ALUMNI IN ACTION
Luis Pineda (EMSHA 37): Master of Many Domains What do you think of when you think of food? Delicious tastes? Wonderful smells? Parties with friends? Holidays with loved ones? What if you couldn’t eat? What if the smells made you nauseous? What if the taste made you ill?
RECIPES FOCUS ON THREE THINGS: ◗ Inexpensive and
accessible ingredients ◗ Taste ◗ Ability to be tolerated by the stomach while on chemotherapy
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hose were the questions in the head of Luis Pineda, M.D., as he watched his cancer patients lose interest in food. He had been an oncologist and hematologist for two decades and was tired of seeing his patients suffer in a realm that should be filled with joy. So in 2003, the same year he graduated our Executive Master of Science in Health
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Administration (EMSHA) program, Pineda entered culinary school. Shortly thereafter, he launched Cooking with Cancer, a combination of Pineda’s understanding of medicine mixed with his knowledge of cooking. Since he launched the program, he has published more than 50 recipes that appeal to the cancer patient’s palette and provide the
nutritional value they need to endure their treatments. Today, Cooking with Cancer expands beyond recipes – it is a cookbook, website, blog, DVD and even a red wine. Each aspect is designed to assist cancer patients in fulfilling their special nutritional needs in a way that is enjoyable for them. Pineda is grateful he pursued his EMSHA because of the growth of Cooking with Cancer. The EMSHA program helped teach him how to implement changes in a way that would make his business more effective. It ultimately provided him with the tools necessary for his business to thrive and gave him many personal and professional contacts that he still utilizes today. Pineda’s work has been featured in numerous local and national publications including Cooking Light magazine.