Dr. Byers
Director's Message: Oct. 27, 2009
Today I am in Los Angeles providing invited written and spoken testimony to the President’s Cancer Panel, two distinguished scientists (LaSalle Leffall and Margaret Kripke) who directly advise President Obama on matters of cancer policy.
Today’s hearing is in support of a report they are preparing on “America’s demographic and cultural transformation: Implications for the cancer enterprise.” I will be presenting findings and conclusions from a set of Colorado studies that compare breast cancer risk factors and outcomes between Hispanic and non-Hispanic white women. My conclusion is that the pattern of differences in underlying risk, risk factors, tumor phenotypes, and outcomes points to a combination of biological factors related to estrogen metabolism and sociological factors related to health care access that together account for the many differences in breast cancer among Latinas.
AACI-CCAF meeting. Last week Michaela Montour and I attended the annual combined meeting of the American Association of Cancer Institutes and the Cancer Centers Administrators Forum. This two-day meeting in Washington, DC, drew attendance by cancer center directors and administrators for updates on NCI programs and plans and sharing of current activities by cancer centers across the country.
The focus this year was on economic challenges faced by cancer centers, and on the resulting needs to improve efficiencies in resource allocation. The discussion on relationships between cancer centers and the CTSA awards was especially timely. It seems that there is a wide variation in integration between NCI -supported shared resources and those supported by the broader NIH CTSA grants. I left the discussion feeling strongly that the approach we are taking here in Colorado is the right approach, to look for ways we can optimize our resources by merging shared services whenever possible.
Dr. Andrew Thorburn being interviewed at the
2008 Stand Up to Cancer Event.
Stand Up to Cancer effort wins top award. Last September, this cancer center rallied around the national Stand Up to Cancer event in a big way. It was an all-hands-on-deck effort led by our PR office with coordinating help from the UC Denver media relations team, a committee of members and leaders and, in the end, dozens of our members either being interviewed by the media, taking calls at call centers or setting up booths at the Sept. 5, 2008 “viewing party” for the national fundraising event.
Last week, our Stand Up to Cancer effort was recognized as the best community relations effort by a healthcare organization by the Colorado Healthcare Communicators group, winning a gold leaf award. One judge wrote, “Probably more people in Denver were educated about cancer research, prevention and the need for support than ever before. I wish I could quantify how many lives were saved as a result of this project.”
Gary Burge, center, with daughter Kate Burge
Clair and 3rd year UCD SOM students at the 2009
Chris Burge Classic.
Tourney raises $20,000 for lung cancer. The 3rd Chris Burge tennis tournament took place in Fort Collins a couple of weeks ago. The event is in memory of UCCC advisory board member Gary Burge’s wife Chris, a nonsmoker who died from lung cancer in 2007. Chris was an avid tennis player, and the event is part tribute, part tournament, part auction. This year, it raised about $20,000 for lung cancer research at UCCC, bringing total fundraising to over $40,000.
Free Microplate Reader and Kodak Imager. As we prepare to move our colleagues from the old AMC Cancer Research Center location at 1600 Pierce Street, we've found two pieces of equipment that need new homes. The first is a microplate reader. The second is a Kodak imager. Both are in working condition, although no one knows how old they are. If your lab could use the equipment, please contact Michaela Montour. Your only cost is the time it takes to drive to Lakewood to pick them up.
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Headlines
Cancer Letter, 10/23/09
- Duke Halts Third Trial; Coauthor Disputes Claim That Data Validation Was Blinded.
- Moffitt Ends Pilot Study Based On Duke Test, Says Action Unrelated.
- House DoD Report Provides $15 Million For Lung Cancer Screening.
- FDA Approves Votrient For Renal Cell Carcinoma.
- NCI Picks 11 Centers For Chemical Biology Consortium.
- IOM Report Says Smoking Bans Cut Heart Attack Risk.
Analysis questions breast and prostate cancer screening
MedPage Today, 10/21/09
Two decades after the explosion in cancer screening fueled by reimbursement for mammography and prostate specific antigen (PSA) testing, a new analysis suggests that it is time to rethink the push for early detection of these two cancers. Anthony Elias, MD, University of Colorado Hosptial/School of Medicine is quoted.
More next week.
Tim Byers, MD, MPH
Interim Director, University of Colorado Cancer Center
Professor and Associate Dean, Colorado School of Public Health
Grohne Chair in Cancer Prevention and Control