Focus: Cancer Center Featured Story 2

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Research has shown that by themselves, the diabetes drug metformin and cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins are associated with reduced cancer mortality, but little is known about the effect on pancreatic cancer mortality when these drugs are taken together. Investigators at Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey examined SEER Medicare data to further explore this approach and found that exposure to statins for these patients was significantly associated with reduced overall mortality.

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Research findings from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) will be featured in this year’s American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting press program. The AACR is the oldest and largest professional organization dedicated to advancing cancer research, and the press program highlights cancer research that a panel of AACR experts considers the most significant of the year and deserving of media attention.

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Dr. Amanda Paulovich, whose lab has a leading role in the Beau Biden Cancer Moonshot, will speak April 5 at the AACR annual meeting about her lab’s pioneering methods to measure proteins that serve as tumor markers.

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A Yale Cancer Center team analyzed HNSCC data from The Cancer Genome Atlas to identify molecular characteristics of HPV+ HNSCC and correlated them with patient outcomes.

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Workers exposed to chemicals like deodorizers, sanitizers, disinfectants and sterilizers on the job may be more likely than other people to develop thyroid cancer, a recent study suggests.

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A new analysis of patients who have undergone treatment for prostate cancer shows a connection between androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) – a testosterone-lowering therapy and a common treatment for the disease – and dementia, according to researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

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The Kevin Rudi Foundation will host its third annual Superhero 5K Fun Run to raise money for sarcoma research at The University of New Mexico Comprehensive Cancer Center.

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Ludwig Cancer Research released today the full scope of advances to be presented by Ludwig researchers at this year’s American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting in Washington D.C., April 1-5, 2017.

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Scientists from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle are scheduled to present and discuss the latest developments in immunotherapy and proteomics at the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting, Research Propelling Cancer Prevention and Cures, on April 1-5. What follows is a selection of the more than 30 Hutch presentations at the AACR gathering

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More than 1,600 oncology professionals attended the NCCN 22nd Annual Conference in Orlando, Florida

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Immunologic changes observed in an early study of patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (MRCC) raised the possibility for a larger clinical study of combination immunotherapy, according to findings reported by researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

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In the first time addressing a public forum together, Kalanithi’s widow, Lucy Kalanithi, MD, Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine at Stanford School of Medicine; and Paul’s treating oncologist, Heather Wakelee, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine at Stanford Cancer Institute, spoke about their experiences on March 24, 2017 during the National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) 22nd Annual Conference: Improving the Quality, Effectiveness, and Efficiency of Cancer Care™.

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David M. Livingston, MD, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, has won a major award for discoveries in cancer research from the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR).

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Judy E. Garber, MD, MPH, director of the Center for Cancer Genetics and Prevention at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, has been honored by the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) for outstanding achievement in clinical cancer research.

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NCCN Conference Roundtable Addresses Health Disparities

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NCCN Foundation Young Investigator Awards provide grants of $150,000 over a two-year period for research initiatives focused on assessing and improving outcomes in cancer care.

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While an HPV vaccine became available over 10 years ago, a study led by the Yale School of Public Health finds that there is “substantial” room for improvement in the way it is recommended and discussed.

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A protein known as arginine methyltransferase 1 (PRMT1) may be a potential therapeutic target for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), the most common type of pancreatic cancer, and one of the most deadliest with a less than 10 percent, five-year survival rate. PRMT1 is involved in a number of genetic processes including gene transcription, DNA repair and signaling.

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Prostate cancer, notoriously resistant to immunotherapy due to its immunologically cool nature, triggers two pathways to chill an immune attack after one immunotherapy drug fires up the immune system, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center report in Nature Medicine.

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration yesterday granted accelerated approval to the checkpoint inhibitor Bavencio (avelumab) for the treatment of patients with metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma. Dr. Paul Nghiem, a senior investigator on the clinical trial that led to yesterday’s fast-track FDA approval and an expert on MCC is available for interviews, as is a patient who participated in the clinical trial.

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A $9.5 million, five-year grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) will fund an intensive multidisciplinary research effort that seeks to better understand how cancer cells reach an aggressive state and begin to damage surrounding tissue.

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Gena Cook, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Navigating Cancer, and Heather Kopecky, PhD, MBA, Senior Client Partner, Korn Ferry, have been named Chair and Vice-Chair, respectively, of the NCCN Foundation Board of Directors.

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In a new study published today in JCI Insight, UC Davis researchers have shown that combining high-intensity focused ultrasound with two immunotherapies (a PD-1 checkpoint inhibitor and TLR9 agonist) can produce excellent response rates in mouse models of epithelial cancer. They also found that, for the combination to be effective, immunotherapies must come first.

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Researchers from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) have identified, for the first time, an epigenetic mechanism promoting breast cancer. The team found that inhibition of the PI3K pathway leads to activation of ER-dependent transcription through the epigenetic regulator KMT2D. These findings provide a rationale for epigenetic therapy in patients with PIK3CA-mutant, ER-positive breast cancer. While epigenetic factors have been known to play an important role in various cancers such as leukemia and lymphoma, this is the first evidence found in breast cancer.

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Launched during the NCCN 22nd Annual Conference, the new NCCN Radiation Therapy Compendium™ provides a single access point for radiation therapy recommendations within the NCCN Guidelines®.

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A ‘first in human’ clinical trial examining the small molecule drug ONC201 in cancer patients with advanced solid tumors shows that this investigational drug is well tolerated at the recommended phase II dose. That’s according to Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey investigators whose research also showed early signs of clinical benefit in patients with advanced prostate and endometrial cancers.

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Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Lifespan leadership are creating a strategic alliance to advance cancer treatment and research.

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Despite the known dangers of exposure to ultraviolet light, many people continue to sunbathe and use indoor tanning beds with some users exhibiting a dependence to tanning. A new study from the Yale School of Public Health finds that such dependence is also associated with other addictive behaviors.

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Building on their previous research focusing on vaccination within a tumor (intratumoral) for the most common form of pancreatic cancer, investigators from Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey and Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School have shown that in a mouse model of early stage resected pancreatic cancer, intratumoral vaccination induces an anti-tumor response that results in a significant improvement in overall survival.

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Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center developed a novel chimeric mouse model to test the combination therapy using immune checkpoint blockades with therapies targeting myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs).

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A recent study demonstrated that increased palliative care consultations for patients with advanced cancers is associated with substantial impact on 30-day readmission, administration of chemotherapy following discharge, hospice referral, and use of support services following discharge.

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An advanced form of image-guided radiation therapy, known as intensity modulated proton therapy (IMPT), has shown early promise for the treatment of recurrent lung cancer, according to new research from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

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The Association of American Cancer Institutes opposes President Donald Trump’s budget recommendation to reduce funding to the National Institutes of Health by $6 billion, including a cut of nearly $1 billion for the National Cancer Institute.

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The study, “Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Oncotype Dx™ Test Receipt in a State-Wide Population-Based Study,” led by Cary P. Gross, MD, Yale University School of Medicine and a member of Yale Cancer Center, is published in the March issue of JNCCN – Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network.

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AACI will host an educational briefing to introduce the 115th Congress, staff, and Hill veterans, to academic cancer centers and highlight the role they play in pursuit of 21st Century Cures.

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Collaborative study with Cleveland Clinic & SUNY Upstate Medical University shows that single high-dose SBRT treatment is as effective as three doses in patients with non-small cell lung cancer

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A summary of a select abstracts by Dana-Farber researchers being presented at 2017 AACR Annual Meeting in April

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New NCCN Guidelines for Patients®: Distress available on NCCN.org/patients

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A University of Colorado Cancer Center study published March 15, 2017 in the journal Melanoma Research uses the unique resource of over 600 melanoma samples collected at the university to demonstrate, for the first time, novel mutations involved in mucosal melanoma, paving the way for therapies to treat this overlooked subtype.

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Researchers at Yale Cancer Center/Smilow Cancer Hospital found that black and Hispanic women in Connecticut are significantly less likely to undergo gene expression profiling than white women.

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In the last 10 years there has been a constant growth in the number of patient with primary liver cancer treated at Yale New Haven Hospital and at Smilow Cancer Hospital. Smilow is one of the few medical center able to offer to patients with primary liver cancer a comprehensive array of therapeutic approaches and personalized care, according to the needs of each patient. These considerations have justified the formation of a freestanding Liver Cancer Program.

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As an institution devoted to eliminating cancer, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center proudly supports the mission of Kick Butts Day to prevent tobacco use in our nation’s children. Organized by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids (CTFK), Kick Butts Day is a national day of awareness focused on educating and empowering youth to choose tobacco-free lifestyles. Through several evidence-based programs, MD Anderson has committed to educating youth about the dangers of tobacco use and its effects on their future health.

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Highlighting progress and promise in cancer research, including advances made in colorectal cancer, representatives from Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, American Association of Cancer Research, and University Hospital recently met with Congressman Donald M. Payne, Jr., at Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey at University Hospital in Newark.

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The “Ride for the Cure NM” event is an annual motorcycle ride to raise money and awareness for cancer treatment and research in New Mexico. The ride benefits patient programs and cancer research at The University of New Mexico Comprehensive Cancer Center. The ride started 11 years ago with just 12 riders and has grown to include more than 1,000.

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Moffitt Cancer Center and its community partners will once again host the annual Men’s Health Forum on Saturday, March 18, from 8 a.m.-2:30 p.m. at the University of South Florida Marshall Student Center. This marks the 17th year of the forum and baseball legend Ken Griffey Sr. is scheduled to appear.

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OICR researchers, together with international collaborators, have invented a technique to avoid a major problem with common laboratory techniques and improve the sensitivity of important cancer tests. The findings, published today in the journal Nature Protocols, describe a process by which the sensitivity of DNA sequencing can be improved. The technology, called SiMSen-Seq, could aid in detecting the recurrence of cancers, catching possible disease relapses faster than current methods and improving patient outcomes.

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Latinos experience significant disparities in health care including higher rates of particular cancers, lower cancer screening rates and cancer diagnoses at more advanced stages. Researchers at The University of Kansas Cancer Center want to help Latinos with tobacco cessation treatment (both medication and behavioral support) via text messaging.