| Benjamin Judson Joins Head and Neck Cancer Program
I am excited to announce that Benjamin L. Judson, MD began his tenure on January 1, 2010 at Yale School of Medicine as Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology in the Department of Surgery. Dr. Judson will be an active member of the Yale Cancer Center Head and Neck Cancer Program and joins Dr. Clarence Sasaki and his colleagues in our successful and well regarded section of otolaryngology.
Henry Durivage Named Director of Clinical Trials
I am pleased to welcome Hank Durivage, PharmD to Yale Cancer Center as Director of the Clinical Trials Office. The expansion of clinical trial opportunities for our patients is a priority for Yale Cancer Center. Hank's new position will be accountable and responsible for successfully developing, promoting, implementing, and achieving the strategic plan for cancer clinical trials research at Yale. Hank was previously a Research Scientist in the section of medical oncology at Yale and is currently Director the Cancer Institute of New Jersey Oncology Group and Human Research Services. He returns to Yale and begins his new position on January 25th.
Breast Cancer Alliance Funds Three Grants
The Breast Cancer Alliance (BCA) of Greenwich has generously supported breast cancer research and clinical care at Yale Cancer Center over the last decade. We are honored to once again have their support for three separate grant opportunities.
Qin Yan, PhD, Assistant Professor of Pathology, has been awarded a Young Investigator Grant to continue his research on the function of Histone Demethylase JARID1B in Breast Cancer and its possible role in Herceptin resistance. The award is for $125,000 over two years. Anthony Koleske, PhD, Associate Professor of Biophysics and Biochemistry, is the recipient of an Exceptional Project Grant to support investigation into the metastases of breast cancer cells, specifically the association of a signaling pathway involving integrins, the Arg tyrosine kinase, and the invadopodial core protein cortactin in the formation of invadopodia, which enables cancer cells to invade tissues, blood vessels, and spread in the body. The grant is for $100,000 for one year. Under the leadership of Baiba Grube, MD, Associate Professor of Surgical Oncology, Yale is also once again the recipient of the Norma Lies Mitchell Breast Surgery Fellowship from the BCA, which will support a new fellow in the Yale Breast Surgery section beginning in July 2010.
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Christine Kendzierski Hired
Christine Kendzierski rejoined the Cancer Center staff on December 21st as a Senior Administrative Assistant, supporting Hematology faculty members, Dr. Dennis Cooper and Dr. Stuart Seropian. Previously she worked in Medical Oncology as a clinical receptionist. Christine has taken over for Carol Schneider who retired August 2009.
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Yale Research in the News Yale Scientists Isolate Specific Tumor Cells that Cause Cancer
Researchers from Yale Cancer Center and the University of Vermont are the first to demonstrate two distinct groups of cells from the same tumor are both capable of forming tumors. Their findings, which appeared January 1 in the journal
Cancer Research , could impact the evaluation of patients' response to therapy. The research team, led by Marcus Bosenberg, MD, PhD, a member of the Gene Regulation and Functional Genomics Research Program, developed new mouse models of melanoma to study differences between cells in the same tumor. Using stem cell markers, they were able to divide the tumor cells into three distinct groups.
Yale's New Year's Message To Smokers Who Want to Quit: Stay Positive
The past seven years has seen a series of studies that show free telephone quitlines help people stop smoking. Now a new study by researchers at Yale Cancer Center and Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, published online Jan. 7 in the
Journal of the National Cancer Institute (JNCI), suggests that giving more positive messages about the benefits of quitting might prove even more beneficial.
The Prevention and Control Research team conducted a study of more than 2000 people using the New York quitline to see whether they could train telephone counselors to give the gain-framed counseling and whether the addition of positive messages to telephone counseling sessions would translate to improved abstinence rates. They found that after two weeks, 23.3 percent of those exposed to more positive messages had achieved abstinence from cigarettes compared to 12.6 percent who received standard phone counseling with fewer gain-based messages.
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Smilow Update
On Monday the first OR cases were conducted in Smilow Cancer Hospital on the 3rd floor. Two rooms were activated on this day, while an additional two opened on Tuesday, January 5th. Everything remains on schedule to commence operations on floors 4, 7, and 8 on February 22nd as the hospital continues to prepare these floors for move in. Continued work is also being done on floors 9-15.
Final planning for the "Day in the Life" exercise to be held on Tuesday, January 26th is underway, which will include an estimated 60 participants. The purpose of this exercise is to test the operational assumptions that have been made for the 4th, 7th, and 8th floors, as well as the systems and processes associated with these assumptions. The 2nd floor "Day in the Life" exercise proved very useful in adjusting Diagnostic Radiology's plans, and a similar experience is anticipated for the rest of the ambulatory floors.
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The Harry J. Lloyd Charitable Trust Grant Program for Melanoma Research
Yale can submit one application for Career Development and one for Basic Research. If you are interested in submitting a proposal for one of these grants, please submit the orginal and ten copies of the application to Janice Zulkeski in SHM I-141 by 4 PM on January 22.
Alliance for Cancer Gene Therapy
Applications are accepted for research projects that further the development of cell and gene therapy approaches to cancer.
The deadline for submission of abstracts is January 19 at 4 PM.
Learn More >>
American Association for Cancer Research
Landon Foundation-AACR INNOVATOR Award for Research in Personalized Cancer Medicine
This grant is designed to accelerate progress in the area of personalized cancer medicine by providing support for physician-scientists who conduct meritorious studies that hold promise for near-patient benefit. The Award is open to candidates who have acquired a medical degree or its equivalent or a combined MD/PhD at any research institution in the world who completed postdoctoral studies or clinical fellowships on or after July 2, 2000.
The application deadline is January 20 at 12 PM.
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Foundation-AACR INNOVATOR Award for Cancer Prevention Research
This grant recognizes outstanding achievement by junior faculty in any discipline of cancer prevention research. The projects must describe novel and innovative research that, if successful, will have strong potential for high impact in the cancer prevention field. Applicants must be in their first full-time faculty appointment; hold the title of Instructor, Research Assistant Professor, Assistant Professor, or an equivalent full-time faculty position; have completed postdoctoral studies or clinical fellowships on or after July 2, 2006; and work at an academic, medical, or research institution anywhere in the world.
The application deadline is January 20 at 12 PM.
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Landon Foundation-AACR INNOVATOR Award for International Collaboration in Cancer Research
This grant is open to two or more independent investigators working within an established international cancer research collaboration involving institutes in multiple countries. The Collaborators may be affiliated with any institution involved in cancer research, cancer medicine, or cancer-related biomedical science anywhere in the world.
The application deadline is January 20 at 12 PM.
Learn More >>
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Newly Opened Clinical Trials HIC# 0908005564
Principal Investigator: Mario Sznol, MD
A Phase Ib, Open-label, Multicenter, Multi-dose, Dose-escalation Study of DX-1106 in Combination with Ipilimumab in Subjects with Unresectable Stage III or Stage IV Malignant Melanoma
HIC# 0906005375
Principal Investigator: Julie Ann Sosa, MD
A Double-Blind, Randomized Phase III Study Evaluating the Efficacy and Safety of Sorafenib Compared to Placebo in Locally Advanced/Metastatic RAI-Refractory Differentiated Thyroid Cancer
HIC# 0904005075
Principal Investigator: Scott Gettinger, MD
A Phase I Study of IPI-504 and Docetaxel in Patients with Advanced Solid Tumors
HIC# 0908005567
Principal Investigator: Harriet Kluger, MD
A Randomized Discontinuation Study of XL184 in Subjects with Advanced Solid Tumors
HIC# 0903004832
Principal Investigator: Warren Shlomchik, MD
A Multicenter Phase II Study of Selective Depletion of CD45RA+ T cells From Allogeneic Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Grafts for the Prevention of GVHD
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Recent Publications
Phase 1 Study of Aflibercept Administered Subcutaneously to Patients with Advanced Solid Tumors.
Tew WP, Gordon M, Murren J, Dupont J, Pezzulli S, Aghajanian C, Sabbatini P, Mendelson D, Schwartz L, Gettinger S, Psyrri A, Cedarbaum JM, Spriggs DR.
Clin Cancer Res. 2009 Dec 22.
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Using microRNAs to understand cancer biology.
Weidhaas J.
Lancet Oncol. 2009 Dec 18.
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Factors predicting morbidity and mortality in emergency colorectal procedures in elderly patients.
McGillicuddy EA, Schuster KM, Davis KA, Longo WE.
Arch Surg. 2009 Dec;144(12):1157-62.
Read More >>
International thymic malignancy interest group.
Detterbeck F, Giaccone G, Loehrer P, Suster S, Wright C.
J Thorac Oncol. 2010 Jan;5(1):1-2.
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Quality measures, standards, and accreditation for breast centers in the United States.
Moran MS, Goss D, Haffty BG, Kaufman CS, Winchester DP.
Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2010 Jan 1;76(1):1-4.
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Serum amyloid A: a novel biomarker for endometrial cancer.
Cocco E, Bellone S, El-Sahwi K, Cargnelutti M, Buza N, Tavassoli FA, Schwartz PE, Rutherford TJ, Pecorelli S, Santin AD.
Cancer. 2009 Dec 29.
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Alcohol consumption and non-Hodgkin lymphoma survival.
Han X, Zheng T, Foss FM, Ma S, Holford TR, Boyle P, Leaderer B, Zhao P, Dai M, Zhang Y.
J Cancer Surviv. 2009 Dec 29.
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Potentiation of Temozolomide Cytotoxicity by Inhibition of DNA Polymerase {beta} Is Accentuated by BRCA2 Mutation.
Stachelek GC, Dalal S, Donigan KA, Campisi Hegan D, Sweasy JB, Glazer PM.
Cancer Res. 2009 Dec 22.
Read More >>
Squamoid Eccrine Ductal Carcinoma: A Case Report and Review of the Literature.
Terushkin E, Leffell DJ, Futoryan T, Cowper S, Lazova R.
Am J Dermatopathol. 2009 Dec 14.
Read More >>
Reductive activation of the prodrug 1,2-bis(methylsulfonyl)-1-(2-chloroethyl)-2-[[1-(4-nitrophenyl)ethoxy]carbonyl]hydrazine (KS119) selectively occurs in oxygen-deficient cells and overcomes O(6)-alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase mediated KS119 tumor cell resistance.
Baumann RP, Penketh PG, Ishiguro K, Shyam K, Zhu YL, Sartorelli AC.
Biochem Pharmacol. 2009 Dec 11.
Read More >>
Quantitative expression of VEGF, VEGF-R1, VEGF-R2, and VEGF-R3 in melanoma tissue microarrays.
Mehnert JM, McCarthy MM, Jilaveanu L, Flaherty KT, Aziz S, Camp RL, Rimm DL, Kluger HM.
Hum Pathol. 2009 Dec 11.
Read More >>
Of lungs, lipids, and lollipops.
Mathai SK, Rubinowitz AN, Homer RJ, Detterbeck F, Herzog EL.
Chest. 2009 Nov;136(5):1420-3.
Read More >>
The importance of accurately characterizing lymphoproliferative disease.
Foss FM.
Oncology (Williston Park). 2009 Nov 30;23(13):1168, 1170.
Read More >>
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Inside Yale Cancer Center
One of World's Smallest Microscopes Benefits Patients at Yale
January 2010 Issue of YaleCares
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Yale Cancer Center Grand Rounds
Video presentations from Yale Cancer Center members are now available online
Learn More >>
DirectConnect Archives
Learn More >>
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Events
January 8; 1:00 PM
Molecular Virology Research Program Conference
SHM I-116
Cell Entry and Innate Immune Recognition of Flaviviruses
Yorgo Modis, PhD
January 10; 6:00 PM
Yale Cancer Center Answers
WNPR 90.5
Physical Therapy Support for Survivors
Scott Capozza and Lou Friedman
Learn More >>
January 12; 12:00 PM
Yale Cancer Center Grand Rounds
Brady Auditorium
The Next Generation of Gene Fusion Discovery in Cancer
Arul Chinnalyan, MD, PhD
Learn More >>
January 13; 6:00 PM
Understanding Gynecological Cancers
YNHH East Pavilion Cafeteria
Peter Schwartz, MD
January 19; 5:00 PM
Signal Transduction Research Program Conference
SHM I-116
Alternative Localization and Function of Met (the HGF receptor)
David Rimm, MD, PhD
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Submissions
Please submit your recent publication and grant announcements to:
Renee Gaudette
Director, Public Affairs and Marketing
renee.gaudette@yale.edu
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