Our mission is to put ourselves out of business,
not necessarily curing cancer but to control it.”
Dr. Andrew Thorburn
Vice Chairman-Department of Pharmacology, Associate Director for Basic Science
Here are some highlights of programs supported in 2009 and 2010.
• Dr. Paul Bunn, M.D., founder of UCCC, was awarded a $5.2 million Grand Opportunities ARRA grant that will build a multi-center consortium to test 1,000 newly-diagnosed lung adenocarcinomas for a wide variety of genetic mutations, free of charge to patients.
• Dr. Ross Camidge recently announced that a new oral drug called an “ALK inhibitor” is bringing one form of non-small cell lung cancer to a standstill. This type of cancer kills 20,000 Americans every year. The significant results of the research raises the prospect that similar drugs for other forms of lung cancer may also be found.
• Dr. Pepper Schedin recently received two grants totaling $750,000 to continue her work on pregnancy-related breast cancer. As a young scientist, Dr. Schedin’s research was supported by AMC and she is quickly growing an international reputation for her leading work in pregnancy-related breast cancer, a devastating form of cancer that is more virulent than other types of breast cancer. About 50% of all breast cancer among young women occurs within five years of pregnancy.
• In May of 2010, AMC hosted the fourth annual “Gift of Life and Breath” a 5k Run to raise awareness and funds for research into the early detection of lung cancer. Through community support, corporate sponsorships and participant fundraising efforts, the event raised $89,000…more than enough to fund the next year of research conducted by University of Colorado Cancer Center member, Dr. Michael Weyant in collaboration with Dr. Kim O’Neil at Brigham Young University.
• AMC introduced the first annual women's event; Women, Wine and Wisdom, hosting the talented Jonna Tamases in her riotously entertaining, profoundly moving hour-long show "Jonna's Body, Please Hold" as well as the dynamic Dr. Virginia Borges' friendly and highly informative "Girl Talk" session, all you want and need to know about the Young Women’s Breast Cancer Translational Program at the University of Colorado Cancer Center. After hearing the powerful messages of Dr. Borges and Jonna, guests Walter and Laura Dear were inspired to commit to a matching challenge grant. This means every donation made to the Young Women’s Breast Cancer Program will be matched dollar for dollar. What a dramatic extension of the philanthropic impact the evening prompted!
• The Cancer Prevention and Control Program at the UCCC receives funding from AMC to support its programs in cancer prevention research and early detection, as well as supporting cancer survivors through the Livestrong Center for Excellence and the Cancer Information and Counseling Line. The significance of the prevention of cancer, not to mention the importance of early detection, is seen throughout the research and clinical trials taking place at UCCC in all cancer types. Statistics show that 750,000 lives could be saved through cancer prevention and control. Our work is paying off - there are more than 11 million cancer survivors in the United States today.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Monday, July 19, 2010
Seeking patients, researchers for Rare Cancer Genetics Registry
UCCC is now a participant in the NCI’s Rare Cancer Genetics Registry, which aims to collect genetic material from at least 200 patients who were diagnosed with rare cancers in the past five years. The registry data will be available to cancer researchers around the world.
Jan Lowery, PhD, MPH (AMC Cancer Prevention & Control Program/Colorado School of Public Health) is the grant’s local PI. She has sent letters to UCH doctors with patients diagnosed during the past five years with a rare or uncommon cancer asking for permission to contact the patient about donating blood or saliva to the registry.
“I would like to support recruitment for cancers that our researchers are actively pursuing work in,” Lowery said. “So, if a UCCC member is interested in doing a project in sarcoma, for example, then I’m happy to bump up enrollment of patients in that area to make sure we have a significant number of patients in the national registry.”
The Rare Cancer Genetics Registry, run out of Massachusetts General Hospital, will collect samples from patients with sarcoma, myeloma, head/neck cancer, renal cancer, esophageal cancer, pancreas cancer, gastric cancer, testicular cancer and fallopian tube cancer. Lowery encourages UCH doctors to get back to her about contacting their patients, and all UCCC members who are interested in using genetic material from the research to be in touch. She can be reached at jan.lowery@ucdenver.edu.
Jan Lowery, PhD, MPH (AMC Cancer Prevention & Control Program/Colorado School of Public Health) is the grant’s local PI. She has sent letters to UCH doctors with patients diagnosed during the past five years with a rare or uncommon cancer asking for permission to contact the patient about donating blood or saliva to the registry.
“I would like to support recruitment for cancers that our researchers are actively pursuing work in,” Lowery said. “So, if a UCCC member is interested in doing a project in sarcoma, for example, then I’m happy to bump up enrollment of patients in that area to make sure we have a significant number of patients in the national registry.”
The Rare Cancer Genetics Registry, run out of Massachusetts General Hospital, will collect samples from patients with sarcoma, myeloma, head/neck cancer, renal cancer, esophageal cancer, pancreas cancer, gastric cancer, testicular cancer and fallopian tube cancer. Lowery encourages UCH doctors to get back to her about contacting their patients, and all UCCC members who are interested in using genetic material from the research to be in touch. She can be reached at jan.lowery@ucdenver.edu.
A different philosophy of doing business
by Dr. Theodorescu
As I write this, I have been in Colorado for almost two weeks, and sitting behind my desk as director of the University of Cancer Center for 11 days.
During this short time, I’ve spent many hours with UCH President and CEO Bruce Schroffel and with SOM Dean Dick Krugman, MD, to share my vision of what the Cancer Center can be.
I spent two hours in Boulder with Tom Cech, PhD (Molecular Oncology/CU-Boulder) about how we can more closely align his Colorado Initiative for Molecular Biotechnology with the Cancer Center.
I’m scheduled to meet with Lilly Marks, UC Denver’s new vice president for health affairs and executive vice chancellor of the Anschutz Medical Campus.
In the fall, I’ll travel to Ft. Collins to meet with the new director of the Flint Animal Cancer Center at CSU, Rod Page, DVM, and associate director Steve Withrow, DVM (Developmental Therapeutics Program/CSU).
I’m trying to bring a different philosophy and way of doing business, to bring a more inclusive approach to what we do. It’s important to me that we all communicate and that all the stakeholders are heard. Our center will excel if we nurture the natural chemistry and synergies among our consortium members.
If I’m successful in my job, I will to inspire all the smart people in science in Colorado to work in cancer….and that does not include just biologists but mathematicians, physicists, chemists and engineers. We need to make new connections, cross classical disciplinary lines to reinvent how we do cancer research to take advantages of strengths here in Colorado in multidisciplinary research. That’s how we’ll make a difference in cancer.
Introducing Mark Kochevar, MBA
We will be recruiting a few new people. One of my first steps, with the help of the Associate Directors, is to hire Mark Kochevar, MBA, as our new associate director for administration and finance. Mark has worked as an administrator for the NCI, helped lead the University of Maryland’s cancer center and most recently developed and managed the new Medical College of Georgia Cancer Center.
Mark has the proven chops to do this job, and he has an all-star team to lean on in our administrative core. Of course, one of our resident administrative stars is Michaela Montour, MPA, who has graciously done two jobs for the past year as she led the Research Administration office and acted as the interim AD. I am grateful that Michaela will continue on in her research leadership role.
Implementing a new vision
Even though my house is full of boxes and I’ve been in Colorado for less than two weeks, I’m very comfortable here. I’m doing the same type of job I was in Virginia but on a bigger scale. Some of the things I have been thinking about for the past five years—I can now do them here.
I can implement my vision for making sure patients get the kind of coordinated care that they can’t get anywhere else in Colorado (and more about that and our strategic plan development process in a future message). I can also help put some challenges behind us that I see as having hamstrung our abilities to raise money and interact with some of clinical partners. All of this is very exciting to me.
I’m in the process of setting up my clinical practice and moving my lab from Virginia. I will continue to actively lead my lab because it’s important to me that as the Cancer Center director I keep the credibility that comes with being a working scientist and physician.
Sincerely,
Dan Theodorescu MD PhD
Paul Bunn Chair of Cancer Research
Professor of Surgery, University of Colorado School of Medicine
Director, University of Colorado Cancer Center
As I write this, I have been in Colorado for almost two weeks, and sitting behind my desk as director of the University of Cancer Center for 11 days.
During this short time, I’ve spent many hours with UCH President and CEO Bruce Schroffel and with SOM Dean Dick Krugman, MD, to share my vision of what the Cancer Center can be.
I spent two hours in Boulder with Tom Cech, PhD (Molecular Oncology/CU-Boulder) about how we can more closely align his Colorado Initiative for Molecular Biotechnology with the Cancer Center.
I’m scheduled to meet with Lilly Marks, UC Denver’s new vice president for health affairs and executive vice chancellor of the Anschutz Medical Campus.
In the fall, I’ll travel to Ft. Collins to meet with the new director of the Flint Animal Cancer Center at CSU, Rod Page, DVM, and associate director Steve Withrow, DVM (Developmental Therapeutics Program/CSU).
I’m trying to bring a different philosophy and way of doing business, to bring a more inclusive approach to what we do. It’s important to me that we all communicate and that all the stakeholders are heard. Our center will excel if we nurture the natural chemistry and synergies among our consortium members.
If I’m successful in my job, I will to inspire all the smart people in science in Colorado to work in cancer….and that does not include just biologists but mathematicians, physicists, chemists and engineers. We need to make new connections, cross classical disciplinary lines to reinvent how we do cancer research to take advantages of strengths here in Colorado in multidisciplinary research. That’s how we’ll make a difference in cancer.
Introducing Mark Kochevar, MBA
We will be recruiting a few new people. One of my first steps, with the help of the Associate Directors, is to hire Mark Kochevar, MBA, as our new associate director for administration and finance. Mark has worked as an administrator for the NCI, helped lead the University of Maryland’s cancer center and most recently developed and managed the new Medical College of Georgia Cancer Center.
Mark has the proven chops to do this job, and he has an all-star team to lean on in our administrative core. Of course, one of our resident administrative stars is Michaela Montour, MPA, who has graciously done two jobs for the past year as she led the Research Administration office and acted as the interim AD. I am grateful that Michaela will continue on in her research leadership role.
Implementing a new vision
Even though my house is full of boxes and I’ve been in Colorado for less than two weeks, I’m very comfortable here. I’m doing the same type of job I was in Virginia but on a bigger scale. Some of the things I have been thinking about for the past five years—I can now do them here.
I can implement my vision for making sure patients get the kind of coordinated care that they can’t get anywhere else in Colorado (and more about that and our strategic plan development process in a future message). I can also help put some challenges behind us that I see as having hamstrung our abilities to raise money and interact with some of clinical partners. All of this is very exciting to me.
I’m in the process of setting up my clinical practice and moving my lab from Virginia. I will continue to actively lead my lab because it’s important to me that as the Cancer Center director I keep the credibility that comes with being a working scientist and physician.
Sincerely,
Dan Theodorescu MD PhD
Paul Bunn Chair of Cancer Research
Professor of Surgery, University of Colorado School of Medicine
Director, University of Colorado Cancer Center
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