John DiPersio, MD, PhD, is deputy director of the Alvin J. Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine, and chief of the School of Medicine’s Division of Oncology. Beloved by patients, DiPersio is a highly regarded oncologist and researcher, who also is known for his interest in making art. He and his colleagues have been at the forefront of breakthroughs in cancer research, developing new drugs that have moved from the laboratory to patient care. He has led efforts to create personalized cancer immunotherapies that trigger a person’s own immune system to fight a specific type of cancer. Recently, Curiosus writer Stephanie Stemmler visited with DiPersio to talk about his research and his art.

Eric Leuthardt, MD, and Albert Kim, MD, PhD, frequently engage in long talks together about the brain and the yet-to-be-solved mysteries of this complicated organ. Because both men are Washington University neurosurgeons treating patients at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Siteman Cancer Center, it could be assumed these conversations are a natural consequence of their mutual profession.

Sarah Smith, RN, BSN, CLC, (at left, in the purple shirt) and Heather Weiler, RN, (in the colorful skirt) began their nursing careers in their 40s after working in other fields. Smith was an elementary and preschool teacher, sold real estate and worked in institutional development. Weiler held positions in physicians’ offices and worked as a medical claims processor. Both were working moms and both experienced the loss of a young child: Smith, a twin son after a difficult pregnancy; Weiler, the sudden, tragic death of a young nephew.

From the time she was a nursing student in Houston, Heather Wertin, RN, BSN, MPH, now the manager of abdominal transplantation at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, was fascinated with the field of organ transplantation. Her first nursing job, at Texas Children’s Hospital, involved caring for patients before and after kidney and liver transplants. Eventually, she became the kidney transplant coordinator at that hospital.

Ten years ago, Sarah Colby established the Arts + Healthcare program at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. With a master of fine arts degree from the Maryland Institute College of Art, her background encompassed 25 years of teaching and administrative positions at art schools, community art centers and children’s arts programs in Baltimore, New York City, Cincinnati and St. Louis. Though her experiences had prepared her for most any position dealing with the arts and people, she tackled a new set of challenges when she became part of the complex world of a large teaching hospital.