Helmut Gadner: A Charismatic Leader, Visionary, and Pioneer in Pediatric Oncology.
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Helmut Gadner, a world-famous pediatric hematologist-oncologist, dedicated his professional life to researching pediatric cancer and advancing care for affected children, adolescents, and their families. Starting his career in the team of Hansjörg Riehm, the father of the ever-most successful BFM (abbreviation of the city names of the founding institutions, Berlin-Frankfurt-Münster) treatment concept of pediatric leukemia, the young Dr. Gadner became a passionate soldier in the fight against pediatric cancer. From 1980 to 2010, he served as a medical director of St. Anna Children's Hospital in Vienna, Austria. Soon after taking this highly responsible position, he realized that improving patient care requires rigorous research from bench to bedside. In 1988, he and others founded St. Anna Children's Cancer Research Institute (St. Anna CCRI), a testament to his visionary spirit, which he headed until his retirement in 2012. His thoughtful leadership and vision were instrumental in establishing St. Anna Children's Hospital and St. Anna CCRI as a worldwide acclaimed center for researching, diagnosing, and treating children and adolescents with cancer within the environment of national and international collaborations and clinical trials. Dr. Gadner's enduring legacy, St. Anna CCRI, recently celebrated its 35th anniversary, operating 14 research groups actively engaged in global collaboration and a wide range of research fields, from basic molecular research to prospective international clinical trials. Helmut Gadner was chair of the Austrian National Working Group for Pediatric Hematology and Oncology (AGPHO) for many years. The outstanding survival of children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in Austria, placing pediatric oncology in this small country at the top of Europe and the world, is the best evidence of his dedicated and perseverant leadership in this position. Dr. Gadner's lifetime achievements as a scientist, physician, mentor, and leader have received many national and international awards, and herein we try to provide a summary.