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Author: Dr. Louis M. Weiner
I attended the DC Cancer Consortium Meeting at the Cosmos Club last Wednesday night where representatives from Georgetown, GW, Washington Hospital Center, Howard University, and the American Cancer Society met to discuss how to invest in strategies that will reduce cancer incidence, morbidity, and mortality in the District. For me, one of the highlights was seeing Arnie Potosky in action. I had invited him to discuss a proposal he’s putting together to establish a District of Columbia Cancer Outreach, Research, and Evaluation Database. It’s still under active discussion, but we’re hopeful that it or something like it will be adopted by the consortium. Steve Paterno also presented a very interesting proposal for a patient navigation network for the District. What pleases me about these initiatives is that they provide us with collaborative outlets for addressing disparities and health care access and care for our city.
Thursday morning I met with Lucile Adams-Campbell to get her thoughts about how we might coordinate obesity and cancer initiatives. We cam out with some exciting ways of connecting our science with the outreach and population intervention studies. These were echoed in a later meeting I had with Peter Shields.
After my meeting with Lucile about obesity, I then tried to increase the level of obesity at Lombardi by taking the CCSG team to lunch at the French Embassy. It was great to have a formal opportunity to thank them for a wonderful job and their hard work on getting the grant out the door.
I’m looking forward to attending the Gala Benefit Committee Reception tonight at the home of Darby and Monte Gingery, who are good friends of Tanya Potter Adler and Howard Adler who are this year’s Gala co-chairs. I will be joined by several of my Lombardi colleagues to thank the committee for all its hard work and provide continuing inspiration for our old and new friends who actively support the cancer center. By the way, you may want to check out the new website for the Lombardi Gala, which launches on Friday.
On Thursday, the Shared Resource Directors and Managers attended the first organizational meeting as we gear up to get the posters ready for the site visit. I was very gratified to see a member of nearly every Shared Resource in attendance, and I look forward to reviewing the poster drafts in the coming weeks.
I’m also looking forward to visiting Ohio State on Friday to present Grand Rounds there. I’m particularly interested in the opportunity to present some data from lab, which was just submitted yesterday for publication. It’s nice to know that I can continue to stay active in the laboratory and the clinic. It reminds me why I’m here and why it’s important to have cancer centers.
I won’t be here next week. I’m taking a week off and Harriet and I will be in an undisclosed and unfindable location. So don’t expect any blogs next week.
I went to Franklin Square Hospital on Tuesday to meet with John Zapas. He is chief of surgical oncology there and also happens to be head of Georgetown University’s oncology IRB. He is interested in melanoma and is academically-oriented, as are his colleagues at Franklin Square. I came away from those meetings with a request from John to include him and his colleagues as Lombardi members. Since Franklin Square is a MedStar hospital there is a natural affinity for interaction and collaboration in the future.
Speaking of MedStar, I was delighted to congratulate Rich Goldberg on his promotion to interim President of GUH. Also congratulations to Joy Drass in her new role as Executive Vice President for Operations of MedStar South. Her tenure as President here was remarkably successful in that she rescued the hospital from ruin and positioned it for future growth and success.
One of the highlights of my week was going to Politics and Prose Tuesday night to hear PJ O’Rourke speak about his new book, “Driving Like Crazy”. I’ve enjoyed his writing for years and he’s nearly as funny and insightful in person.
Another highlight was the Men’s Event on Monday Night. We had almost 160 people turn out to support our research programs in prostate cancer. I was touched by everyone’s commitment and generosity to our mission. It was especially nice to meet Charlie Neal who is an ESPN sportscaster with the most amazing bass baritone speaking voice I’ve ever heard. It was also great to see long-time Lombardi supporters Paul Schweitzer, Jack Schneider, Harvey Weiss, and many others, including Howard Adler. Howard and his wife Tanya Potter Adler are the chairs for this year’s Gala.
For once I wasn’t the tallest guy in the room because one of the guests was former Congressman Tom McMillen who played basketball at Maryland and then in the NBA for twelve years. This was his first Men’s Event, and like many others, I’m sure he was moved by our mission.
That’s all for now.
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Opportunities abound at ASCO
I finally felt as if I could take a deep breath. The CCSG was in, I had submitted (or participated in) three RC2 proposals, and I had submitted a non-competing administrative R01 supplement. And then I went to ASCO.
As you know ASCO has become a huge meeting, dwarfed only by the pharma-related meetings that surround it. In fact, many ASCO attendees struggle to even make it to the scientific sessions. According to a cab driver I spoke with, whenever ASCO is held, it is the busiest week of the year in Orlando (I repeat – in Orlando!). However, instead of feeling overwhelmed, I was struck by the amazing opportunities there are to make important contributions to the field of cancer research. So many clinical trials were presented, yet few would qualify as high-quality experiments in the eyes of a rigorous scientist. After all, we humans belong to an outbred species, possess free will, and object to incessant sampling of tumors and normal organs to help our doctors learn about new treatments. This is our field’s great challenge, and Lombardi’s opportunity to make a real difference is embedded in that challenge.
So, what is that opportunity? I believe that some answers will arise from the identification of new targets or pathways and the testing of new drugs and treatment strategies. However, we rarely know how to maximize therapy with existing drugs, even when those drugs target molecular drivers of the malignancies. For example, trastuzumab works as a single agent in only about a third of women with previously untreated HER2/neu overexpressing metastatic breast cancer. I believe that well designed clinical trials that rigorously examine pharmacodynamic endpoints can identify potentially responsive patients, and can yield molecular insights that drive research and improve patient care. There is no reason why the Lombardi scientific and clinical research community can’t assume a leadership role in this dynamic environment. Even though I have seen enough RC1 and RC2 grants to last me for quite some time, I look forward to helping Lombardi to address the “Grand Opportunity” and “Challenge” of revolutionizing clinical trial design, devising and implementing innovative biomarker analyses and integrating the information to drive future discoveries.
For those of you who would like to learn more about targeted therapies, the NCI has produced a web tutorial for health professionals called, “Understanding Targeted Therapies for Cancer.” You can access it on the NCI’s website.
I hope everybody had a nice Memorial Day holiday. In case you were wondering the CCSG did get mailed out on Friday morning and the NCI did confirm receipt. Thanks again to Ellen, Stephanie, and the rest of the team who did such a wonderful job pulling together this truly massive enterprise.
I hope that everybody who is interested in the design of biomarker rich clinical trials was able to attend Thursday’s 3DT meeting chaired by Mike Pishvaian. It was an opportunity to hear about new clinical trial concepts and enrich their scientific content to increase their impact. Mike has done a great job organizing these meetings, which have resulted in the opening of several new clinical trials. Interestingly, our clinical trial accruals have improved over the past 6 months and I am convinced we can continue to make progress in this important aspect of our cancer center’s mission. I know I am doing my part because I have enrolled a few people in clinical trials over the past several weeks.
I was delighted to note the very nice turnout for the Wednesday seminar given by Sian Jones and Devin Dressman. The talks were both exhilarating (So much information!) and sobering (So much information!). Just imagine the impact of incorporating multiple databases and connecting the information to clinically relevant endpoints. It certainly will be fun and challenging to roll out G-DOC.
The completed CCSG renewal application (1243 pages of pure poetry) goes to the printer in less than 2 hours. What else is there to say?
It has been quite an experience and I am delighted to have shared it with so many of you over the past year. Unbelievably I managed to do some work on behalf of the cancer center in the midst of the surprisingly serene final days of sending out the grant.
On Monday morning I welcomed a remarkable group of investigators who attended a childhood cancer workshop host by Subha Madhavan. The workshop aimed to design a data portal to study pediatric malignancies. While I wasn’t able to attend all of it, great ideas were flying around the Warwick Evans conference room while I was there.
On Tuesday I paid a quick visit to the American Legacy Foundation open house to congratulate Dave Abrams on his accomplishments in establishing and staffing the Schroader Institute. I really look forward to seeing the Shroeder Institute and Lombardi work together to study and influence tobacco use.
Now that the core grant is (almost) out the door, I can turn my attention to finishing two RC2 grants, doing a couple of grant reviews for an upcoming P01 study section, and wrapping up the GUMC systems medicine design team deliberations in advance of an upcoming retreat. After wrestling the core grant into submission, everything else seems a bit easier in comparison.
Have a great Memorial Day holiday.
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11 days left
The CCSG submission is due May 25th and will be sent in on Friday morning at 9 am. Needless to say, I have been doing nothing else lately but work on the grant, along with a small army of dedicated faculty and staff. Thanks to everyone who has done such a great job putting together a document that accurately reflects the accomplishments and plans of this terrific cancer center. After we all enjoy our Memorial Day weekend, will then switch gears and plan intensively for the Sept 23rd site visit.
I’d love to chat more, but now I have to get back to work.
I had a wonderful wet weekend cheering on the Lombardi team at the Avon Walk. I was proud of our team this year. We had 23 walkers who combined to raise $46,000. It’s nice to be able to have a bigger impact for such a wonderful cause. Even more importantly the Lombardi cheering section was loud and quite prominent at many of the cheering stations. This was a big change from last year where only one person served as the Lombardi-designated cheerer.
You can bet that many people noticed our presence this year, and many people commented on Lombardi’s walking team, cheerers, and coordination of medical services for the Walk. We received a lovely check from the Avon Foundation at the Walk’s closing ceremony which will support the operation of the Capital Breast Care Center, and the head of the Foundation made special note of Lombardi’s increased presence at the Walk. As I’ve told you before, I want Lombardi to be a presence at important events like this, and this was a good start. But wait till next year!
On a related note, I had the horrifying experience of waking up to the sound of my own voice on the radio on Monday morning. Beth Beck and I were interviewed by local NPR affiliate WAMU about the Avon Walk, and when my alarm went off at 6 AM the next day, this is what I heard.
I attended the NCI Cancer Centers director’s retreat in Pentagon City on Monday evening and Tuesday (where John Niederhuber congratulated me on the successful Avon Walk – he must have heard the WAMU story). It appears as if the cancer centers should not expect a windfall for essential infrastructure from the stimulus package or the growing NIH budget. However it is clear that pay lines will be supported for R01s, with 16% pay lines and the flexibility to reach up to the 25th percentile in some instances. So let’s keep writing those grants.
Yesterday, I spent my day with the Lombardi Celebration Committee describing the work we do. I was inspired by the dedication and added energy of the group coming from new members. This is an important way to get the word out about Lombardi, and I look forward to attending the Celebration on November 7th.
I then drove directly to Capitol Hill to participate in a effort on behalf of cancer centers organized by the AACI and Friends of Cancer Research. I had a chance to meet with Legislative Assistants of several Members of Congress. While one never knows if those activities yield immediate dividends, it was nice that one of the Legislative Asssistants said, “It’s nice to see you again,” which means our message is getting across.
Oh, by the way, we have a core grant due on the 25th. We’re now in the home stretch and the final pieces of the puzzle are falling into place. If you happen to run into Ellen McLaughlin or Stephanie Pomerleau in the hallway, please give them your thanks because they are doing a wonderful job managing the complex task of putting together the grant submission.
I was extraordinarily pleased to learn that our incoming Scientific Director, V. Craig Jordan, was elected to the National Academy of Sciences on Tuesday. As further proof that timing is everything, Craig was previously scheduled to deliver Grand Rounds this Friday at noon in the Research Auditorium. I hope everyone will want to hear his talk, and to meet him and congratulate him on this recognition of his outstanding accomplishments at a brief reception that will follow in the podium Lobby of the Research Building.
Speaking of presentations, I enjoyed Insoo Bae’s talk today at the Wednesday Research Seminar. However, I felt badly that Insoo spoke before such a sparse audience. Like all our speakers, he worked hard to prepare his seminar, and he deserved more support from his colleagues in the cancer center. Let me reiterate my commitment to this series and my expectation that it is a priority on everyone’s weekly schedules.
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Greetings from Denver
Greetings from Denver where I am attending the annual AACR meeting. This is always busy – as I try to absorb as much new information as possible in between various organization-related meetings.
I was pleased that Lombardi’s profile was reflected by the publication of 25 abstracts. Many of you will remember that when I first arrived at Lombardi, I underscored my belief, which is still firmly held, that for Lombardi to be appreciated for its excellence, we have to share our work at major meetings like AACR and ASCO. While 25 abstracts makes a nice showing, let’s not forget that we have 106 full members, an additional 60 associate members, and many trainees. The AACR provides an excellent venue to share the exciting research we have going on here.
I’d like to congratulate two members of our community who received the recognition of “highly-rated abstract” for their research posters at AACR: Zhangzhi Hu, PhD, and Ramona Dumitrescu, PhD. You can view all of the coverage of Lombardi’s activities at AACR on the Lombardi Spotlight, including the opening ceremony video which featured three of our scientists, and a press conference moderated by Peter Shields.