Caligiuri Elected to Top AACR Leadership Position
Michael A. Caligiuri, MD, director of The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center and CEO of the James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute, was elected as presidentelect of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) for 2016-17. Founded in 1907, the AACR is the world’s first and largest professional organization dedicated to advancing cancer research and to preventing and curing cancer. Caligiuri assumed his post as president-elect at the 2016 AACR Annual Meeting held April 16-20 in New Orleans. He will assume the presidency in April 2017. Read More
Byrd Wins Major National Award for Clinical Cancer Research
John C. Byrd, MD, professor and director of the Division of Hematology at Ohio State and co-leader of the Leukemia Research Program at the OSUCCC – James, received the 21st Annual Joseph H. Burchenal Memorial Award for Outstanding Achievement in Clinical Cancer Research during a ceremony at the American Association of Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting in New Orleans. Byrd, who holds the D. Warren Brown Designated Chair in Leukemia Research, also was named a 2016 Distinguished University Professor, the highest honor that Ohio State bestows on faculty members. In addition, Byrd was elected to a four-year term as a councilor for the American Society of Hematology (ASH), the world’s largest professional society concerned with the causes and treatment of blood disorders. He is one of four people elected to the ASH Executive Committee for terms that began after the 2016 Annual Meeting in San Diego.
Gillison Named to National Academy of Medicine
Maura Gillison, MD, PhD, professor in the Division of Medical Oncology at Ohio State and member of the Cancer Control Program at the OSUCCC – James, was elected as a member of the prestigious National Academy of Medicine (NAM) for her distinguished contributions to the fields of cancer biology, tumor virology and epidemiology. Gillison is among 70 newly elected regular members and nine newly elected international members announced by the NAM during its recent annual meeting. Election to the NAM, considered one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine, recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievement and commitment to service. Gillison, who also holds the Jeg Coughlin Chair in Cancer Research, is a head and neck medical oncologist and molecular epidemiologist whose lab team focuses on the role of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection in head and neck malignancies. Read More
Bloomfield Elected as Fellow in Prestigious AACR Academy
Clara D. Bloomfield, MD, a Distinguished University Professor at Ohio State who also serves as cancer scholar and senior adviser to the OSUCCC – James, was elected as a fellow in the prestigious American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Academy. The 2016 class of 11 fellows was inducted on the eve of the AACR Annual Meeting in New Orleans. Bloomfield, who holds the William Greenfield Pace III Endowed Chair in Cancer Research at Ohio State, was elected for her research devoted to defining chromosomal abnormalities that contribute to hematologic malignancies. The AACR Academy was created in 2013 to recognize scientists whose major scholarly contributions have propelled significant innovation and progress against cancer. Read More
In addition, Bloomfield, Carlo Croce, MD, and John C. Byrd, MD, were included on the 2016 list of Highly Cited Researchers announced in November by Clarivate Analytics, formerly the Intellectual Property & Science business of Thomson Reuters. The list is a citation analysis identifying scientists whose research has had significant global impact within their fields of study. Bloomfield, Croce and Byrd were in the Clinical Medicine category and were among 10 researchers from Ohio State on the list, which contained more than 3,000 researchers representing 21 fields of the sciences and social sciences. They were selected based on the number of highly cited papers they produced from January 2004 to December 2014. Croce is professor and chair of the Department of Cancer Biology and Genetics at Ohio State, where he also is director of human cancer genetics. Byrd is a Distinguished University Professor and director of the Division of Hematology at Ohio State, where he also co-leads the Leukemia Research Program.
Drs. Caligiuri, Retchin and Allen Honored as Outstanding Leaders
Becker’s Hospital Review, a monthly publication offering up-todate business and legal news and analysis relating to hospitals and health systems, featured five Ohioans—including three associated with Ohio State — on its 2016 list of 110 physician leaders to know. The trade publication’s list, which featured hospital and health system presidents and CEOs who also hold medical degrees, included OSUCCC Director and James CEO Michael A. Caligiuri, MD; Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center CEO Sheldon Retchin, MD, MSPH; and Nationwide Children’s Hospital CEO Steven Allen, MD. The list highlighted those who have “demonstrated outstanding leadership and clinical expertise throughout their careers, leading initiatives to improve their organizations and the health care of the communities they serve.”
Fowler Completing 1-Year Term as SGO President
Jeffrey Fowler, MD, professor and vice chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Ohio State, where he also holds the John G. Boutselis Chair in Gynecology, began a one-year term as the 48th president of the Society of Gynecologic Oncology (SGO) in March 2016 at the conclusion of the SGO’s Annual Meeting on Women’s Cancer, which was held in San Diego. Fowler, a member of the Cancer Control Program at the OSUCCC – James, has made gynecologic oncology wellness a priority for his term as president. SGO’s Gynecologic Oncology Wellness Task Force was formed in response to a membership survey on stress/burnout that Fowler conducted and presented at the 2014 SGO annual meeting. The task force is developing resources to be made available to SGO members.
Jackson, Paskett Represent Women’s Health Initiative in Accepting Award
Rebecca Jackson, MD, director of the Ohio State Center for Clinical and Translational Science (CCTS) and a member of the Cancer Control Program at the OSUCCC – James, and Electra Paskett, PhD, MSPH, associate director for population sciences and leader of the Cancer Control Program at the OSUCCC – James, were selected to represent the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) in receiving the 10th Annual Team Science Award from the American Association for Cancer Research. The national WHI team received this award for its collective efforts that have broadened the understanding of the effects of hormone therapy and nutrition on cancer. Jackson, who also is associate dean for clinical research in the Ohio State College of Medicine, is the Ohio State site/regional center principal investigator and chair of the WHI Steering Committee. Paskett, who also directs the Division of Cancer Prevention and Control at Ohio State, is a site co-investigator for the WHI and an investigator for the WHI Cancer Survivor Study funded by the National Cancer Institute.
Lu Wins ASTRO Senior Investigator Award
The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) awarded Lanchun Lu, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology at Ohio State, the 2016 ASTRO Basic/ Translational Senior Investigator Award for his innovative work on Endoscopic 3-D OCT-Guided Brachytherapy for Early Stage Pancreatic Cancers. Arnab Chakravarti, MD, professor and chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology, says Lu’s approach to treating pancreatic cancer “was judged to be one of the most innovative, impactful developments in radiation oncology internationally and was designated as a featured presentation at the 2016 ASTRO Annual Meeting in Boston.”
Moffatt-Bruce Joins Prestigious National Board
Susan Moffatt-Bruce, MD, PhD, MBA, chief quality and patient safety officer at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, was named to a one-year term as chair-elect and secretary on the board of directors for Essential Hospitals Institute, the research and quality arm of America’s Essential Hospitals. MoffattBruce is a professor in the Division of Thoracic Surgery at Ohio State with specialty interests in end-stage lung disease, transplant outcomes and thoracic oncology. As a national leader in quality and safety, she joins other physician leaders from prominent academic medical centers and Safety Net hospitals from across the nation on the Essential Hospitals Institute board. Read More
Paskett Appointed to National Cancer Advisory Board
President Barack Obama in June 2016 announced a number of appointments to key posts in his administration, including Electra Paskett, PhD, MSPH, to the National Cancer Advisory Board. Paskett holds the Marion N. Rowley Chair in Cancer Research at Ohio State, where she also is a professor of both Epidemiology and Public Health, and directs the Division of Cancer Prevention and Control in the College of Medicine’s Department of Internal Medicine. In addition, she is associate director for population sciences and leader of the Cancer Control Program at the OSUCCC – James.
Shields Receives Cullen Award for Tobacco Research Excellence
Peter Shields, MD, deputy director of the OSUCCC and a professor in the Division of Medical Oncology at Ohio State, received the Joseph W. Cullen Award for excellence in tobacco research at the 40th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Preventive Oncology (ASPO) held in Columbus, Ohio. The award recognizes distinguished achievement in continued national tobacco-control efforts through research, the development of prevention and cessation programs with wide-ranging public health impact, and public policy and advocacy initiatives. As award recipient, Shields presented “Tobacco Research and Regulation: Translational Science Cannot Be More Clear” at the ASPO annual meeting.
Chakravarti Garners Lifetime Achievement Award From SAASCR
Arnab Chakravarti, MD, professor and chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology at Ohio State and a member of the Translational Therapeutics Program at the OSUCCC – James, received the 2016 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society of Asian-American Scientists in Cancer Research (SAASCR) for his sentinel contributions in translational cancer research and in the brain tumor field. Chakravarti, who also holds the Max Morehouse Chair in Cancer Research, received his award at an April 2016 ceremony coinciding with the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) annual meeting in New Orleans.
Martin Appointed Physician Chair of ASTRO Accreditation Committee
Douglas Martin, MD, associate professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology at Ohio State, was appointed as physician chair of the American Society for Radiation Oncology’s (ASTRO) APEX Accreditation Committee. “This position gives Doug a special (role) in oversight of clinical radiation oncology programs in the United States and reflects the immense respect for his leadership, clinical prowess and judgment by his peers nationally,” says Arnab Chakravarti, MD, professor and chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology.
Lustberg Named Vice Chair of Multinational Study Group
Maryam Lustberg, MD, MPH, assistant professor in the Division of Medical Oncology at Ohio State and member of the Cancer Control Program at the OSUCCC – James, has been appointed vice chair of the Neurological Complications Study Group within the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer (MASCC). According to its website, the MASCC is a multidisciplinary organization dedicated to research and education in all aspects of supportive care for people with cancer, regardless of the stage of their disease. Founded in 1990, the MASCC includes members in more than 60 countries and on five continents.
James Patient Participation Tops 23,000 in Total Cancer Care® Protocol
More than 23,000 patients at the OSUCCC – James are voluntarily participating in the Total Cancer Care® (TCC) protocol for sharing clinical data that helps move cancer research forward and personalizes cancer care. The TCC protocol helps clinicians understand the differences between cancer patients and find ways to individualize prevention, detection and treatment. The TCC protocol has been adopted by all 15 member institutions across the nation that constitute the Oncology Research Information Exchange Network (ORIEN), a research collaboration that was co-founded and is co-anchored by the OSUCCC – James and Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Fla.
ORIEN members implement a common protocol (TCC) and share de-identified clinical data from consenting patients to support research and help match patients to clinical trials. Through ORIEN, thousands of TCC-consented patients across the United States have agreed to donate their clinical data for research to help scientists understand cancer at the molecular level, making ORIEN the world’s largest precision medicine collaboration to address cancer. Some 96 percent of patients at the OSUCCC – James who have been approached about joining the TCC protocol have agreed to participate.
OSUCCC – James Joins National ‘Call to Action’ for HPV Vaccination to Prevent Cancer
The OSUCCC – James joined other National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated cancer centers in issuing a “call to action” for increasing vaccination against human papillomavirus (HPV) to help prevent cancer. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 79 million people in the United States are infected with HP V, some 14 million new infections occur each year, and about 27,000 men and women in this country are diagnosed annually with an HPV-related cancer, including cervical, anal, oropharyngeal (middle throat) and other cancers. “Even though many HPV-related cancers are preventable with a safe and effective vaccine, HPV vaccination rates across the United States remain low ,” the statement contends. Following CDC recommendations, the cancer centers “encourage all parents and guardians to have their sons and daughters complete the 3-dose HPV vaccine series before the 13th birthday, and complete the series as soon as possible in children aged 13-17.” They also encourage young men up to age 21 and young women up to age 26 who were not vaccinated as preteens or teens to complete the 3-dose series. Read the full statement. A revision to the CDC recommendations was expected in early 2017.
Ohio State Hosts HPV Summit on Increasing HPV Vaccination
Nearly 150 cancer control/prevention researchers and public health leaders from the National Cancer Institute (NCI), Centers for Disease Control, American Cancer Society and leading NCI-designated comprehensive cancer centers gathered in Columbus, Ohio, from June 30-July 1 to share best practices about what does and doesn’t work in increasing human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination rates. The HPV Summit was hosted by the OSUCCC – James. Douglas Lowy, MD, acting director of the National Cancer Institute (NCI), served as keynote speaker at the summit and talked about the potential place for HPV vaccine research in the national Cancer Moonshot initiative. He also updated research that is under way to develop the next version of the HPV vaccine. Read More
4th International Rb Meeting Hosted by Ohio State
Scientists from around the world presented at the 4th International Rb Meeting on Sept. 25-28 at the Hilton Columbus Downtown. Rb was the first tumor-suppressor gene cloned, more than 25 years ago. This seminal discovery led to an intense research effort culminating in the elucidation of the Rb pathway and fundamental mechanisms governing the G1/S transition of the cell cycle. A number of scientists in the large Rb field thought a few years ago that a major hurdle was the lack of opportunities for researchers to meet, present their data and exchange ideas. The International Rb Meeting enables them to do that.
Ohio State Set to Launch First-of-its-Kind Digital Pathology Platform
The OSUCCC – James has selected cancer diagnostics and digital pathology workflow solution provider Inspirata Inc. to provide a comprehensive long-term digital pathology workflow solution. “The solution that Inspirata is implementing at the OSUCCC – James will enable them to incrementally transform their cancer detection and diagnostic processes from being anchored in the analog world to being opened to the broad spectrum of advantages afforded by the digital world,” says Inspirata Chairman and CEO Satish Sanan. Jeff Walker, MBA, senior executive director of the OSUCCC – James, says the cancer program is “excited to partner with Inspirata to implement a digital pathology workflow that aligns with our strategic goals of advancing cancer research and care.”
Drug Development Institute Works With Startup Company to Develop Epigenetic Inhibitors
The Ohio State University has announced an exclusive license agreement between the Ohio State Innovation Foundation (OSIF) and a startup therapeutics company to develop new drugs that inhibit an enzyme called PRMT5 as potential treatments for cancer and other unmet medical needs. In collaboration with The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center’s Drug Development Institute (DDI), a team of scientists will work to advance this PRMT5 therapeutic program toward preclinical drug development. Robert Baiocchi, MD, PhD, a member of the Leukemia Research Program at the OSUCCC – James, serves as lead investigator of the PRMT5 research team. The DDI (cancer.osu.edu/ddi) identifies promising anticancer agents discovered at Ohio State and advances them through the preclinical development process with a goal of partnering with the pharmaceutical industry, all to accelerate getting new therapies to cancer patients. Read More
The James Earns Press Ganey Excellence Award for Patient Experience
The James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute earned a 2016 Press Ganey Guardian of Excellence Award for Patient Experience in Inpatient Care and HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems). Press Ganey, the nationally recognized leader in measuring patient experience, presents the Guardian of Excellence Award for Patient Experience only to organizations that have achieved the 95th percentile or higher overall rating in each reporting period during a given year, in this case from May 2015 through April 2016. HCAHPS measures the effectiveness of physician and nursing communication with patients, responsiveness to patient needs, pain management, communication regarding medications, and providing a quiet and clean environment.
James Oncology and Critical Care Advanced Practice Fellowship Earns ANCC ‘Accreditation With Distinction’
After conducting an extensive evaluation, the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s (ANCC) Commission on Accreditation has awarded “Accreditation with Distinction” status to The James Oncology and Critical Care Advanced Practice Fellowship. Only organizations that demonstrate no deficiencies requiring a progress report achieve Accreditation with Distinction status, according to the ANCC, which also reports that, as of September 2012, less than 10 percent of all ANCC-accredited organizations achieve this honor.
The James Named Designated Centre of Integrated Oncology and Palliative Care
The James is among 14 institutions around the world that were named as Designated Centres of Integrated Oncology and Palliative Care by the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) at the ESMO 2016 Congress in Copenhagen, Denmark. The Designated Centre distinction is now held by 200 institutions in 42 countries. The ESMO Designated Centres Program is the premier initiative worldwide for championing integrated programs in oncology and palliative care to ease the physical and mental suffering of cancer patients during treatment and at the end of life. Since 2003 the distinction, which is valid for three years, has recognized cancer centers that achieve a high standard of integration of medical oncology and palliative care.