Medicine and Life Science

David Chen M.D. '83.5
Director of the Spinal Cord Injury Program at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago and assistant professor at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine

The Omicron Arrow of 2005 did a feature article on Dr. Chen. Here is the text of that interview:
Q: Why did you join Psi Upsilon?
A: I joined Psi U because I was involved in a lot of different activities in high school and I wanted to continue that in college. When I went through fall rush, I really liked the idea of joining a group of men who I knew that I would get to know for the next several years and participate in different activities like sports, dances, community service, etc. I was drawn to Psi U because it was just the right size and the brothers came from different backgrounds, cities and interests.

Q: What was your nickname, and how did you get it?
A: Believe it or not, I really can’t remember (I think they call it selective memory!) I do remember during my senior year when I was Archon having the nickname “Emperor.”

Q: What do you do for a living?
A: I am a physician specializing in spinal cord injury rehabilitation. I am Director of the Spinal Cord Injury Program at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago and an assistant professor at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. My work involves providing medical care to persons with spinal cord injuries, administrative oversight over the program and I also do clinical research.

Q: What kind of influence has the fraternity had on your life since graduation?
A: First and foremost, being part of Psi U taught me responsibility – living with 40 guys and being President constantly reminded me of the importance of respecting other’s opinions, perspectives and ideas; identifying people’s strengths and engaging them to work as a whole; and personally, the importance of setting priorities – as it was while I was in the House, life is busy so being able to prioritize house activities and academics was the key to survival!

Q: Tell us about your family. Have you married? Do you have children?
A: I am married – I met my wife, Mary Susan, when I was in medical school at U of I at Chicago, where she was a physical therapy student. We have two fantastic children – Mike ('09), who is a freshman and a fellow Psi U – it means so much to me that Mike chose to join the Psi U; and Amanda, who is a junior at Fenwick High School.

Q: What hobbies or activities do you enjoy?
A: I enjoy doing lots of different things – our family loves to travel and we all enjoy outdoor activities, especially skiing. My favorite activity is running which I really did not take up seriously until I was in residency following medical school. In 1995, I ran my first marathon in Neenah, WI and since then, I have run 7 more marathons – 6 Chicago Marathons and this past spring, I qualified for and completed the Boston Marathon. My personal best time is 3:22:08. I love running because it is terrific physical activity and it is a great way to work out the emotional and mental stress that comes with work and life.

Q: What is your favorite memory from your fraternity days?
A: There are so many great memories I have from my years in the House – spring break trip to South Padre Island, going to the Liberty Bowl, waking up in the dorm freezing and seeing my breath in the morning, intense foosball games, etc. – but the ones that really standout were around our participation in the Mom’s Weekend Atius-Sachem Show – taking a bunch of guys with little musical talent and working with a sorority to put on a show – all the practices and work – and then making the show was so much fun. Another lasting memory I have is having my brother, Charlie ’86, in the House as a freshman when I was a senior.

Q: Did you live in the house? Who were your roommates?
A: I lived in the House from my sophomore thru senior years and I strongly believe that one should live in the House the entire time they are an undergrad. Living with upperclassmen brothers taught me so much about school and life and I’d like to think that I handed something down to the underclassmen when I was a junior and senior. My roommates were Karl Langhammer '82, Chris Rank '84 and Craig Novak '85.

Editor’s Note: Although not mentioned by him, Brother Chen was awarded the Bronze Tablet, the highest academic honor, by the University of Illinois. Not surprisingly, his place of employment, the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, has been recognized as the “Best Rehabilitation Hospital in America” since 1991 by U.S. News & World Report. No other specialty hospital has been consecutively ranked the “Best” by U.S. News & World Report for so long.

Charles Sentman Ph.D. '85
Associate Professor of Microbiology and Immunology
Dartmouth Medical School

Brother Sentman was featured in the summer 2008 Arrow. The following is the interview from this issue.

Q: Why did you join Psi Upsilon?
A: Both my father and grandfather were in fraternities at the U of I, so I decided to have a look. The brothers at Psi U were really friendly, and it seemed like a good group to join. The food was pretty good too. When we got a cook who would read and follow the recipes, it got even better!

Q: What do you do for a living?
A: I finished a B.S. in biochemistry at Illinois, and then I did a Ph.D. in Immu- nology at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. After two years of postdoctoral training at Washington Uni- versity in St. Louis, I received an Ameri- can Cancer Society fellowship to go to the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden. I moved over to Sweden in 1992 and stayed there for over 9 years. I held positions in both academia and the pharmaceutical industry while in Swe- den. In 2001, I accepted a job on the faculty at Dartmouth Medical School in New Hampshire. I conduct research on how the immune system works in re- sponse to cancer and infection. I also teach medical and graduate students about immunology and tumor biology.

Q: What are your goals for the next few years?
A: One of our latest projects is the de- velopment of a new immunotherapy for cancer, called chimeric NK cell recep- tors.

We put these novel receptors in a pa- tient’s blood cells and this allows the cells to recognize and attack their own tumor cells. Because these engineered cells now recognize molecules common to cancers but not normal cells, they have the potential to be used against a wide variety of cancers, including ovar- ian, breast, prostate, colon, liver, kidney, lymphoma, and myeloma. We have had good success using samples from ovar- ian cancer and myeloma patients, and we have found long-term, tumor-free survival in animal tumor models. One important aspect of this approach is that the cells not only attack the tumor, but they induce the rest of the immune sys- tem to recognize and attack the tumor cells in a specific manner. This results in the complete eradication of the tumor. We are currently investigating the de- tails of how these receptors work, and we are looking forward to conducting a phase I clinical trial at some point in the future. However, as the government has cut back on research funding during these past years, it has become more challenging to keep moving forward and test new ideas.

Q: Tell us about your family?
A: In Sweden, I met and married a won- derful woman, Mia. We now have three daughters; they are eight years, five years, and nine months old. Fortunately, the girls all look a lot like their mother! We really like small town New England life. This town gets six feet of annual snowfall, and there are plenty of oppor- tunities for skiing, skating and hiking in the nearby White and Green mountains.

Q: What are some of your favorite memories from your fraternity days?
A: There was a lot of Foosball, and we played backgammon too. During finals week, we sometimes rented a VCR along with movies like “Raiders of the Lost Ark” or “Caddyshack.” OK, maybe it wasn’t the best thing for the house GPA, but it was nice to take a break from studying now and then.

Q: What positions did you hold while in the house?
A: I was Rush chairman together with Larry Rakers ‘86. We did really well with informal Rush, better than the more formal Rush weekend. As candidates came over and had time to meet with the guys in a regular setting, they really liked who they met and many of them decided to pledge Psi U. Membership went up and down, but the house was mostly full during the time I was there.

Q: With whom from the chapter do you stay in contact?
A: I have stayed in contact with Frank Markus ‘86 and Fermin Návar ‘87.5 over the years. When I moved to Swe- den, I sort of dropped off the radar screen and didn’t travel through the U.S. much during that time. A few people have found me via the Internet, and it is nice to hear from them again.

Q: What rooms did you live in the house?
A: I lived in the Beta Chi, in the room above the Owl, and in the third floor facing the Armory.

Tom Hope Ph.D. '83.5
Professor – Department of Cell and Molecular Biology
Northwestern University – Feinberg School of Medicine

Raul Mirande M.D. '86
Director of the Southern Oregon Center for Obesity Surgery and Adjunctive Professor of Surgery
Oregon Health Science University

Brother Mirande graduated from the University of Illinois and then attended the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine where he received his Doctor of Medicine degree. He received his residency and internship at Foster McGaw Hospital, Loyola Medical Center, Maywood, Illinois where he received his initial bariatric training. He is a Board Certified General Surgeon, Fellow of the American College of Surgeons and is a member of the American Society for Bariatric Surgery. Dr. Mirande specializes in general surgery, laparoscopic surgery and bariatric surgery.

Glen Carlson M.D. '94
Internal Medicine and Pediatrics 

After graduating from Illinois, Brother Carlson attended the Stritch Medical School at Loyola University, Chicago, earning his MD in 1998. He headed to the University of Minnesota for his residency in Medicine/Pediatrics Residency and is board certified by both the American Board of Pediatrics and the American Board of Internal Medicine.
 
 
 

Bill Cowden M.D. '00.5
Surgical Resident
Synergy Medical Education Alliance

Brother Cowden graduated from the Univeristy of Illinois Medical school in 2004 and is currently halfway through his surgical residency in Michigan.