Alpinist's Philanthropy Takes Leukemia Research to New Heights
This story was published in the September 2024 issue of The Philanthropist, a newsletter for supporters and friends of Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Read past issues here.
On a fall day in 2022, Alex Pancoe ’09, of Glencoe, Illinois, was about an hour short of cresting the summit of Ama Dablam, a 22,000-foot mountain in the Nepalese Himalayas, when a wave of weakness struck him.
He was extremely hypoxic, even though he was well-accustomed to the lower oxygen levels found at high altitudes. He knew something was off, so made the difficult decision to cut short his expedition.
A couple of months later, he was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia at the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University. Undeterred, he and his physician, Jessica Altman, MD, director of the cancer center’s acute leukemia program and professor of Medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, set a treatment course that allowed him to get back to climbing.
“I have been very fortunate to be able to do the things I love,” Mr. Pancoe said. “Above all else, I really prioritize experiences and giving back. Those are kind of the two things that are most important to me in life.”
Less than a year after receiving his diagnosis, Mr. Pancoe made a $1 million gift through the Arthur and Gladys Pancoe Foundation to establish the Pancoe Translational Innovation Initiative in Leukemia. The program will fund translational research projects in leukemia, as well as bench-to-bedside research and reverse biomarker studies in clinical trials. Ultimately, Mr. Pancoe’s support will help to develop new cancer therapeutics.
“Alex’s gift stands to help many innovative projects advance to the next stage of funding and discovery. Over time, a single, bold idea can eventually transform the landscape of leukemia research and care. Thanks to him, our odds are better that we can vastly improve therapies for patients with leukemia,” said Leon Platanias, MD, director of Lurie Cancer Center and the Jesse, Sara, Andrew, Abigail, Benjamin and Elizabeth Lurie Professor of Oncology.
Mr. Pancoe, who is a financial adviser by day, has been fundraising for the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, where he was treated for a brain tumor in 2005, through extreme mountain climbs all around the world. Among other feats, he completed the “Explorer’s Grand Slam,” a challenge to ski the North and South Poles and ascend the tallest mountain on each of the seven continents.
The Pancoe Legacy
Mr. Pancoe’s philanthropic inclinations follow in the footsteps of his late grandfather, Arthur “Art” Pancoe ’51 MS, an esteemed Northwestern philanthropist and community member whose generosity made an impression on Alex as he came of age. Art Pancoe’s philanthropy made a tremendous impact upon Northwestern University, and he is perhaps best known for his gifts supporting the creation of the Arthur and Gladys Pancoe-NorthShore University HealthSystem Life Sciences Pavilion on the Evanston campus.
Alex Pancoe’s support for leukemia research stems not only from his own diagnosis, but from a cousin’s fatal bout with acute myelogenous leukemia. Beth Pancoe passed away from the disease in 1999, after two years of study at Northwestern, leading Art Pancoe and his late wife, Gladys, to dedicate the Life Sciences Pavilion to their granddaughter’s memory.
To direct the Pancoe Translational Innovation Initiative in Leukemia, Mr. Pancoe has partnered with Dr. Platanias and Dr. Altman. He has been acquainted with both physician-scientists through his volunteerism at Lurie Cancer Center, but he became a patient of Dr. Altman after his leukemia diagnosis. When he came under Dr. Altman’s care, he said, she led his appointment with a promise: that he would be mountaineering again soon.
“What I really like about working with her is, for me, surviving is not enough. I need to be able to do the things I love. She’s very, very receptive to that,” Mr. Pancoe said.
Sure enough, he hit the slopes twice again this year: Peak 11,300 in the Ruth Gorge of Denali National Park and Preserve in Alaska, and the North Ridge of Mount Baker in the Cascade Mountain Range in Washington state.
With tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) treatment and care from Dr. Altman, Mr. Pancoe’s leukemia symptoms mostly present as fatigue. He said he remains optimistic about the year to come, as he and his wife, Nina, along with their son, Zephyr, plan to welcome their second child. He also remains an active member of the Associate Board of Lurie Cancer Center, much as his grandfather, Art, had been a longtime member of the Friends of Lurie Cancer Center Advisory Board until he passed away.
“Our leukemia team strives to help patients quickly and safely get back to doing the things they love. While every patient is different, by listening to Alex’s goals and concerns, we were fortunate to develop a treatment plan compatible with his passions,” Dr. Altman said. “I am honored to help care for Alex as his doctor and am very grateful for his support. I am excited about what we will be able to accomplish at the cancer center thanks to his philanthropy.”
For more information about supporting Lurie Cancer Center, please contact Nicole Langert at nicole.langert@northwestern.edu or 312-503-1656.