President's Office Records, 1941-1998

Guide to the Director's Office Records: Ernst Bertner and R. Lee Clark, 1941-1975, Part 1

Biographical Note: Ernst William Bertner

Ernst William Bertner was born in Colorado City, Texas in 1889 to a German immigrant family. While studying to be a pharmacist at the University of Texas School of Pharmacy, he decided to study medicine instead. He received his medical degree from the University of Texas Medical Branch in 1911. In 1942, the University of Texas Board of Regents appointed Bertner acting director of the newly founded M. D. Anderson Hospital for Cancer Research. From served in the part-time, temporary position until 1946 when Board of Regents named Dr. R. Lee Clark as the first full time director.

Dr. Bertner also served as the first president of the Texas Medical Center. He died of cancer in Houston on July 18, 1950.

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Biographical Note: Randolf Lee Clark

Dr. R. Lee Clark, first full-time director (1946-1968) and president (1968-1978) of M. D. Anderson, was born in Hereford, Texas, in 1906. He obtained a B.S. degree from the University of South Carolina in 1927 and an M.D. degree from the Medical College of Virginia in 1932. He served his medical internship at Garfield Memorial Hospital, Washington, D.C., from 1932-33 and did postgraduate study at the University of Paris Graduate School of Medicine from 1933-1935. He was certified in 1942 by the American Board of Surgery.

From 1933-1942, he worked in association with the American Hospital in Paris, France, the Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research in Rochester, Minnesota, and the Shands Clinic in Jackson, Mississippi. During World War II, Dr. Clark was the Director of Surgical Research with the U.S. Air Force Medical Corps. At war’s end, he accepted the position of Director and Surgeon-in-Chief at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and was appointed by the U.T. Board of Regents to the post in 1946. He spent the rest of his medical career at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center. In 1968, he became the institution’s first president, a position he held until he retired in 1978.

During his time as director at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, the institution grew from a small cancer clinic in a former private residence to an organization with seventeen medical specialties and 418 full-time employees. Over the course of four years, starting in 1950, Dr. Clark oversaw the design and construction of a new hospital building, which opened in the Texas Medical Center in 1954. As director, he was responsible for administering the institution, which involved supervising overall daily operation, budget control, and the activities of the business office, personnel office, and the physical plant. The Associate Directors for Research, Clinical Research, and Education, and the Chief of the Medical Staff, all worked under Dr. Clark. He, in turn, worked closely with The University of Texas Cancer Foundation and the Chancellor of The University of Texas Board of Regents. During Dr. Clark’s time as director, hospital staff pioneered the use of special equipment, including the whole body scanner, computerized tomography, diagnostic ultrasound, megavoltage electron beam, and the variable energy cyclotron, to name a few, in the quest to eradicate cancer.

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Scope and Content Note

The Director’s Office Records consist of 4,384 cards of microfiche, which include correspondence, memoranda, copies of founding documents, financial records, forms, reports, organization charts, building plans, copies of printed materials, and notes. The materials in this subgroup span the years 1941-1975, with the bulk of records falling between 1946-1972. They reflect the growth and development of the various departments at M. D. Anderson, from the earliest years, as well as fundraising efforts, the educational programs at the institution, nursing, and work in cancer research. The records also contain information also about the growth of the Texas Medical Center and Dr. Clark’s involvement in building professional medical organizations and meetings around the world devoted to eradicating cancer.

The Early Administration, 1946-1968, Administration, 1943-1974, Hospital Committees, National Committees, 1958-1972, and University of Texas Committees, 1950-1974 series reflect the early organization, function and history of the hospital and research institute, the development of various departments at the hospital, as well as records on funding, nursing, education, and research and are arranged alphabetically and chronologically.

The Budgets, 1942-1972, Grants, 1947-1974, and Funds, Gift, and Donations, 1967-1974, series contains annual budgets, financial reports, grant applications, correspondence about the budget, emergency appropriation requests, records of special faculty recognition, as well as correspondence with university and elected officials about the budget, legislative appropriations, gifts and donations, and special funds. The Budgets series is arranged chronologically first and alphabetically second, while the remaining series are arranged alphabetically first and chronologically second. The Grants series offer a perspective on research development and federal funding.

The Organizations, 1947, National Committee on Consultants on the Conquest of Cancer (Yarborough Panel of Consultants), 1970-1972, and International Union Against Cancer (UICC), 1949-1974 series contains Dr. Clark’s records of the various organizations, state and federal agencies, professional associations, and cancer hospitals and research centers with which M. D. Anderson was involved. These fiche include correspondence, applications, programs, and other printed materials that are especially useful in documenting the activities of organizations such as the American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute. The records document the high level of involvement of Dr. Clark and other faculty with professional medical associations and other cancer hospitals and research institutes, organizations and other institutions. American Cancer Society records are especially valuable for documenting local, state and national activities and research funding. Of particular note are records documenting the planning and execution of the 1970 meeting in Houston of the International Union Again Cancer and Clark’s records on the Yarborough Panel of Consultants that worked to develop the National Cancer Act of 1971.

The microfiche records on the Texas Medical Center, 1942-1974 span the years, 1947-1973. They include correspondence and records reflecting the work of various committees formulating policy to establish components of the Texas Medical Center. In addition to documents of a general nature, also included are records of the Texas Medical Center Council, resolutions from the Advisory Committee, minutes of the Executive Committee, and records about the computer facility, the Houston Academy of Medicine Library, the Jesse Jones Library, a proposed mental retardation development center, and early problems with parking in the Texas Medical Center complex.

The records for The University of Texas System, 1942-1975 consists of fiche that span the years 1942-1975 and are arranged alphabetically then chronologically. They include correspondence and memos, drafts of various policies, meeting minutes, reports, and organization charts, which together reflect the involvement of The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center president with various components of The University of Texas System and Board of Regents. There is material that focuses on budgeting matters, including rules and procedures, and compensation formulas. Many of the records document a dialog about establishing a post-graduate medical education program in the 1950s-1960s, and chronicle the growth and development of the program in later years. Material about The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, beginning in 1946, provides information about the early years of the program through 1972 and records about the School of Public Health span the years 1948-1974. Documents about the South Texas Medical School in San Antonio begin in 1961 and end in 1974. The two series Regional Medical Program, 1965-1972 and the Environmental Science Park, 1963-1971 include important information on the two programs from the 1960s through the 1970s.

Special Projects, 1943-1974 series consist of 534 cards of fiche and span the years 1941-1974. They are arranged alphabetically, first, and chronologically, second. These materials include correspondence and memos, reports, architectural drawings, and meeting minutes, which together represent an eclectic grouping of records on miscellaneous topics. Included in the series are: records about a proposed school of aviation medicine in the 1950s; the Bertner Lecture Award, also from the 1950s; a colorectal study group that was active in the 1970s; a nuclear reactor project in 1960; a 1966 rehabilitation symposium at the New York Academy of Sciences; a The University of Texas planning group called the Committee of 75, which produced a report and recommendations in 1958; the 1970s dial access program; and various research studies and programs including the Southwest Cancer Chemotherapy Study Group.

The Patient Care and Treatment, 1955-1974 series consists primarily of letters received from an assortment of people, housewives to physicians, who are convinced they have discovered a cure for cancer and want to share the information with the hospital. Cures range from an application of mouthwash to suggestions made in scholarly articles about treating cancer in the clinical laboratory. The Construction, 1941-1974series includes records on various buildings comprising The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center campus. The Florida Land Inquiries, 1968-1972series files all refer to property in Florida which was left to the hospital in a will. The hospital made plans to sell the Florida property and use the proceeds to fund a building project at the hospital. Department Reviews and Self Analysis, 1968, consists of job evaluations of the medical staff, which were conducted in 1970-71 by the individuals and their supervisors and are arranged by department.

The Publications, 1946-1975 records span the years 1947-1975 and are arranged alphabetically by publication. Materials in the records include correspondence and memos, as well as copies of printed articles from journals and newspapers. An interesting “behind the scenes” look at the peer review process, the records chronicle the work of review committees for professional medical journals. The files also include records about internal The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center publications.

The Annual Clinical Conference Monographs, 1955-1973 series, spanning the years 1955-1973 contains records about monographs published as a result of clinical conferences and cover a variety of subjects, all having to do with cancer. The Annual Symposium on Fundamental Cancer Research – Monograph Publications series, 1957-1971, includes information on the annual publication of articles on cancer topics that were presented at the yearly Symposium on Fundamental Cancer Research, hosted at The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. These include topics such as “Radiation, Biology, and Cancer,” “Genetics and Cancer,” “Molecular Basis of Neoplasia,” and “Conceptual Advances in Immunology and Oncology,” which together chronicle the efforts of medical professionals to discover a cure for cancer in the 1960s-1970s.

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Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

The records of the M.D. Anderson President's Office, which are largely on microfiche, contain a small percentage of protected health information, as well as other private information, which has been redacted for use by researchers. Requests to have access to the un-redacted records must be made to the institution's Internal Review Board. Most records created by Texas state agencies are not copyrighted and may be freely used in any way. State records also include materials received by, not created by, state agencies. Copyright remains with the creator. The researcher is responsible for complying with U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17 U.S.C.)

The records of the President’s Office at M. D. Anderson have been reviewed for “protected health information” (PHI), as defined by the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), and other personal information exempt from state and federal open records laws and regulations and, where necessary, this information has been redacted from copies of the records for use by researchers.

Restrictions on Use

All requests for copying of materials must be submitted to the Historical Resources Center in writing for approval. All reproductions will be handled by HRC staff.

Authorization to publish, quote, or reproduce must be obtained in writing by the Historical Resources Center.

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Directors Office Records: Ernst Bertner and R. Lee Clark, 1941-1975, The President's Office Records, 1941-1988, Historical Resources Center, Research Medical Library, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.

Processing Information

This collection was processed by Michelle M. Mears, Thomas Bailey, and Lesley W. Brunet as part of a National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) grant.

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Detailed Description of the Records

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