Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach, Director of the National Cancer Institute and Dr. Elias Zerhouni, Director of the National Institutes of Health, were among national leaders from government, private industry, and nonprofit sectors who came together at Norris Cotton Cancer Center to discuss ways to speed the delivery of advances in medical research to patients in need.

Both von Eschenbach and Zerhouni, who toured the new Cancer Center labs and met with researchers and clinicians, cited Dartmouth as a model for the kind of interdisciplinary research that is required to translate complex biologic problems into real benefits for patients.

"All across the entire continuum, you are at the forefront, and we as a nation are desperately dependent upon your continued success. The NCI stands ready to continue to support you in that regard," Dr. von Eschenbach said.

Other distinguished guests included the Honorable Judd Gregg, U.S. Senator from New Hampshire and Peter Corr, Ph.D., Senior Vice President of Science and Technology at Pfizer, Inc. Susan Dentzer, health correspondent for "NewsHour with Jim Lehrer" on PBS moderated the panel discussion in which von Eschenbach and researchers Nancy Speck, Ph.D. and Allen Dietrich, M.D. (pictured above) were joined by Dr. Corr, Cancer Center director, Mark Israel, M.D., and Nancy Hellman, a patient treated on a clinical trial at the Cancer Center.