INFLUENCES: DR. Steven Standiford, Cancer Physician, Ragtime Pianist

0 Comments | Philadelphia Inquirer, The, July, 2008

Name:  Steven Standiford, MD, FACS.

Position:  Chief of Surgery and Chief of Staff, Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Philadelphia.

Why I became a doctor:  I'd planned it since I was five or six. As I grew up, it just became more and more interesting, from when I was a volunteer in the hospital when I was in high school, to the anatomy labs in college biology, to interacting with patients when a medical student. Although there were no physicians in my family, it always seemed I was going to be a doctor. Besides, my other choice was being an on-the-road musician, which doesn't have the job security. I'm happier having my music as my release.

How I got to be an accomplished ragtime pianist:  I was the typical classically-trained pianist until age 15, when my...