Dr. Emil Freireich at MD Anderson in 2018, in conversation with Lauren Gobert, a leukemia physician assistant who had childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia cured by combination therapy developed as a result of Dr. Freireich's research.

Emil J, Freireich, a founding father of medical oncology, died on February 1, 2021, at age 93, in Houston, TX, his home since 1965. His legacy is immense.

Three personality traits defined Freireich: optimism, audacity, and imagination. Robert Kennedy once said: “Some men see things as they are and ask why. I dream of things that never were and ask why not.” Freireich represented this spirit, questioning conventions and rejecting hopelessness. He emphasized that all knowledge is transitional and highly dynamic, and that most of what is medical truth today will be obsolete soon. Fortunately for humanity and for cancer research, these three attributes, controversial at times, revolutionized cancer treatment and saved the lives of...

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