Concert aids search for leukemia cure

Various Penn student groups came together to raise money for the fight against leukemia at the first annual Leukemia Benefit Concert at the Annenberg Center last night. Co-sponsored by the undergraduate Biological Basis of Behavior Society, the Penn Leukemia Society and Psi Chi -- the national honor society in psychology -- the event began with the talent of the Moribus String Quartet, which performed Schubert's Death and the Maiden. All proceeds from ticket sales went toward the cause and organizers collected additional donations from audience members. "I wanted to give a performance before I left and wanted to make it for charity as well," said College senior Jared Greenberg, a founder of the undergraduate BBB society and coordinator of the concert. Also performing was the Arts House Dance Company, whose members displayed the wide range of their talents with three different pieces -- a ballet-inspired performance set to the music of Ella Fitzgerald, an energetic modern dance routine with the fast-paced music of Ultra NatZ and a slower, ethereal piece accompanied by Tracy Chapman's "The Promise." The only vocal group of the evening, the Penny Loafers, performed five songs, including k.d. Lang's "Constant Craving" and a rendition on the current hit "Kiss Me," by musical group Sixpence None the Richer. Onda Latina, a Latin dance group, demonstrated some traditional Latin dances, including the tango and the merengue. In addition to group acts, College junior Tony Park, on violin, and Wharton junior Felice Chay, on piano, played the theme from Schindler's List and Greenberg gave a solo piano performance. Still, the artistic and creative expression did not overshadow the goal of the evening. Before introducing the first act, Greenberg thanked the audience for their generosity to the cause of finding a cure for leukemia. He also dedicated the concert to Carol Cole, the grandmother of College junior Alisha Oliver and a recent bone marrow transplant recipient, wishing her luck for a quick and complete recovery. Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Professor Alan Gewirtz, a member of the Board of Trustees for the Leukemia Society of America, gave a brief speech during the concert about recent developments in leukemia research. Gewirtz spoke of his first encounters with leukemia and of "remembering making rounds with the ward team and seeing people your age suffering from this terrible disease." At that time, "virtually everybody who got leukemia died," Gewirtz said. He emphasized the advances that have been made since then, adding that, "We probably cure one-third to one-half of the people now." But Gewirtz did not wish to avoid mention of the harmful side effects of current cancer treatments. "Drugs and other treatments are quite toxic and make [patients] ill," he said. Fortunately, Gewirtz has a positive outlook for a more patient-friendly future for the treatment of leukemia. He explained that new developments in the research of the biochemistry of cancer cells are leading to identification of the "proteins on the surface of malignant cells." Scientists are currently looking for antibodies for these cells so that the cancerous cells can be targeted by the treatment without also killing healthy cells, he said. Gewirtz closed by telling the students in the audience, "I think the future is bright for finding a cure for these diseases in your lifetime."

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