March 18, 2011

Announcements

A Multi-Million-Dollar Gift To Yale To Honor a Friend With Brain Cancer Launches An Ambitious New Brain Tumor Research Program

Yale School of Medicine has announced the launch of the Yale Program in Brain Tumor Research, established with a $12 million, multi-year gift from Turkish financier Mehmet Kutman, MBA. The donation was made by Kutman in honor of a close friend and business associate who is currently being treated for glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the most common and most aggressive form of brain cancer. Through the new program, researchers at the School of Medicine led by Murat Günel, MD, Nixdorff-German Professor of Neurosurgery, will harness the power of the latest genomic techniques to better understand brain tumors, with a special focus on (GBM) and similar illnesses.

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Updates from Smilow

Congratulations to NP 15 and NP 14 whose overall Press Ganey scores are at the 99th percentile compared to similar hospitals in our peer group.

• Recommend the hospital - 91%  
• Had good communication with nurses - 87%  
• Received good response from the hospital staff - 69%  
• Received a timely call button response - 72%
• Had good communication with doctors - 88%
• Had a good opinion of the hospital environment - 77%
• Felt the environment was quiet - 48%
• Received good pain management - 60%
• Received information about medication - 55%
• Received information about side effects - 36%
• Received adequate discharge information - 95%  

We will continue to monitor and direct our attention to areas that need improvement.

The outpatient satisfaction data for our Smilow Ambulatory areas through also yielded strong results:

• 91% for overall satisfaction with outpatient services
• 93.5% for availability of office staff by phone
• 99.4% for radiation therapy services
• 94.5% for chemotherapy infusion services 

Future efforts will include monitoring satisfaction by disease team and clinic/treatment area.

Research in the News 

Early Adulthood Weight Gain and Long-term Obesity Linked with Endometrial Cancer Risk

Women who put on substantial weight in early adulthood were diagnosed with endometrial cancer at much younger ages than their peers who gained weight later in life, new research by members of Yale Cancer Center at the Yale School of Public Health has found. The findings are published in the International Journal of Cancer.

In addition, long-term obesity significantly increased the risk of this cancer, which develops in the lining of the uterus and is the most commonly diagnosed gynecological cancer in the United States today. Some 42,000 American women are diagnosed with endometrial cancer annually and nearly 8,000 die from the disease. The number of women developing the disease has risen steadily in recent years.

Notables  

Lynn Wilson has been named a trustee of the American Board of Radiology (ABR). His four-year term of service will begin July 1, 2011.  ABR trustees participate in leadership and decision making to carry out the ABR's mission and set standards for the board certification process in radiology for initial certification and maintenance of certification. Dr. Wilson is certified by the ABR in radiation oncology.

Lynn Wilson is participating with Team Xtreme in the 3rd annual TeamBrent charity adult hockey tournament April 1-3 at the Wonderland of Ice to benefit the St. Baldrick's Foundation.  Yale Cancer Center is a listed sponsor of the event.

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Clare Garguilo has joined Yale Cancer Center as the Financial Assistant for the sections of Medical Oncology and Hematology.

Newly Opened Clinical Trials

HIC 1101007859

Principal Investigator:

Nina Kadan-Lottick, MD

A Randomized, Phase III Study of Sodium Thiosulfate (IND# 72877, NSC# 45624) for the Prevention of Cisplatin-Induced Ototoxicity in Children (COG ACCL0431)

HIC 1102007990

Principal Investigator:

Reni Butler, MD

MRI Detection of Additional Sites of Malignancy in Patients with Newly Diagnosed Breast Cancer - 1.5t vs. 3t

HIC 1101007858

Principal Investigator:

Nina Kadan-Lottick, MD

A Group-Wide, Prpspective Study of Ototoxicity Assessment in Children Receiving Cisplatin Chemotherapy (COG ACCL05C1)

HIC 1101007854

Principal Investigator:

Gary Kupfer, MD

Phase III Randomized Trial of Adding Vincristine-Topotecan-Cyclophosphamide to Standard Chemotherapy in Initial Treatment of Non-Metastatic Ewing Sarcoma (COG AEWS1031)

HIC 1102008025

Principal Investigator:

Gary Kupfer, MD

Risk-Based Treatment for Non-Rhabdomyosarcoma Soft Tissue Sarcomas (NRSTS) in Patients Under 30 Years of Age (COG  ARST0332)

Funding Opportunities

Stewart Fellows

Yale Cancer Center has been awarded a grant from the Alexander and Margaret Stewart Trust to fund the cancer research of two junior faculty who will be known as Stewart Fellows. Each fellow will receive a grant of $75,000 per year for two years. Candidates for a Stewart fellowship must be assistant professors and members of Yale Cancer Center who have been in their current position for at least two years and not more than five years.  The candidate's research must focus on "fundamental, genetic research that may lead to targeted therapeutic or diagnostic approaches for reducing mortality from cancer." Stewart Trust guidelines prohibit funding for clinical research, and Stewart Fellows must allocate at least 75% of their time to research.  

Application Deadline:March 31, 2011   

A one page proposal and justification is required. Fellows will be selected in April 2011. For more information and an application, please contact Daniel DiMaio

The Donaghue Foundation Program for Research Leadership 2011

The Program for Research Leadership (PRL) is a Connecticut-focused grant program that will support transdisciplinary teams of health researchers led by a principal investigator who has demonstrated leadership in innovative and useful health research and in transferring knowledge gained from research into clinical and/or public health practice. The overall goal of the program is to fund rigorous health research that incorporates effective approaches to translating research knowledge into practice. The program provides opportunities for the team members to enhance their expertise in transdisciplinary work and knowledge translation. This is a four-year award granting up to $200,000 per year.  Total grant award is up to $800,000 (plus 10% indirect costs on an annual basis). The foundation will make one Program for Research Leadership grant award in 2011. 

The Yale Center for Genome Analysis

Development Update

Between now and April 22, any new or renewing memberships at BJ's Wholesale Club will be offered at a reduced rate, with $5 from each membership going to support Yale Cancer Center.

After successful partnerships in the past, BJ's and Yale Cancer Center have decided to team up again in an effort to raise money for cancer research. Through this special arrangement with BJ's, memberships will be offered at a reduced rate of only $40 for 14 months, which is 2 months of free membership. For each complete membership application received before the deadline, BJ's will donate $5 to Yale Cancer Center.  

For an application and more information, please contact Susan Frankenbach