Welcome
It’s easy to feel helpless when faced with seemingly insurmountable obstacles, but we don’t have that problem within Ohio State’s cancer program.
Continuing growth and advancement—thanks in large part to the continuous support we receive from a caring community—have bolstered our capacity for changing the landscape of cancer care and research in Ohio and beyond.
And that’s a good thing, because our cancer program faces the challenge of being centered in a state whose population of 11.6 million people is on average poorer, less educated, and less racially and ethnically diverse than the rest of the United States. Statistics show that Ohioans, especially in the Appalachian region, also smoke more, have more incidences of human papillomavirus (HPV) and experience higher rates of lung, breast, prostate and colorectal cancer than much of the rest of the nation. Our responsibility is to change that landscape.
With the help of substantial outside funding resources and incredible philanthropic support from the community, we are doing just that through a formula for success that involves targeted investment in transdisciplinary research, scientific collaboration, committed researchers and medical professionals, and multidisciplinary patient care.
This formula is reflected in stories within this issue that touch on: the importance of a multimillion dollar support grant that we will once again receive from the National Cancer Institute through our redesignation as a comprehensive cancer center; the recent presentation of a check for $23,659,675 from Pelotonia, our annual grassroots bicycle tour that raises money for cancer research at Ohio State; other private research gifts we have received; and the invaluable contributions of our venerable volunteers.
Thanks again for the important role that you play in our formula for success as we continue our journey together toward a cancer-free world.
Michael A. Caligiuri, MD
Director, The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center
CEO, James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute