Block Lectureship Award Celebrates 20th Anniversary
In October, the OSUCCC – James celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Herbert and Maxine Block Memorial Lectureship Award for Achievement in Cancer.
The Block family of Columbus established the award to honor the memory of their parents, Maxine and Herbert J. Block, who both died of cancer. It is given annually to a renowned cancer researcher who is invited to the OSUCCC – James to deliver the annual Block Lecture and to accept a monetary prize of $25,000.
“Twenty years ago the Block family met with the director of The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center to set up a fund designed to drive more advances in cancer through greater engagement and cross-industry collaborations,” says Michael A. Caligiuri, MD, director of the OSUCCC and CEO of the James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute. “Today, it is one of the largest and most esteemed prizes awarded by an academic institution in the field of cancer.”
The Block Memorial Lectureship is funded by proceeds of the annual Herbert J. Block Memorial Tournament, a golf outing established in 1982 by the Block family to honor their father.
$19 Million Raised by Pelotonia 13 – $61 Million Five-Year Total
This year’s Pelotonia bicycling tour raised a record $19 million for cancer research at the OSUCCC – James, pushing the five-year total of the annual grassroots event to more than $61 million.
“Every year, I am humbled by the generosity and tenacious commitment of the thousands of Pelotonia riders and volunteers working to help us reach our goal of creating a cancer-free word,” says Michael A. Caligiuri, MD, director of The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center and CEO of the James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute.
“Pelotonia support has been integral to our ability to attract and retain brilliant clinician-scientists; support student and fellowship training; purchase critical research equipment; and fund the new big ideas that will help us better understand each person’s unique cancer.”
Pelotonia 13, held Aug. 9-11, attracted a record 6,723 riders from 41 states and nine countries, along with 3,451 virtual riders and more than 2,300 volunteers. Riders for the tour chose from assorted routes between central Ohio and Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio.
Team Buckeye, Ohio State’s official superpeloton, had a record 1,178 Ohio State riders in 90 pelotons, 614 virtual riders and 122 volunteers. Its fundraising total stands at nearly $2.3 million.
Thanks to generous sponsors – including Huntington Bank, Limitedbrands Foundation, Peggy and Richard Santulli, American Electric Power Foundation, Nationwide Insurance, Cardinal Health, Harold C. Schott Foundation, Kenyon College and Scotts Miracle-Gro – 100 percent of every dollar raised by Pelotonia supports cancer research at the OSUCCC – James.
Pelotonia 14 is scheduled for Aug. 8-10. Registration opens Jan. 7, 2014. For more information, visit http://pelotonia.org.
US News & World Report Ranks OSUCCC – James 20th in the Nation
U.S.News and World Report has ranked the OSUCCC – James among the top 20 on the magazine’s annual list of “America’s Best Hospitals” for cancer care.
This year, U.S.News placed the hospital at No. 20, a significant jump from last year’s impressive ranking of 25th. This is the 15th consecutive year that the OSUCCC – James has earned a place on the magazine’s prestigious list of the nation’s top 50 hospitals for cancer care. The James first made the list in 1999, less than a decade after it opened in July 1990.
The U.S.News 2013 rankings, featured online at www.usnews.com/besthospitals, are based on clinical outcomes, patient safety, national reputation and more. Rankings are based on data collected annually from thousands of hospitals by U.S.News. The cancer program is among 10 medical specialties at Ohio State’s Wexner Medical Center that U.S.News ranked among America’s best in 2013.