New Ohio State Center Provides Immediate Access to Cancer Diagnostic Services
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need to reduce barriers to safe and timely cancer diagnoses, allowing patients to begin treatment as quickly as possible, no matter the circumstances.
To meet this goal, cancer experts at the OSUCCC – James launched The James Cancer Diagnostic Center, where doctors and nurse practitioners will meet with patients — virtually or in-person — and manage testing in order to diagnose a patient’s specific type of cancer, leading to expedited care with expert oncologists.
“Having timely access to providers is a very real concern. We want to ensure that anyone with a suspected cancer can get a timely, accurate diagnosis so potentially life-saving care is not delayed unnecessarily,” says David E. Cohn, MD, MBA, chief medical officer at the OSUCCC – James.
Patients may self-refer to the center or be referred by a physician, and visits can be virtual or in-person, depending on the patient’s preference.
To connect with the Cancer Diagnostic Center, call The James Line at 614-293-5066 or visit cancer.osu.edu/diagnosticcenter.
Two Clinical Trials Use Low-Dose Radiation to Treat COVID-19 Infections
Previous studies have shown that low-dose, whole-lung radiation in the form of X-rays can effectively treat severe pneumonia with minimal side effects. Two clinical trials are applying a modern version of this concept to test patients who have acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) as a result of COVID-19 infection.
In these separate phase II trials, patients will undergo a single treatment of whole-lung radiation to target and reduce pulmonary inflammation associated with COVID-19 infection. The studies are led by Arnab Chakravarti, MD, chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology at Ohio State and member of the Translational Therapeutics Program at the OSUCCC – James.
National Cancer Institute Rates Ohio State Cancer Program as Exceptional, Renews Comprehensive Cancer Center Status
For the third consecutive time, the OSUCCC – James has been rated as exceptional by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) — the highest rating provided.
The OSUCCC – James has retained its NCI designation as a Comprehensive Cancer Center — a designation it has maintained since 1976 through a competitive peer-review process that includes both written and on-site evaluation of the research program and infrastructure.
The re-designation will extend for five years and will provide the cancer program with an estimated $33 million Cancer Center Support Grant (CCSG) from the NCI. As the OSUCCC – James’ major extramural peer-reviewed funding source, the CCSG supports research programs, community outreach and engagement, education and training, clinical trial infrastructure, center senior leadership and administration, shared resource facilities and program development.