Chasing the Invisible

Chasing the Invisible combines the suspense of a spy novel with the education and scientific insight of a medical mystery thriller, all wrapped in a dramatic business story. In addition to revealing the detective work of medicine and its impact on physicians and patients, Chasing the Invisible features a colorful cast of Wall Street investment bankers, venture capitalists and the titans of a giant multinational company out to acquire the missing puzzle piece necessary to ensure the next phase of life-saving innovation.

Dr. Tom Grogan navigated his way through all those worlds to fulfill his vision. He ultimately transformed his classic biomedical start-up company--born as a diagram on a piece of paper and a jerry-rigged prototype built in his garage--into a successful multi-billion-dollar worldwide enterprise, following its acquisition by a Swiss pharmaceutical giant. Today his invention of an automated cancer diagnostics device that helps personalize the detection of cancer and enables doctors to treat it more effectively is transforming medical practice throughout the world.

Whether you're interested in learning about science and medicine, or about entrepreneurship and how to create an exciting and dynamic leadership culture, or even if you're just looking for a good read with wit and humor, Chasing the Invisible is worth picking up. If you've ever chased a dream bigger than yourself; if you've ever been rejected, impeded, accused, sued, held up, knocked down, flat broke, far flung, or near death with cancer, and you didn't quit, this book is for you.

Dr. Thomas Grogan, MD, is professor emeritus at the University of Arizona College of Medicine. He is the founder and chief scientific advisor emeritus at Ventana Medical Systems, Inc., a division of Roche, a leading international healthcare leader based in Basel, Switzerland. Dr. Grogan grew up in unusual circumstances, as the son of a CIA officer father and a steel-willed mother whose three sons experienced childhoods filled with peril in several foreign countries. He graduated from the University of Virginia, Phi Beta Kappa, with a degree in biology, and earned his medical degree with honors from the George Washington University School of Medicine. During his time in medical school, Dr. Grogan studied tropical medicine in Cebu, the Philippines. He did his internship and residency in the U.S. Army at Letterman Hospital in San Francisco, and at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. He was a post-graduate fellow in hematopathology at Stanford University. A founding member of the International Lymphoma Study Group, Dr. Grogan has authored more than two hundred and fifty scientific papers and holds eighteen patents. His clinical practice contributions have been recognized in the Best Doctors in America, published by Woodward/White, Inc., continuously) from 1991 until his retirement in 2017. Chief among his innovations is the automation of cancer pathology testing technology that enables physicians to accurately identify the genetic characteristics of their patients' disease and manage their personalized treatment. Dr. Grogan has also been recognized for his medical and business accomplishments with many prestigious awards, including American Cancer Society Gift of Life Award (2003), Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award (2002), Tom Brown Excellence in Entrepreneurship Award (2002), University of Arizona Outstanding Technology Innovation Award (2004) Dr. Grogan is a husband, father and grandfather, and he lives in Tucson, Arizona, with his wife of fifty-two years, Cande, who was a successful restaurateur.