October 1, 2010

Flavell and Dhodapkar Awarded Transformative Research Project Grant

Congratulations to Richard Flavell, Chairman of the Department of Immunobiology, and Madhav Dhodapkar, Professor of Hematology and Immunobiology, both members of the Yale Cancer Center Immunology and Immunotherapy Program, for their funded T-R01 grant from the NIH.

Pilot Grant Funding Available

Yale Cancer Center is pleased to announce the 2010 Pilot Grants competitions. These grants will support innovative basic, translational, clinical, computational, and prevention/control cancer research. The primary review criteria will be scientific excellence, cancer relevance, and likelihood of the project evolving into federally funded cancer research.

Two types of grants will be awarded for one year, commencing on December 1, 2010:

YCC Pilot Grants of up to $50,000 for a specific project headed by a full member of the Cancer Center. Up to ten Pilot Grants will support new research projects and are not intended to supplement on-going studies or provide bridge funding. Priority will be given to grants involving collaborations between two or more Cancer Center members.

YCC TARE Awards of up to $100,000 for groups of investigators headed by a full member of the Cancer Center, with the express purpose of developing a multi-investigator grant submission to the National Cancer Institute, such as a Program Project Grant, SPORE, or Center grant.

Yale Cancer Center Shared Resources

I would like to thank the Yale Cancer Center members who took the time to complete the Shared Resource survey sent out in early September.  I am grateful, also, to the Shared Resources themselves, for their overall excellence in meeting membership needs in a challenging fiscal environment. The survey respondents praised the resources, but we also received helpful information on areas for improvement. Comments will be referred back to the individual resources. Together with the Shared Resources Oversight Committee, we are working on an action plan to assist in ameliorating deficiencies highlighted by the survey.

The Shared Resources Oversight Committee and Shared Resources Utilization Committee, under the leadership of David F. Stern, Associate Director for Shared Resources, work to ensure that each of the core resources is able to meet the needs of our membership.  Please contact David Stern

if you have any concerns or ideas for improvement.

Yale Cancer Center Research Prize and Award for Clinical Excellence

Yale Cancer Center is pleased to announce two annual, competitive awards in the areas of excellence in research and clinical care.

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Pink Picnic Celebrates Breast Cancer Survivors

With October marking National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, BJ's Wholesale Club in Wallingford and Yale Cancer Center are asking the community to "think pink" at its "Pink Picnic" on Wednesday, October 6^th.  Dr. Anees Chagpar will represent Yale Cancer Center at the event, which will be emceed by Jocelyn Maminta of WTNH News Channel 8.  The "Pink Picnic" is free and open to the public. All attendees will receive lunch and a gift bag containing specially marked "Pink Ribbon" products, coupons, and information on BJ's Charitable Foundation's support of breast cancer research and treatment.

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United Way
Yale University has launched our annual United Way campaign. Please consider making a gift to support the Greater New Haven community. This is one way that Yale Cancer Center can give back to the community that supports us.

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human pink ribbon

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YCC Members Participate in ASCO Breast Meeting

The annual ASCO Breast meeting is scheduled for this weekend in Washington, DC.

• Triple negative status does not affect surgical decision-making .  Crutcher CL, Cornwell LB, Chagpar AB.
• Factors affecting margin index in breast cancer patients .  Cornwell LB, Crutcher CL, Chagpar AB.
• Effect of surgical treatment of primary tumor on outcome in stage IV breast cancer .  Bower MR, Brown R, Scoggins C, McMasters KM, Chagpar AB.
• Is age an independent predictor of survival and time to recurrence in breast cancer patients?   Schiffman SC, McMasters KM, Chagpar AB.
• Breast Cancers in U.S. Residing Indian-Pakistani versus Non-Hispanic White Women: Comparative Analysis of Clinical-Pathologic Features, Treatment and Survival.   Ma S, Moran MS.

Anees Chagpar to Present at American College of Surgeons Meeting

Dr. Anees Chagpar will present an Introduction to Clinical Trials at the 21^st Annual Fundamentals of Surgical Research Course sponsored by the American College of Surgeons today in Washington, DC.

Yale Study Finds Hospice Saves Money, Improves Care for Cancer Patients

The cost of care for cancer patients who stopped hospice care was nearly five times higher than that for patients who remained with it, according to a study led by Elizabeth Bradley, PhD, Professor of Epidemiology and Public Health and a member of the Yale Cancer Center Prevention and Control Research Program. Patients who stop hospice are also far more likely to end up needing emergency department care, ICU care and to be hospitalized. The study is published in the October 1 issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Yale Researchers Find Protein is a Key Tool in Chromosomal Repair Kit

A Yale University research team, led by Patrick Sung, PhD, Chair of the Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry and member of the Yale Cancer Center Radiobiology and Radiotherapy Research Program, has

discovered how one protein plays a key role in repairing damage to chromosomes that can cause different types of cancer, they report in the September 26 online edition of Nature Structural & Molecular Biology.

Melanoma Research Alliance (MRA) Individual Research Award

The MRA is soliciting proposals that address the gap in translational science, i.e., turning scientific discoveries into tools and/or treatments for high-risk individuals or melanoma patients.

MRA welcomes proposals in the following areas:

• Prevention:Areas of interest include environmental, epidemiological and biological factors in melanoma carcinogenesis.
• Diagnosis and Staging:Emphasis includes identification of serological tumor markers, association of molecular tumor biomarkers with prognosis, and development of novel clinical methods for melanoma detection and imaging.
• Treatment:Projects emphasizing the translation of scientific findings to the treatment of patients with melanoma are solicited. Examples include but are not limited to studies of melanoma immunotherapy, therapeutic applications based on molecular mechanisms involved in melanoma formation and/or progression, and development of novel biomarkers of response to therapy.

Application Deadline:

ASCO's Leadership Development Program

If you have completed your final subspecialty training between 2001 and 2006 and are interested in becoming a future leader in both ASCO and the practice of oncology, ASCO's Leadership Development Program is for you. Participants in this year-long program will learn valuable leadership skills and gain exposure to the roles and mission of ASCO and the Society's powerful place in developing the future of cancer care. This program requires a time commitment for travel and training.

Application Deadline:

Department of Defense Lung Cancer Early Detection Clinical Consortium Award

The award is designed to bring together populations of military beneficiaries at high risk for developing lung cancer and lung cancer patients from the specified military treatment facilities with the patient populations and research expertise of highly qualified civilian scientists at outstanding organizations.

Letter of Intent due November 19, 2010

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YCAS is providing biostatistical support for clinical research and basic science at Yale Cancer Center.

Clinical Research

The biostatistician covering each clinical area is designated in the table below with his/her contact information. The biostatistician may be contacted for statistical consultation at any time related to his/her designated clinical area.

Biostatistician andClinical Area of Coverage

Haibei Liu, MS:  Breast, Endocrine, and Gastrointestinal Cancers 

Basic Science

The help desk hours for basic science are 10 AM - 12 PM and 1 - 3 PM Monday through Thursday. For assistance please email

with "Cancer Center" in the subject line and a biostatistician will get back with you, or drop in to our offices located at Suite 112, 2 Church Street South.