Janet Davison Rowley 1925–2013

Dr. Janet Rowley was internationally renowned for her studies of chromosome abnormalities in human leukemia and lymphoma. We adored her closer to home as a University of Chicago lifer and a treasured member of our great Hyde Park/Kenwood community. A woman of tremendous grace and beauty, she distinguished herself not only for her historic scientific discoveries but also with her sustained efforts to support the careers of others, including myself. As we mark her passing, our hearts are heavy because she will be sorely missed.Janet RowleyView Large Image | View Hi-Res Image | Download PowerPoint SlideJanet Davison Rowley was born in New York City on April 5, 1925, the only child of Hurford and Ethel Davison, both graduates of the University of Chicago. The family moved to Chicago when she was 2 years old, and Janet always fondly remembered growing up on the south side of Chicago. Her father taught retail store management at the college level, and her mother taught English in the public high schools. In 1940, after 2 years at a Catholic girls’ high school, Janet, age 15, won a scholarship to enroll in the Hutchins College at the University of Chicago, which combined the last 2 years of high school with the first 2 years of college. She completed a bachelor of philosophy degree in 1944 and was accepted into the University’s medical school, but the quota—three women for a class of 65—was already filled. “I had to wait 9 months,” she said in an interview. “I was only 19 at the time, so it wasn’t a great tragedy.”Janet fell madly in love with fellow medical student Donald Rowley, MD, and the two were married the day after she graduated from medical school on December 18, 1948. Janet would spend the next 20 years raising their four sons while working part-time, including at a Chicago clinic for children with Down syndrome. Donald became a renowned professor of pathology at the University of Chicago, and after his early retirement, he was totally dedicated to supporting Janet’s career. The two traveled the world together, but they always found time for the extended family in Hyde Park. They opened up their home to generations of students, faculty, and staff at the University of Chicago who enjoyed holiday celebrations and summer parties at the Rowleys’. Generations have formed memories around their giant Christmas tree, which stretched to the second floor of their lovely home. Janet and Donald formed a partnership for the ages—the two of them seamlessly integrated family life with work life and supported each other until the very end.Janet often spoke against the intense pressure to have early success as a scientist. It was not until her husband’s sabbatical at Oxford University in 1962 that Janet’s interest in chromosomes and cancer gained focus, and she learned the laboratory techniques that she would later use to change the scope of cancer diagnosis and treatment. She made her first major discovery at age 47, when she identified the first consistent chromosome translocation in any human cancer, namely the 8;21 translocation in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). In a landmark paper in 1973, Janet described the identification of the 9;22 translocation (Philadelphia chromosome) in chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). Subsequently, she identified more than a dozen different recurring translocations in children and adults with leukemia and lymphoma. These discoveries changed the view of cancer researchers regarding the critical importance of recurring chromosome abnormalities in cancer cells and facilitated identification of novel oncogenes at the breakpoint junctions. In fact, it is reasonable to say that her early discoveries galvanized the scientific community in support of the Human Genome Project and influenced a whole generation of cancer geneticists like myself who came of age in the golden era of cytogenetics.I remember my first meeting with Janet in 1988. In her understated way, she advised me to learn a “skill” and apply it to important scientific questions. Janet demonstrated the importance of collaboration to accomplish greater scientific goals. Her skill was chromosome banding, but the future was in molecular genetics—so she shared her samples with other scientists to advance her science. Each sample was carefully annotated as Janet worked with a multidisciplinary team, including James Vardiman, a hematopathologist, and Harvey Golomb, a medical oncologist, and numerous colleagues at the University of Chicago—long before “team science” became fashionable.A series of International Workshops on Chromosomes in Leukemia provided critical information regarding the phenotypes associated with specific translocations in large numbers of patients and showed that recurring chromosomal abnormalities were independent predictors of response to therapy in AML and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). This led to “risk-adapted” therapy for adult and childhood leukemia. She described several important translocations and/or inversions, including the 15;17 translocation in acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL-M3), the 6;9 translocation in AML, the inversion and translocation involving chromosome 3 [inv(3)/t(3;3)] in AML associated with increased platelet counts, the inversion and translocation involving chromosome 16 [inv(16)/t(16;16)] in acute myelomonocytic leukemia with abnormal eosinophils (AMMoL-M4EO), and the 14;18 translocation in follicular lymphoma. Although it is now widely accepted that genomic analysis plays a critical role in the diagnosis, subclassification, and selection of therapy for patients with cancer, Janet, sitting behind her microscope, was ahead of the curve.Janet’s research had a profound impact on patient care. Her early work on Philadelphia chromosome in CML culminated in the most successful example of targeted therapy and provided a new paradigm for using molecular diagnosis to define therapy in oncology. Patients with newly diagnosed CML anywhere in the world can now expect to live the course of a normal life on therapy. Janet epitomized the “bedside to bench” philosophy, as observations in the clinic led her to questions in the laboratory.Throughout her illustrious career, Janet was a stubborn advocate for science. She was a leader on campus, and many deans and presidents at the University of Chicago frequently heard from her as she fought for resources to support research. Janet provided leadership to the field and fostered public understanding of science. She served as a member of The President’s Council on Bioethics, where she was one of the most effective members championing the need for a strong national program supporting responsible human embryonic stem cell research. Her patience and wisdom allowed the committee to survive intact for 8 years before President Obama signed an executive order permitting stem cell research in 2009. With her long-term scientific partner and friend Felix Mitelman, she cofounded and was coeditor of Genes, Chromosomes and Cancer, the premier cancer cytogenetics journal worldwide. She also served on scientific and public boards. Through these activities, Janet provided enormous opportunities for her mentees and promoted the careers of others.Janet was the recipient of the National Medal of Science (1998), the Albert Lasker Clinical Medicine Research Prize (1998), the Benjamin Franklin Medal from the American Philosophical Society (2003), the Gruber Prize in Genetics (2009), and the Presidential Medal of Freedom (2009). The Medal of Freedom recognizes “an especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, world peace, cultural, or other significant public or private endeavors.”Janet was clearly one of the true pioneers of our time, not least in her fearless career as a woman in science at a time when few were admitted to medical school. One of my fondest memories of Janet was when she stood up to ask me a question after my plenary presentation at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in 1991. She was not a member of ASCO, but her presence in the large audience gave me absolute confidence that I was right to have chosen to study solid tumor genetics as a way to differentiate from her. She educated the clinical oncology community on the importance of our scientific discoveries, focusing attention on the way that genetic alterations provide clues to the process of malignant transformation of cancer. From that moment, Janet created a path for me to integrate genetics into clinical oncology care.Janet continued to direct an active and productive laboratory until her death. I marveled as she rode her bike to work every day and, when she could no longer do so, asked for the laboratory to come to her home. Janet was restless, ambitious, and kind—her son describe her as a “bag” lady who picked up leaves around the neighborhood. She was an avid gardener and a phenomenal athlete who climbed mountains and swam on Lake Michigan most summer days. She enjoyed the opera and traveled to exotic corners of the world. Janet was a devoted mother and grandmother who always took the time to handwrite her Christmas cards long after the holidays in January. She was a pillar in our community, a most beloved mentor, and a scientific mother who will be terribly missed.