Salvatore Pizzo
Professor and Chairman, Department of Pathology
For medical students, Match Day can be very exciting. On that spring day they learn where they will be starting their residencies in just a few months. But for M.D./Ph.D. students, the day can serve as a reminder of the comparative length of their program and how long it will be before they move on to the next step in their professional lives. No one knows this better than Salvatore Pizzo, M.D., Ph.D., chairman of Duke's Department of Pathology, and director of the Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP).
“All of their colleagues are going off to do internship, and these kids are still in grad school,” he said. “I say, 'Feel free to come by that day. I'll be here.'”
Accessibility is something for which Pizzo is known, as is his knowledge of the unusual challenges facing M.D./Ph.D. candidates, who receive both degrees after about seven or eight years of study and research in the MSTP. These traits were among the reasons Pizzo's students felt he was deserving of a Dean's Award for Excellence in Mentoring, which he recently received.
“Dr. Pizzo's door is always open and he doesn't require appointments in order for students to speak with him,” wrote one student in nominating Pizzo for the award. “Sal's belief in open lines of communication is so strong that he once encouraged me to call him at home any time I wanted to discuss the progress of my research project.” Wrote another: “I think that few people genuinely care about their students as much as Sal.”
Pizzo was in the first M.D./Ph.D. class at Duke, matriculating in 1966. He became director of the MSTP 17 years ago and was made chairman of the Department of Pathology three years later. As MSTP director, he employs several philosophies. The first is to treat students with respect. “These are very bright kids, and you can't treat them as anything but colleagues if you expect them to learn,” he said.
Another of his philosophies is to make sure that students are content. “I would be really distressed if someone left here unhappy,” he said. “I want them to have a good experience. And if I see that they're having problems, we're going to sit down and find out what isn't working.”
Pizzo maintains close contact with his students through his open-door policy and through weekly lunches for the firstyear class. “I just want to be sure I'm in touch with them,” he said. “I have one principle: Nothing leaves the room. I will be honest with them as long as it doesn't involve confidences that I shouldn't disclose anyway. You'd be amazed at some of the discussions you wind up having.”
In addition to his administrative responsibilities, Pizzo runs a lab within the Department of Pathology. His research focuses on mechanisms to kill cancer cells by targeting blood vessels in tumors and on developing vaccines through a new approach to activate immune responses.
Students working in Pizzo's lab witness his commitment to research, a large component of the MSTP. “I believe the secret to Dr. Pizzo's success is his enthusiasm for basic science research,” wrote one student. “Upon entering the laboratory, students begin to feel Dr. Pizzo's excitement and passion for his work.”
Pizzo is on a first-name basis with the more than 80 students in the MSTP. “Once they're here, they're my responsibility throughout the program, whether or not they work for me in the lab,” he said.
Pizzo offers students advice about which research to pursue and helps them with residency selection once students near the end of the program. “If someone asks me for a letter of recommendation, it will be out of here no later than the next day, usually that same day,” he said. “If you don't get them out in a timely manner, it's less helpful for the person who asked.”
Close relationships with students benefit the whole institution, according to Pizzo. “People are more willing to help each other succeed if they feel they're being looked after,” he said.
Though he wears many hats, Pizzo said that ensuring the success of his students is perhaps his most important role. “Whatever else I do in science, if I leave this earth today I've left behind a whole string of future stars,” he said. “They don't write on your tombstone 'He was a fine administrator,' but they might put 'He was a fine teacher.'”
-Lauren Shaftel
Reprinted from Dialogue (April 23, 2004) with permission from Duke News Service.