the Nevada Cancer Institute in 2004, the organization was little more than a dream.
Now as he departs — not entirely by his own choice — he calls his role in creating the institute an Òenormous milestoneÓ in his career.
Vogelzang, 59, joined the institute from the University of Chicago Cancer Research Center as employee No. 10 of what is now a staff of 318. The site that is now home to the 142,000-square-foot Summerlin facility was nothing more than a patch of dirt.
As director, Vogelzang was responsible for leading the instituteÕs scientific and clinical staff, recruiting, and ensuring the organization developed an ethic of excellence.
ÒI think what I brought was a mind-set that emphasized collegiality, that emphasized patient centricity and that emphasized that our mission was to create new knowledge in the laboratory and bedside,Ó Vogelzang said.
It came as a surprise when the board of directors informed him this year that his role as director would be assumed by the newly hired Dr. John Ruckdeschel, who also took over as CEO.
Vogelzang said the suffering economy — which prompted layoffs at the institute in July and a voluntary salary reduction by senior leadership — accelerated the need for a leader who was adept at the business, fundraising and political aspects of the job.
Ruckdeschel brings Òan amazing skill setÓ and has demonstrated his business savvy in previous positions in Florida and Detroit, Vogelzang said.
Vogelzang was reassigned as head of the instituteÕs genitourinary cancer section, while national recruiters attempted to lure him away from Las Vegas.
A great local opportunity presented itself, at U.S. Oncology, the national organization that does business locally as Comprehensive Cancer Centers. Vogelzang will continue to see patients — Nevada Cancer Institute patients will follow him or be transferred to other doctors at the institute — and work as a lead researcher for U.S. Oncology, which he said is gaining a reputation for efficiently getting new drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
He considered jobs elsewhere, but Vogelzang concluded it was best to stay in Las Vegas. His son is in high school and his daughter is a freshman at UNLV. (His oldest daughter was killed in a car accident here in June 2006.)
ÒWe have bittersweet memories, but the idea of pulling up and going someplace for my own professional growth just didnÕt appeal,Ó he said.
Ruckdeschel, who started this month, said he wanted to keep Vogelzang, but acknowledged such changes in leadership are a natural part of an organizationÕs development.
Vogelzang has the entrepreneurial skills that were needed to create the organization from scratch and grow it, he said. Ruckdeschel said his business skills will make the institute sustainable in the long run.
VogelzangÕs departure is a loss, Ruckdeschel said, but it also Òclears the decks,Ó easing any problems that might arise from staff having mixed loyalties.
Vogelzang said he hopes to collaborate with Nevada Cancer Institute in the future.
ÒI believe this will be good for the city and state,Ó he said. ÒWe will forge research alliances and, potentially, clinical practice alliances.Ó
The University of Nevada School of MedicineÕs policies to limit the influence of pharmaceutical companies lag those of its peers nationally, according to a recent survey by the American Medical Student Association.
The pharmaceutical industry is known for plying doctors, residents and medical students with gifts, meals, trips and paid promotional speaking opportunities. The AMSA ranked medical schools according to how much they either allow, ban or require disclosure of such gifts, which the drug companies use as enticement to use their products.
The AMSA studied the conflict of interest policies of each school and issued letter grades.
The University of Nevada School of Medicine received a ÒD.Ó
Although itÕs clear the institution knows the dangers of conflicts of interest, its policies rely mostly on disclosure, the AMSA said. ÒThis policy would be much stronger if more stringent limits were placed on areas that are known to influence physicians,Ó the report stated.
Dr. Peggy Dupey, assistant dean of student affairs at the University of Nevada School of Medicine, praised the AMSAÕs efforts because it Òkeeps people accountable.Ó
But she said the AMSA should have noted that the school is still developing its policies. The school just approved a policy banning gifts from drug companies but has yet to implement it, Dupey said.
The schoolÕs new policy ÒdoesnÕt rely as much on disclosure as they make it sound,Ó she said.
Marshall Allen can be reached
at 259-2330 or at marshall.allen
Copyright 2009 Las Vegas Sun
