Focus: Cancer Center Featured Story 2

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A phase I, first-in-human study led by The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reveals for the first time, an investigational drug that is effective and safe for patients with cancers caused by an alteration in the receptor tyrosine kinase known as RET. The drug appears to be promising as a potential therapy for RET-driven cancers, such as medullary and papillary thyroid, non-small cell lung, colorectal and bile duct cancers, which have been historically difficult to treat.

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Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers have found that the effect of a key gene driving an aggressive, recurrent and often incurable form of prostate cancer is dose-dependent, opening new avenues for therapies that overcome resistance to treatment of advanced disease.

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Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) accounts for 14 percent of all lung cancers and is often rapidly resistant to chemotherapy resulting in poor clinical outcomes. Treatment has changed little for decades, but a study at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center offers a potential explanation for why the disease becomes chemoresistant, and a possible avenue to explore new diagnostic approaches.

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The University of Kansas Cancer Center will present preclinical evidence supporting Ciclopirox Prodrug (CPX-POM), an anti-cancer agent currently in Phase I clinical trials, at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) 2018 Annual Meeting in Chicago. Ciclopirox Prodrug was discovered by researchers at The University of Kansas Cancer Center and KU’s Institute for Advancing Medical Innovation (IAMI).

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Ludwig Cancer Research released today the full scope of findings to be presented by Ludwig researchers at this year’s American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting in Chicago, Ill., April 14-18, 2018. Research conducted by more than 100 Ludwig scientists will be presented in symposiums, plenaries, town meetings, education sessions and poster sessions.

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A Ludwig Cancer Research study has shown that an entirely new type of personalized cancer vaccine induces novel, potent and clinically effective immune responses in patients receiving a combination of standard therapies for recurrent, stage III and IV ovarian cancer.

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Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center’s latest findings will be featured in about 50 presentations at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research, “Driving Innovative Cancer Science to Patient Care,” to be held April 14-18 in Chicago. Here are several highlights:

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With an aim to propel precision medicine and other cutting-edge research to better inform treatment decisions for the youngest of patients, nationally distinguished pediatric hematology/oncology leader Peter D. Cole, MD, has been proposed as the Embrace Kids Foundation Chair in Pediatric Hematology/Oncology at Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey.

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New research out of Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center and The Ohio State University has identified rare variants in a number of novel genes that may help improve risk prediction and prognosis for patients undergoing BMT.

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In new research published in Nature, a team led by Subhamoy Dasgupta, PhD, of Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center reports its identification of two key proteins involved in glucose metabolism that could be targeted to prevent breast cancer metastasis and recurrence.

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The NCCN Oncology Research Program’s Shared Resource Database is now available to all cancer centers in the United States, in order to facilitate more cancer research.

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Research by Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey investigators has identified novel functions of the superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) enzyme providing support that it could serve as a therapeutic target in the most common type of lung cancer.

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Barbara Duffy Stewart, MPH, founding executive director of the Association of American Cancer Institutes (AACI), has announced her retirement, effective October 15. AACI’s Board of Directors has approved the appointment of Jennifer W. Pegher, MA, as the association’s next executive director.

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Researchers from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have found a startling amount of new information about molecular features of tumors as well as identified previously unknown cancer subtypes based on a comprehensive analysis of 2,579 tumors from breast and four different types of gynecologic cancers. These new findings potentially could serve as a launching pad for future therapeutic studies.

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At the heart of any cancer diagnosis or treatment are cells. If one thinks of the cell components controlling gene activation as a Russian nesting-doll of gene regulatory layers, within those increasingly smaller tiers are short pieces of non-coding DNA called enhancers. A study at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reveals enhancers as a significant area of research for diagnosing and/or treating many cancers.

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NCCN announces 2018 Young Investigator Awards: Rebecca Arend, MD, UAB Comp. Cancer Ctr; Yin Cao, MPH, ScD, Siteman Cancer Ctr at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington U. Sch of Medicine; Tim Luetkens, MD, Huntsman Cancer Inst. at the U. of Utah; Edwin R. Manuel, PhD, City of Hope; and Cecilia Yeung, MD, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Ctr, Seattle Cancer Care Alliance.

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Dr. Alesandro Santin Discusses Treatment for Endometrial Cancer

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Since their arrivals at Yale within the past six years, Patricia LoRusso (right) and Joseph Paul Eder (center)—shown conferring with Clinical Research Coordinator Alexandra Minnella—have overseen a sharp increase in the number of clinical trials conducted by the Phase I Program at Yale Cancer Center.

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Gary Desir has served the School of Medicine with distinction as a researcher, clinician, educator, and administrator. His discovery and further investigation of the flavoprotein renalase are milestones in the understanding of renal and cardiovascular function

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For a quarter century, Ginny Grunley, her husband Ken Grunley, president and chief executive officer of Grunley Construction, Inc., and their family have been enthusiastic philanthropists. Their determination to help others has included Ginny volunteering as a court-appointed special advocate for disadvantaged children.

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Cancer therapies that target a specific protein have improved outcomes for patients. However, many patients eventually develop resistance to these targeted therapies and their cancer comes back. It is believed that differences among tumor cells, or heterogeneity, may contribute to this drug resistance. Moffitt Cancer Center researchers are using a unique approach by combining typical cell culture studies with mathematical modeling to determine how heterogeneity within a tumor and the surrounding tumor environment affect responses to targeted drug therapies.

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The Fred Hutch Tip Sheet includes story ideas about: New paths to malaria prevention; proteins involved in muscular dystrophy; pathogen-associated cancers; lung cancer in women who never smoked; financial impact of cancer care; more

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On March 19-20 in California, the third Fortune Brainstorm HEALTH conference brought together renowned leaders from healthcare and related industries to provide insight into today’s most pressing challenges as well as how we might solve them.

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NCCN presented awards during the NCCN 23rd Annual Conference to Crystal Denlinger, MD, Abdul-Rahman Jazieh, MD, MPH, Warren Smedley, MSHA, Ronald Walters, MD, MBA, MHA, MS, and Kristin Kline Hasson.

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Updated statistics from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration out this month show that over the previous year, there has been an increase in cases of an uncommon form of cancer associated with breast implants. Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey’s Andrew Evens, DO, MSc, FACP, shares some insight.

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Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey Director Steven K. Libutti, MD, FACS, who is also senior vice president of oncology services at RWJBarnabas Health and vice chancellor for cancer programs for Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences, has been named by the business journal NJBIZ to its Power 100 list.

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Research suggests the common cold thrives in cooler temperatures. One recent study from Yale University found a seven-degree drop in ambient temperature can mess with your body’s ability to stop cold viruses from proliferating.

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TAMPA, Fla. – Multiple myeloma is a rare incurable disease that is diagnosed in more than 30,000 people each year in the United States.  Only half of patients with multiple myeloma are expected to survive five years after their diagnosis. Moffitt Cancer Center researchers are trying to identify patients who are at a higher risk of developing multiple myeloma early in order to improve patient outcomes.

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New research from Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center and MimiVax LLC, published in Clinical Cancer Research, shows that survivin — one of the most commonly occurring molecules in cancer cells — may be an attractive target for a broad range of immunotherapy approaches, including CAR T.

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Cancer experts debate whether there's a glut of immunotherapy trials.

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Utilizing Information Technology to Address Oral Chemotherapy Challenges

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Cultural taboos surrounding the disease have lessened, but continued research and education are still needed.

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Two Yale research teams recently moved forward into round four of a different kind of March Madness competition. The event, called STAT Madness, aims to raise awareness about scientific breakthroughs from national institutions and is sponsored by the Boston-based news organization STAT.

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People who choose to get alternative treatments for cancer tend to have everything else going for them - being happier, younger, wealthier, and more educated.

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More than a dozen Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center clinicians and researchers have been invited to present new findings at the 71st annual Cancer Symposium of the Society of Surgical Oncology (SSO).

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Trust among surgical teams can be measured using EEG activity, according to new Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center research published in Scientific Reports. The research team used brain activity patterns to objectively assess the level of trust between mentor and trainee during robot-assisted surgery.

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Treating people with advanced metastatic kidney cancer using a combination of the immunotherapy drugs nivolumab (Opdivo®) and ipilimumab (Yervoy®) significantly increased overall survival versus treatment with sunitinib (Sutent®) alone, according to new findings from researchers at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) that were reported today in the New England Journal of Medicine.

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In a striking new finding, researchers at the UC Davis MIND Institute found that typically-developing children gain more neurons in a region of the brain that governs social and emotional behavior, the amygdala, as they become adults. This phenomenon does not happen in people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Instead, children with ASD have too many neurons early on and then appear to lose those neurons as they become adults. The findings were published today in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

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With spring now here, home improvement projects are on many ‘to do’ lists. With that come the usual warnings about safe removal of construction and home materials made of asbestos in much older homes, as exposure to this fibrous mineral is a known risk factor to the development of mesothelioma. A Rutgers Cancer Institute expert shares more about this type of cancer.

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Three tumor samples collected over time from a single patient show how cancer evolves in response to treatment.

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Colorectal cancer is preventable and curable, especially when caught early. An awareness month, says Heloisa Soares, MD, PhD, helps to remind people to talk to their healthcare providers about screening colonoscopies.

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The new Center for Immuno-Oncology will build on Yale Cancer Center's international leadership in immunobiology, cancer immunology, and development of novel cancer immunotherapies.

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As plans for consolidation of cancer care within their borders go forth, the partnership between the Health Ministry, the university, and ASCO will be critical for building a sound educational foundation for their oncology workforce.

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Yale Cancer Center (YCC) has launched the Yale Center for Immuno-Oncology (YCIO). The new center will build on YCC’s international leadership in immunobiology, cancer immunology, and development of novel cancer immunotherapies.

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A Ludwig Cancer Research study shows that ovarian cancer, which has proved resistant to currently available immunotherapies, could be susceptible to personalized immunotherapy. Led by Ludwig Lausanne investigator Alexandre Harari and George Coukos, director of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Lausanne, the study shows that ovarian tumors harbor highly reactive killer T cells—which kill infected and cancerous cells—and demonstrates how they can be identified and selectively grown for use in personalized, cell-based immunotherapies.

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Research by Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey investigators explores the use of a diabetes drug and its impact on pancreatic cancer and finds that targeting a certain signaling pathway with this agent may be a novel strategy for the prevention and treatment of metastatic pancreatic cancer.

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Adolescents who smoke e-cigarettes are exposed to significant levels of potentially cancer-causing chemicals also found in tobacco cigarettes, even when the e-cigarettes do not contain nicotine, according to a study by UC San Francisco researchers.

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Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey has earned the prestigious accreditation as a provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC).

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Largest study to date addressing the prevalence of metabolic abnormalities in testicular cancer survivors who received prior chemotherapy publishes findings in the latest issue of JNCCN

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Drug therapies that target a specific molecule have changed the way patients are treated for cancer and greatly improved survival rates. However, some patients do not respond to these therapies because the drug is not reaching the tumor cells effectively. In a new study published in Scientific Reports, Moffitt Cancer Center researchers combined single-cell imaging of cancer cells in mice with mathematical modeling to determine which drug characteristics are the most important for efficient drug uptake.