Testimonials
Hartmut Beug devoted his scientific life to promoting scientific collaborations to further cancer research. He took particular care to educate young scientists about the value of these collaborations. I was honoured to be one of those collaborators. It is only fitting that the Foundation will continue to support Hartmut’s vision and help people get together to conquer metastasis.
Michael J Hayman, PhD
Assoc Director for Basic Research
Stony Brook University Cancer Center, New York, USA
Hartmut Beug was driven by his boundless curiosity about biological processes. Once fascinated by a question he would not tire to seek a solution. He loved to collaborate with others, putting the scientific goal over his personal ambitions. Hartmut also took great pride in mentoring younger people and in this spirit created the Beug Foundation.
Thomas Graf, PhD
Coordinator of the Gene Regulation, Stem Cells and Cancer Programme
Center of Genomic Regulation in Barcelona, Spain
Hartmut Beug war ein guter Freund von mir, er hat wichtige Entdeckungen zu den Mechanismen der Metastasierung gemacht. In unserer kurzen Forschungsperiode lernten wir viel Neues, was dem Patienten zugute kommen wird, in Diagnostik und Therapie der Krankheit. Ich will Hartmuts Stiftung unterstützen als Berater, Gutachter und Spender.
Professor Walter Birchmeier
Wissenschaftlicher Leiter
Max-Delbrück-Centrum für Molekulare Medizin, Berlin-Buch, Deutschland
It is a pleasure to express my admiration for the late Harmut Beug and for the Foundation he established. Hartmut’s devotion and generosity will help in solving one of the principal problems of cancer, the mechanism of metastatic growth. I salute you and the Board of the Foundation for advancing Hartmut’s legacy and for supporting young talents in cancer research.
Peter K. Vogt, PhD
Professor
The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA, USA
Hartmut Beug was a pioneering spirit who saw early on the value of investigating the plasticity and invasiveness of cancer cells as a necessary step towards understanding metastasis. The study of metastasis is now wide open to many technologies and talents, and its pursuit stands to provide fundamental knowledge for the treatment of cancer. Funding metastasis research offers an opportunity of contribute to medical impact of historical proportions.
Joan Massagué, PhD
Chair, Cancer Biology & Genetics Program, SKI
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, USA
With the death of Hartmut Beug cancer research lost a visionary spirit who travelled many unexplored terrains and who early on recognized the importance of investigating the process of cancer metastasis, the major cause of death of cancer patients. Hartmut never stopped inspiring and mentoring young researchers, including myself. He leaves us the legacy to contemplate the unthinkable and to try the impossible, the only way the disease cancer will be finally defeated. His foundation will play a critical role in this endeavor, and its support will be an investment well spent.
Gerhard Christofori, PhD
Professor, Department of Biomedicine
University of Basel, Switzerland
Hartmut Beug was a pioneer in the area of invasion and metastasis research whose groundbreaking research anticipated by a decade the research of other groups. He and his colleagues demonstrated that contextual signals experienced by cancer cells – notably TGF-beta – are able to convert previously benign cancer cells into ones that are highly aggressive. For me this was a revelation, as it represented the first indication that the acquisition of highly malignant traits is not hardwired into the genome of cancer cells, instead being induced by signals that these cells receive from their environment. This was a conceptual milestone whose importance cannot be overstated. His passing is a great loss for the entire field of cancer research. Only now can one appreciate the influence of his pioneering research: it has been followed up by hundreds of groups worldwide who are examining the epigenetic regulation of high-grade malignancy.
Robert A. Weinberg, PhD
Professor of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Member, Whitehead Institute
Director, MIT Ludwig Center for Molecular Oncology
Cambridge, MA, USA
Hartmut Beug was a driving force in the quest for understanding the plasticity of cancer cells. He early understood how epithelial-mesenchymal transitions also play a role in grasping metastasis. Thus, the Beug Foundation for Metastasis Research is the logical outcome of his enormous contributions to this devastating aspect of cancer. By supporting innovative talent in this field, the Foundation will follow up Hartmut’s long-life pursuit for solutions to this modern plague.
Kai Simons, PhD
Director emeritus
Max-Planck-Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Dresden, Germany
Hartmut Beug was a wonderful colleague and friend to all of us at the IMP. He was a pioneer in metastasis research, but passionately interested in seemingly all areas of science. Whatever the topic, Hartmut was ready with an insightful comment or penetrating question. He was an inspiration to us all. Hartmut also cared deeply about the person, not just the science, and became a valued mentor and role model to all the young (and not-so-young) scientists who passed through the IMP. With such characteristic generosity, the Hartmut and Margrit Beug Foundation continues this commitment to young scientists and innovative research.
Barry Dickson, PhD
Scientific Director
Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP), Vienna, Austria
I admired Hartmut Beug for his enthusiasm with which he followed his research. He was very successful to convey this enthusiasm to others, even to those not working directly in his field of expertise. Talking to him always was stimulating, never boring, provoking deep and broad discussions. When he was in Heidelberg, which happened fortunately often, the hours we spent together discussing science, and critically debating political and cultural issues, often with a good bottle of wine, were always highly enjoyable and fruitful.
Günther Schütz, MD
Professor, Dept. Molecular Biology of the Cell I
Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum (DKFZ) Heidelberg, Germany
Hartmut was a great guy, who made very original contributions to the field of cancer in general and metastasis research in particular. We all appreciated him a lot despite his unorthodox character and many unforgettable experiences with him on the motorbike in Heidelberg in the early 80s or drinking in the Heurigen around Vienna will constantly follow me. I was fortunate to hear him speak at our premier Nature-CNIO cancer conference 2010 and his contribution will be remembered for the years to come.
Erwin Wagner, PhD
Director BBVA Foundation – Cancer Cell Biology Programme
Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Oncológicas (CNIO) Madrid, Spain
I strongly support the Beug Foundation for Metastasis Research. Dr. Beug made seminal contributions to our basic scientific understanding of the processes involved in metastasis. Through his remarkable personality and contagious enthusiasm for cancer research he was a great inspiration for me.
Peter ten Dijke, PhD
Professor of Molecular Cell Biology
Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), The Netherlands
The Hartmut and Margrit Beug Foundation for Metastasis Research is dedicated to a deeper understanding of cancer metastasis and also supports research projects for young scientists. There could not be a better extension of the scientific vision of Hartmut and of his generosity to help and foster the careers of students and colleagues. I will not forget when I first met Hartmut at the DKFZ in Heidelberg in the summer of 1982 discussing possible topics for my diploma work. He was so inspiring that we both felt we can design experiments to cure cancer! It was the time of the discoveries of cooperating oncogenes and I took an assignment in the laboratory of Günther Schütz to transfect genomic DNA from non-metastatic and metastatic cells with the idea to find a “metastasis gene”. Hartmut has been my first mentor and I will always be grateful for his help and guidance during my early years at the DKFZ and EMBL and, particularly, during the “junior” stages when we were working on chromatin modifications at the IMP in Vienna. I only wished that we had more time and that research into epigenetic control would have given us earlier insight into possible new therapies for the treatment of many forms of human cancer. It was not only the vision and balanced advice of Hartmut but also his cheerful citations of Wilhelm Busch and his love for a good deck of cards when we were playing “Skat” that I will always remember. The cards are still being played, and the Hartmut and Margrit Beug Foundation for Metastasis Research will live the spirit of Hartmut as a pioneering scientist, great mentor, colleague and friend.
Thomas Jenuwein, PhD
Director
Max-Planck-Institute of Immunobiolgy and Epigenetics in Freiburg, Germany