UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON ARCHIVES
ORAL HISTORY PROJECT

Interview #224
RUSCH, HAROLD P.

RUSCH, Harold P. (1908-1988)1
Undergraduate and Medical Student; Professor of Oncology; Director of McArdle Laboratory
At UW: 1927-1933; 1934-1938; 1940-1979

Interviewed: 1982	
Series: Life Sciences
Interviewer: Laura Smail
Indexed (time code) by: Elaine Ayers
Length: 55 minutes

Writing history of McArdle Laboratory; Role of UW presidents in development of cancer research; E. B. Fred; McArdle Laboratory; Administrative work in research institutions; Issues in cancer research; Funding; International community of scientists.

Tape 1/Side 1

00:00:17	Motivation to write a history of McArdle.  The writing of the history.

00:03:18	Use of personal diary.  Decisions to keep diary.  Started when a student.

00:06:06	History as a hobby.

00:06:51	Interest in first-hand historical accounts.

00:09:53	Role of UW presidents in development of UW cancer research.  Glenn Frank.

00:10:56	1936 cancer symposium at UW, funded by Bowman Fund.  Frank's introduction to it.  Rusch's inspiration from it, an advanced student at the time.  

00:13:20	Role of President Dykstra; E.B. Fred then dean of graduate school, oversaw use of Bowman money for cancer research, with Dean Middleton, and Dr. Meek in mid-1930's.  HR trained by Meek.  HR an instructor in physiology, 34-35, then a cancer fellow.  Meek, Fred, and Middleton were the funding triumvirate for cancer research.

00:16:28	Direct access to the deans. No research committee.  Small grants.  Research space provided to HR by Dr. Meek.

00:17:55	Relations with E.B. Fred.  Encouraging and warm relationship.  This before Fred's accession to presidency.

00:20:24	Fred's role upon retirement in encouraging physical expansion of cancer research labs. 
 
00:22:08	Comparison between Elvehjem and Fred as deans and presidents.

00:22:54	Van Potter as a "star" at McArdle.

00:23:55	Fred's role in helping to cultivate funding sources.  National Cancer Institute founded in 1937.  Fred hooked into it; modalities.

00:24:48	Fred's connections with National Cancer Advisory Council.

00:27:00	End of side.

Tape 1/Side 2

00:27:02	Relations with Harrington, an old neighbor of HR, and HR had heard Fred Harvey Harrington's broadcast lectures.

00:28:59	Relations with Ed Young.  Friends, fishing expedition companions.

00:31:43	Effects of 1971 Cancer Act.  Helped to buttress McArdle.  McArdle was on basic cancer research.  Cancer Act sought clinical approach and treatment.  Arrangements for McArdle to do such research.

00:32:39	HR appointed as first head of Comprehensive Cancer Center.  Aided by Young.

00:34:54	HR as an administrator.  Need for administrative support for researchers.  General strategy for organizing research, questions of scale.

00:38:34	Role of work group meetings, constructive criticism.

00:39:57	Current problems in cancer research.  Lack of new, solid hypotheses.  Field has narrowed.  Breakthroughs.  Viral origins of cancer.

00:41:56	Ability to target cancer inhibitors precisely with monoclonal antibodies.  Chemical carcinogenesis.

00:43:55	Continuing professional activity of HR.  American Association of Cancer Research. Talk he gave there on the early days of cancer research. 

00:45:16	Problems in keeping current in the field.

00:46:15	HR's most important work: creation of a quality research staff; teamwork approach.

00:47:15	HR's role in national cancer funding agencies. National Cancer Advisory Board.

00:49:23	Major problem facing world today: danger of war, arms race.  Sense of solidarity with international community of scientists. 

00:51:08	Cold War politics. Russian at UW in ‘60s. US-USSR scientists' relations.

00:54:30	End of interview.

END