News

Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) has established The Society of Huntsman Translational Scholars, an initiative that recognizes excellence in the discipline of translational science. Translational researchers extend basic discoveries made in the laboratory and apply them to solve clinical problems and benefit patients through new diagnostic and therapeutic approaches.

Compared to other cancers, pancreatic cancer is relatively rare. But it is the third leading cause of cancer death in the United States. Only about 8.5% of patients with pancreatic cancer are alive five years after their diagnosis. This one of the lowest survival rates for any kind of cancer. What makes pancreatic cancer so deadly?

The Center of Excellence in Hematologic Malignancies and Hematology at Huntsman Cancer Institute is a group of more than three dozen doctors and scientists dedicated to hematologic cancers such as leukemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma. Integration and collaboration across disciplines will improve clinical care and advance research in these complicated diseases.

Clinical trials test the safety and effectiveness of new cancer drugs and treatments. They help us find better ways to prevent, diagnose, or treat cancer. At any given time, Huntsman Cancer Institute has an average of 200 clinical trials open to cancer patients.

HCI patient Clark Stringham felt like he was running out of time with his diagnosis of advanced prostate cancer. He credits a clinical trial and his oncologist, Neeraj Agarwal, MD, with saving his life.

In less than three years, HCI researchers have taken an idea from concept to lab to clinical evaluation. Conan Kinsey, MD, PhD, and Martin McMahon, PhD, combined two drugs that had not been used in combination before to treat pancreatic tumors. The results were promising and they were able to move from the lab to clinical trial quickly. A clinical trial to test the safety and effect of this drug combination in pancreatic cancer is now underway at HCI and planned at other sites around the United States.

The Precision Exercise Prescription study is a unique collaboration between medical doctors, researchers, physical therapists, and patients. The study looks at how an exercise program tailored for each patient can improve long-term outcomes after lung cancer surgery.

The American Society of Clinical Oncology recently published Clinical Cancer Advances, their 2019 annual report on the progress against cancer. The report examines the most transformative research of the past year and looks ahead to future research priorities. Two physician-scientists from Huntsman Cancer Institute contributed to the report.