Robert Frascino
Encyclopedia
Robert James Frascino was an American
physician
, immunologist
, and advocate for HIV
-positive people. He was one of the first physicians to specialize in HIV during the outbreak of the AIDS
virus in the early 1980s. After an occupational exposure to the virus in 1991 left him HIV-positive, his health declined, and he had to retire from his work as a physician in 1996. At that time, he became active in HIV/AIDS education and advocacy
. In 1999, he co-founded the Robert James Frascino AIDS Foundation, a nonprofit organization
that raises money to benefit AIDS patients in need of treatment and to fund HIV/AIDS educational programs worldwide. A concert pianist
, Frascino performed annually with other musicians at A Concerted Effort, a benefit concert
for his charity. From May 2000 until his death, he responded to questions from the public in two informational forums on TheBody.com, an educational resource on HIV/AIDS run by the HealthCentral
Network.
, to Jennie and Angelo Frascino. He developed an interest in music at an early age, and he nearly attended the University of Rochester
on a music scholarship. However, because he was also keenly interested in science and because the University of Rochester's science and music courses were offered on separate campuses, he went on to complete his undergraduate work at Oberlin College
, where he studied music and biology. He received his bachelor's degree in biology (with high honors) from Oberlin in 1974. Initially, Frascino did not plan to continue his education or to attend medical school after graduating. However, after one of his chemistry professors encouraged him to become a physician, he applied to medical school and went on to receive his M.D. from the University of Cincinnati
. After completing his internship and residency
at Children's Hospital Oakland
, he moved on to a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco
.
of medicine in Stanford University Medical Center
's Division of Immunology, Rheumatology, and Allergy. During that time, he opened the Frascino Medical Group, a practice consisting of two clinic
s devoted to HIV/AIDS care. He also began to serve as medical director of an oncology
-immunology infusion and research center.
In 1991, while working at his medical practice in Sunnyvale, California
, Frascino became infected
with HIV while drawing fluid from an HIV-positive patient's blister. According to the Los Altos Town Crier, "the patient jerked, jamming the needle into the doctor’s gloved hand. Despite receiving prophylactic antiviral medication immediately, Frascino tested positive for HIV a few weeks later." Although Frascino had to retire from his medical practice in 1996 when his health began to decline, he noted that acquiring HIV had given him a unique perspective during his years of work with patients. Sixteen years later, he said, "There are risks to being a physician, including contracting an illness. I took that risk. I would take that risk again to be a physician."
Professor William Wellborn at A Concerted Effort, a concert series whose proceeds benefit the foundation. Since its inception, the Robert James Frascino AIDS Foundation has raised more than $1,500,000 for its goals. The foundation's beneficiaries include hospice
care programs in Los Angeles, AIDS education programs in primary schools in Mendocino
, the pediatric program at Children's Hospital Oakland, AIDS Legal Services of San Jose
, and HIV-positive women in sub-Saharan Africa
, to whom the foundation provides medication that reduces the chance of passing on the disease to their children during labor.
on TheBody.com, a comprehensive resource about HIV/AIDS funded by the HealthCentral
network. His forums on The Body, the largest database
of HIV/AIDS information in the world, focused on Safe Sex and HIV Prevention and on Fatigue and Anemia
. Having studied French
before and during his undergraduate years, Frascino was bilingual
and responded to questions in both French and English on the site. Throughout the 11 years he contributed to The Body, he answered about 30,000 questions. During his last 10 months of service there, Frascino (or Dr. Bob, as he was known to the online community) regularly published a blog
titled "Life, Love, Sex, HIV and Other Unscheduled Events."
and of the American Academy of Pediatrics
. He was also a member of the American Academy of HIV Medicine. In 2004, he joined Oberlin College
's board of trustees
. Additionally, he served terms as president of the California Society of Allergy, Asthma, and Clinical Immunology, of the Allergy/Immunology Association of Northern California, and of the Allergy, Asthma, Immunology Foundation of Northern California. He also spent time as chairman of the Santa Clara County Medical Society’s AIDS Task Force.
Frascino's biography on The Body notes that "as primary investigator in numerous HIV clinical trials, he ... published articles on evolving new treatments and quality of life issues for people living with the virus in such journals as International Journal of STD and AIDS, Western Journal of Medicine, Journal of AIDS, and Blood
."
, with his husband Steven Natterstad, whom he had met in 1991. Natterstad, also an HIV specialist and concert pianist, had been hired to work for the same medical practice. The two began a relationship in 1993. They were married on October 31, 2008, and Natterstad remained HIV-negative throughout their time together. In addition to working as president of the Frascino Medical Group in Los Altos, Natterstad serves as the Frascino AIDS Foundation's vice-president. He also responds to questions in Tratamientos, The Body's informational forum for Spanish
-speakers.
Family, friends, colleagues, and readers of The Body regularly remarked upon Frascino's optimism with respect to his illness, and he himself commented frequently on his contentment with life. When his brother died of brain cancer in 2007, Frascino said, “It was such a privilege to help him at the end of his life. The service was exactly what he wanted. Even something as sad as that, I have good memories of what happened. That’s not to say that I don’t miss him.” In 2003, The Lancet
, a weekly peer-reviewed
medical journal, quoted him discussing HIV's significance in directing his work in an unexpected but rewarding way.
s. A 2005 article on Frascino in the San Jose Mercury News
reported that he was taking 26 antiretroviral pills per day to keep the virus at bay. Two years later, that number increased to 30. He remained active as president of the Frascino AIDS Foundation and as a resident expert at The Body until three days before his death.
but did not find his symptoms alarming, thinking he was perhaps coming down with the flu. However, when he began to experience severe lower-back pain
later in the day, Natterstad and Frascino's sister Linda took him to the emergency room, where doctors discovered that his blood pressure
was low and that his vital organs were not receiving enough oxygen. They determined he was suffering from bacterial sepsis
and placed him on a ventilator
. Two and a half hours later, he was pronounced dead. The official cause and date of death were listed as bacterial sepsis on September 17, 2011.
Philanthropy
Award. During the same year, Frascino received the Outstanding Contribution in Medical Education Award from the Santa Clara County Medical Association. Five years later, in 2002, the Global Health Council
gave Frascino the Bobbi Campbell
AIDS Hero Award at the International AIDS Candlelight Vigil in San Francisco. Governor of California Gray Davis
and Mayor of San Francisco Willie Brown
sent him personal letters of congratulations for the accomplishment.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, immunologist
Immunology
Immunology is a broad branch of biomedical science that covers the study of all aspects of the immune system in all organisms. It deals with the physiological functioning of the immune system in states of both health and diseases; malfunctions of the immune system in immunological disorders ; the...
, and advocate for HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
-positive people. He was one of the first physicians to specialize in HIV during the outbreak of the AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
virus in the early 1980s. After an occupational exposure to the virus in 1991 left him HIV-positive, his health declined, and he had to retire from his work as a physician in 1996. At that time, he became active in HIV/AIDS education and advocacy
Advocacy
Advocacy is a political process by an individual or a large group which normally aims to influence public-policy and resource allocation decisions within political, economic, and social systems and institutions; it may be motivated from moral, ethical or faith principles or simply to protect an...
. In 1999, he co-founded the Robert James Frascino AIDS Foundation, a nonprofit organization
Nonprofit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
that raises money to benefit AIDS patients in need of treatment and to fund HIV/AIDS educational programs worldwide. A concert pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
, Frascino performed annually with other musicians at A Concerted Effort, a benefit concert
Benefit concert
A benefit concert or charity concert is a concert, show or gala featuring musicians, comedians, or other performers that is held for a charitable purpose, often directed at a specific and immediate humanitarian crisis. Such events raise both funds and public awareness to address the cause at...
for his charity. From May 2000 until his death, he responded to questions from the public in two informational forums on TheBody.com, an educational resource on HIV/AIDS run by the HealthCentral
HealthCentral
HealthCentral is a privately owned online health company that was founded by an emergency room doctor in 1999. HealthCentral was later acquired by a group of venture investors in 2005. Initial investments were made from Polaris Venture Partners, Sequoia Capital, The Carlyle Group, and Allen &...
Network.
Early life
Frascino was born in 1952 in Rochester, New YorkRochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
, to Jennie and Angelo Frascino. He developed an interest in music at an early age, and he nearly attended the University of Rochester
University of Rochester
The University of Rochester is a private, nonsectarian, research university in Rochester, New York, United States. The university grants undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees. The university has six schools and various interdisciplinary programs.The...
on a music scholarship. However, because he was also keenly interested in science and because the University of Rochester's science and music courses were offered on separate campuses, he went on to complete his undergraduate work at Oberlin College
Oberlin College
Oberlin College is a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio, noteworthy for having been the first American institution of higher learning to regularly admit female and black students. Connected to the college is the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, the oldest continuously operating...
, where he studied music and biology. He received his bachelor's degree in biology (with high honors) from Oberlin in 1974. Initially, Frascino did not plan to continue his education or to attend medical school after graduating. However, after one of his chemistry professors encouraged him to become a physician, he applied to medical school and went on to receive his M.D. from the University of Cincinnati
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati is a comprehensive public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, and a part of the University System of Ohio....
. After completing his internship and residency
Residency (medicine)
Residency is a stage of graduate medical training. A resident physician or resident is a person who has received a medical degree , Podiatric degree , Dental Degree and who practices...
at Children's Hospital Oakland
Children's Hospital Oakland
Children's Hospital Oakland, full name Children’s Hospital & Research Center Oakland, is a children's hospital in Oakland, California. It is the only independent children’s hospital in the northern part of the state and is designated a Level I pediatric trauma center...
, he moved on to a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco
University of California, San Francisco
The University of California, San Francisco is one of the world's leading centers of health sciences research, patient care, and education. UCSF's medical, pharmacy, dentistry, nursing, and graduate schools are among the top health science professional schools in the world...
.
Career
When AIDS became widespread in the early 1980s, Frascino was one of the first physicians to specialize in the virus. He was completing his postdoctoral work in San Francisco when the disease emerged there, and as a clinical immunologist, he began to see AIDS patients regularly. From 1983 to 2001, he worked as an associate clinical professorClinical Professor
Clinical Professor is an academic appointment made to a member of a profession who is associated with a university and engages in practical instruction of professional students. It generally does not offer a "tenure track," but can be either full or part time, and is typically noted for its...
of medicine in Stanford University Medical Center
Stanford University Medical Center
Stanford University Medical Center represents the Stanford Hospital and the Lucile Packard Children's Hospital and is located at 300 Pasteur Drive in Stanford, California. Stanford Hospital provides both general acute care services and tertiary medical care for patients locally, nationally and...
's Division of Immunology, Rheumatology, and Allergy. During that time, he opened the Frascino Medical Group, a practice consisting of two clinic
Clinic
A clinic is a health care facility that is primarily devoted to the care of outpatients...
s devoted to HIV/AIDS care. He also began to serve as medical director of an oncology
Oncology
Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with cancer...
-immunology infusion and research center.
In 1991, while working at his medical practice in Sunnyvale, California
Sunnyvale, California
Sunnyvale is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States. It is one of the major cities that make up the Silicon Valley located in the San Francisco Bay Area...
, Frascino became infected
Seroconversion
Seroconversion is the development of detectable specific antibodies to microorganisms in the blood serum as a result of infection or immunization. Serology is used to determine antibody positivity...
with HIV while drawing fluid from an HIV-positive patient's blister. According to the Los Altos Town Crier, "the patient jerked, jamming the needle into the doctor’s gloved hand. Despite receiving prophylactic antiviral medication immediately, Frascino tested positive for HIV a few weeks later." Although Frascino had to retire from his medical practice in 1996 when his health began to decline, he noted that acquiring HIV had given him a unique perspective during his years of work with patients. Sixteen years later, he said, "There are risks to being a physician, including contracting an illness. I took that risk. I would take that risk again to be a physician."
Robert James Frascino AIDS Foundation
In 1996, shortly after Frascino had stopped working as a physician, he and his partner, Steven Natterstad, M.D., held a small charitable event in their home. They played piano to raise money for a local AIDS organization, and because of the success of that event, they founded the Robert James Frascino AIDS Foundation three years later. The foundation's self-described mission is "to provide crucial services for men, women, and children living with HIV/AIDS and to raise awareness of the HIV/AIDS epidemic through advocacy and education." Each year, Frascino performed with Natterstad and San Francisco Conservatory of MusicSan Francisco Conservatory of Music
San Francisco Conservatory of Music, formerly the California Conservatory of Music, founded in 1917, is a music school, with an enrollment of about 400 students. It was launched by Ada Clement and Lillian Hodgehead in the remodeled home of Lillian's parents on Sacramento Street. It was called the...
Professor William Wellborn at A Concerted Effort, a concert series whose proceeds benefit the foundation. Since its inception, the Robert James Frascino AIDS Foundation has raised more than $1,500,000 for its goals. The foundation's beneficiaries include hospice
Hospice
Hospice is a type of care and a philosophy of care which focuses on the palliation of a terminally ill patient's symptoms.In the United States and Canada:*Gentiva Health Services, national provider of hospice and home health services...
care programs in Los Angeles, AIDS education programs in primary schools in Mendocino
Mendocino, California
Mendocino is a census-designated place in Mendocino County, California, United States. Mendocino is located south of Fort Bragg, at an elevation of 154 feet...
, the pediatric program at Children's Hospital Oakland, AIDS Legal Services of San Jose
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
, and HIV-positive women in sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa as a geographical term refers to the area of the African continent which lies south of the Sahara. A political definition of Sub-Saharan Africa, instead, covers all African countries which are fully or partially located south of the Sahara...
, to whom the foundation provides medication that reduces the chance of passing on the disease to their children during labor.
The Body
In May 2000, Frascino began to run two advice forumsInternet forum
An Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site where people can hold conversations in the form of posted messages. They differ from chat rooms in that messages are at least temporarily archived...
on TheBody.com, a comprehensive resource about HIV/AIDS funded by the HealthCentral
HealthCentral
HealthCentral is a privately owned online health company that was founded by an emergency room doctor in 1999. HealthCentral was later acquired by a group of venture investors in 2005. Initial investments were made from Polaris Venture Partners, Sequoia Capital, The Carlyle Group, and Allen &...
network. His forums on The Body, the largest database
Database
A database is an organized collection of data for one or more purposes, usually in digital form. The data are typically organized to model relevant aspects of reality , in a way that supports processes requiring this information...
of HIV/AIDS information in the world, focused on Safe Sex and HIV Prevention and on Fatigue and Anemia
Anemia
Anemia is a decrease in number of red blood cells or less than the normal quantity of hemoglobin in the blood. However, it can include decreased oxygen-binding ability of each hemoglobin molecule due to deformity or lack in numerical development as in some other types of hemoglobin...
. Having studied French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
before and during his undergraduate years, Frascino was bilingual
Multilingualism
Multilingualism is the act of using, or promoting the use of, multiple languages, either by an individual speaker or by a community of speakers. Multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. Multilingualism is becoming a social phenomenon governed by the needs of...
and responded to questions in both French and English on the site. Throughout the 11 years he contributed to The Body, he answered about 30,000 questions. During his last 10 months of service there, Frascino (or Dr. Bob, as he was known to the online community) regularly published a blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
titled "Life, Love, Sex, HIV and Other Unscheduled Events."
Affiliations and publications
Frascino was a fellow of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and ImmunologyAmerican Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology
The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Founded in 1943, the AAAAI is a professional medical membership organization of nearly 6,500 allergist/immunologists and related professionals around the world with advanced training and experience in allergy, asthma and other immunologic diseases...
and of the American Academy of Pediatrics
American Academy of Pediatrics
The American Academy of Pediatrics is the major professional association of pediatricians in the United States. The AAP was founded in 1930 by 35 pediatricians to address pediatric healthcare standards. It currently has 60,000 members in primary care and sub-specialist areas...
. He was also a member of the American Academy of HIV Medicine. In 2004, he joined Oberlin College
Oberlin College
Oberlin College is a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio, noteworthy for having been the first American institution of higher learning to regularly admit female and black students. Connected to the college is the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, the oldest continuously operating...
's board of trustees
Board of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
. Additionally, he served terms as president of the California Society of Allergy, Asthma, and Clinical Immunology, of the Allergy/Immunology Association of Northern California, and of the Allergy, Asthma, Immunology Foundation of Northern California. He also spent time as chairman of the Santa Clara County Medical Society’s AIDS Task Force.
Frascino's biography on The Body notes that "as primary investigator in numerous HIV clinical trials, he ... published articles on evolving new treatments and quality of life issues for people living with the virus in such journals as International Journal of STD and AIDS, Western Journal of Medicine, Journal of AIDS, and Blood
Blood (journal)
Blood is a peer-reviewed medical journal published by the American Society of Hematology. Founded by William Dameshek in 1946, the journal changed from semimonthly to weekly publication at the start of 2009. The journal publishes clinical and basic scientific research in all areas of hematology.It...
."
Personal life
Frascino resided in Los Altos, CaliforniaLos Altos, California
Los Altos is a city at the southern end of the San Francisco Peninsula, in the San Francisco Bay Area. The city is in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 28,976 according to the 2010 census....
, with his husband Steven Natterstad, whom he had met in 1991. Natterstad, also an HIV specialist and concert pianist, had been hired to work for the same medical practice. The two began a relationship in 1993. They were married on October 31, 2008, and Natterstad remained HIV-negative throughout their time together. In addition to working as president of the Frascino Medical Group in Los Altos, Natterstad serves as the Frascino AIDS Foundation's vice-president. He also responds to questions in Tratamientos, The Body's informational forum for Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
-speakers.
Family, friends, colleagues, and readers of The Body regularly remarked upon Frascino's optimism with respect to his illness, and he himself commented frequently on his contentment with life. When his brother died of brain cancer in 2007, Frascino said, “It was such a privilege to help him at the end of his life. The service was exactly what he wanted. Even something as sad as that, I have good memories of what happened. That’s not to say that I don’t miss him.” In 2003, The Lancet
The Lancet
The Lancet is a weekly peer-reviewed general medical journal. It is one of the world's best known, oldest, and most respected general medical journals...
, a weekly peer-reviewed
Peer review
Peer review is a process of self-regulation by a profession or a process of evaluation involving qualified individuals within the relevant field. Peer review methods are employed to maintain standards, improve performance and provide credibility...
medical journal, quoted him discussing HIV's significance in directing his work in an unexpected but rewarding way.
Health
As he had been HIV-positive since 1991, Frascino's health deteriorated until 1996, when HAART (Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy) became available to HIV/AIDS patients. These new antiretroviral drugs improved his health dramatically. However, unlike the weaker drugs Frascino had taken previously, his new medications produced much stronger side effectSide effect
In medicine, a side effect is an effect, whether therapeutic or adverse, that is secondary to the one intended; although the term is predominantly employed to describe adverse effects, it can also apply to beneficial, but unintended, consequences of the use of a drug.Occasionally, drugs are...
s. A 2005 article on Frascino in the San Jose Mercury News
San Jose Mercury News
The San Jose Mercury News is a daily newspaper in San Jose, California. On its web site, however, it calls itself Silicon Valley Mercury News. The paper is owned by MediaNews Group...
reported that he was taking 26 antiretroviral pills per day to keep the virus at bay. Two years later, that number increased to 30. He remained active as president of the Frascino AIDS Foundation and as a resident expert at The Body until three days before his death.
Death
On the evening of September 16, 2011, two days before A Concerted Effort 2011 was scheduled to take place, Frascino developed chills at the post-rehearsal dinner. Throughout that night and into the next morning, he had a feverFever
Fever is a common medical sign characterized by an elevation of temperature above the normal range of due to an increase in the body temperature regulatory set-point. This increase in set-point triggers increased muscle tone and shivering.As a person's temperature increases, there is, in...
but did not find his symptoms alarming, thinking he was perhaps coming down with the flu. However, when he began to experience severe lower-back pain
Low back pain
Low back pain or lumbago is a common musculoskeletal disorder affecting 80% of people at some point in their lives. In the United States it is the most common cause of job-related disability, a leading contributor to missed work, and the second most common neurological ailment — only headache is...
later in the day, Natterstad and Frascino's sister Linda took him to the emergency room, where doctors discovered that his blood pressure
Blood pressure
Blood pressure is the pressure exerted by circulating blood upon the walls of blood vessels, and is one of the principal vital signs. When used without further specification, "blood pressure" usually refers to the arterial pressure of the systemic circulation. During each heartbeat, BP varies...
was low and that his vital organs were not receiving enough oxygen. They determined he was suffering from bacterial sepsis
Sepsis
Sepsis is a potentially deadly medical condition that is characterized by a whole-body inflammatory state and the presence of a known or suspected infection. The body may develop this inflammatory response by the immune system to microbes in the blood, urine, lungs, skin, or other tissues...
and placed him on a ventilator
Medical ventilator
A medical ventilator can be defined as any machine designed to mechanically move breatheable air into and out of the lungs, to provide the mechanism of breathing for a patient who is physically unable to breathe, or breathing insufficiently....
. Two and a half hours later, he was pronounced dead. The official cause and date of death were listed as bacterial sepsis on September 17, 2011.
Awards and honors
In 1997, the National Society of Fundraising Executives presented Frascino and Natterstad with the Distinguished Honoree/Silicon ValleySilicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a term which refers to the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California in the United States. The region is home to many of the world's largest technology corporations...
Philanthropy
Philanthropy
Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...
Award. During the same year, Frascino received the Outstanding Contribution in Medical Education Award from the Santa Clara County Medical Association. Five years later, in 2002, the Global Health Council
Global Health Council
The Global Health Council is a United States-based non-profit networking organizing linking "several hundred health non-governmental organizations around the world to share knowledge and resources, build partnerships and together become stronger advocates for health"...
gave Frascino the Bobbi Campbell
Bobbi Campbell
Bobbi Campbell was an early United States AIDS activist. In September 1981, Campbell became the 16th person in San Francisco to be diagnosed with Kaposi's sarcoma. He was the first to come out publicly as a person living with the then unnamed disease...
AIDS Hero Award at the International AIDS Candlelight Vigil in San Francisco. Governor of California Gray Davis
Gray Davis
Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis, Jr. is an American Democratic politician who served as California's 37th Governor from 1999 until being recalled in 2003...
and Mayor of San Francisco Willie Brown
Willie Brown (politician)
Willie Lewis Brown, Jr. is an American politician of the Democratic Party. He served over 30 years in the California State Assembly, spending 15 years as its Speaker, and afterward served as the 41st mayor of San Francisco, the first African American to do so...
sent him personal letters of congratulations for the accomplishment.
External links
- The Robert James Frascino AIDS Foundation
- Frascino's biography on The Body
- Interview with Frascino in The LancetThe LancetThe Lancet is a weekly peer-reviewed general medical journal. It is one of the world's best known, oldest, and most respected general medical journals...