$10 million award for OHSU from the NCI

[Guest guest]

National Cancer Institute Approves $10 Million Award For Oregon Health &

Science Cancer Institute

PORTLAND, Oregon - A five-year, $10 million award recently approved by the

National Cancer Institute for the Oregon Health & Science University Cancer

Institute will result in broader access for Oregonians to the NCI's vast

national network of cancer expertise. The OHSU Cancer Institute is the first

and only cancer research and care center in Oregon to earn a place in the

prestigious NCI Cancer Centers Program.

" There is no reason for an Oregonian to leave the state to take advantage of

the most current cancer care, " said Grover Bagby, Jr., M.D., director of the

OHSU Cancer Institute. " National and world leaders in cancer care and

research, and the clinical trials they lead, are available right here at the

OHSU Cancer Institute. "

The NCI award is associated with the renewal of the university's membership

in the NCI Cancer Centers Program.

" The National Cancer Institute's cancer center program review process is

rigorous and thorough, " said Kohler, M.D., OHSU president. " Renewal of

this designation cements OHSU's role as a center of excellence for cancer

care and research in Oregon. "

Membership in the NCI Cancer Centers Program means that OHSU patients get

cutting-edge cancer care. It is a national connection through which Oregon

patients benefit from the work of cancer experts throughout the country.

Also, clinical trials conducted by the OHSU Cancer Institute bring

life-saving techniques, drugs and treatments to Oregon patients. The

region's cancer patients have access to more than 200 open clinical trials

through the OHSU Cancer Institute.

The 60 institutions in NCI's Cancer Centers Program essentially are NCI's

research arm. OHSU and the other member institutions investigate the

potential causes of cancer and develop therapies aimed at ending cancer.

" Earning a place in the NCI cancer center program enhances our ability to

move the newest cancer science into patient care. No one else in the state

does that, " said Craig Nichols, M.D., associate director for clinical

research in the OHSU Cancer Institute; and professor of medicine and head of

the Division of Hematology and Medical Oncology in the OHSU School of

Medicine.

Cancer is a complex array of different diseases, so the multidisciplinary

attention and treatment each OHSU patient receives is one unique feature of

care at the OHSU Cancer Institute. Its members are researchers and

physicians who are specialists in fields ranging from specific types of

cancer-such as leukemia, prostate cancer and pediatric cancers-to

epidemiology and bioinformatics.

The multidisciplinary approach also embraces the array of specialists

involved in treating cancer: radiologists, surgeons, anesthesiologists,

pathologists, nurses, nutritionists, statisticians and technicians, among

others. OHSU offers all of their services and expertise under one umbrella.

Bagby championed the creation of the OHSU Cancer Institute in the early

1990s to foster close collaboration between cancer researchers and

physicians in developing therapies. The OHSU Cancer Institute first received

NCI designation in 1997.

" The OHSU Cancer Institute was founded on the principle of developing less

toxic cancer treatments and new strategies for cancer prevention based on

the molecular causes of the disease, " Bagby said. " The Institute assures

that the research evolves rapidly to benefit the patient and people at risk

for cancer. "

Today, about 120 clinical researchers, population scientists and basic

scientists affiliated with the OHSU Cancer Institute are improving cancer

care by translating scientific understanding into better ways to prevent,

diagnose and treat the disease. Each year these researchers and scientists

attract about $50 million in competitive research grants to Oregon.

" If it weren't for the OHSU Cancer Institute, there would be no Gleevec, "

said Nichols, who also is well known for treating six-time Tour de France

winner Lance Armstrong for testicular cancer.

OHSU Cancer Institute researchers developed Gleevec, one of the most

celebrated advances in cancer medicine in a generation. In developing the

pill for chronic myelogenous leukemia, researchers used their knowledge of

the molecular defect at the heart of the disease to develop the first

anti-cancer therapy that targets only abnormal cells while leaving healthy

cells intact. Researchers then applied this model of molecular understanding

to another cancer, gastrointestinal stromal tumors, for which Gleevec also

proved effective.

" Through Gleevec, we have proved to the world that if you understand the

underlying molecular mechanism behind cancer, you can do something about

it, " Bagby said. " Our goal now is to apply this model broadly across all

cancers and focus on the molecular defects common among malignant tumors and

molecular mechanisms that result in high risk for cancer. These molecular

principles will form the basis for new diagnostics, treatments, and

preventions so that our children and grandchildren can live without fear of

cancer. "

To learn more about OHSU, visit their website at <http://www.ohsu.edu/>

http://www.ohsu.edu/

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