Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center Tip Sheet for April, 2023

Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center Expert Briefs White House Cancer Moonshot on Cancer in Minority Communities

Patricia I. Moreno, Ph.D., lead of Evidence-Based Survivorship Supportive Care at  Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of UHealth – University of Miami Health System, briefed the White House Cancer Moonshot on disparities in cancer care for vulnerable and historically disenfranchised communities. The April 19 meeting was convened by the National Minority Quality Forum (NMQF) to brief the White House Cancer Moonshot on the importance of working hand-in-hand on the community level to address cancer inequities and the intention for collaboration on a national effort to close the gap in cancer screening.

Sylvester Researchers Awarded $1.5 Million Federal Grant for New Lymphoma Study

Three lymphoma specialists at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center have been awarded a $1.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Defense – Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) to advance their work in identifying drivers of resistance for certain lymphoma patients who do not respond to initial chemotherapy or suffer a relapse after treatment. The researchers, Jonathan H. Schatz, M.D., Francesco Maura, M.D., and Juan P. Alderuccio, M.D., also plan to study resistance to an immunotherapy called CAR-19.

Sylvester Cancer Researchers Identify Potential New Targets to Overcome Treatment Resistance in Aggressive Breast Cancer

Researchers with the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center and collaborators have shown that immature Natural Killer (NK) cells are present in patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and likely promote, instead of inhibit, disease progression in this cancer type. The study, led by Rumela Chakrabarti, Ph.D., and featured in Science Translational Medicine, could help clinicians combat treatment resistance in TNBC, one of the most aggressive breast tumors, by identifying certain NK cells as potential therapeutic targets.     

Sylvester Surgical Oncologist Awarded $375,000 Grant to Investigate the Role Opioids May Play in Breast Cancer

Kristin Rojas, M.D., assistant professor of surgical oncology at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Dewitt Daughtry Department of Surgery at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, has been awarded a three-year, $375,000 grant from the National Cancer Institute’s Early-Stage Surgeon Scientist Program. With this funding, Dr. Rojas and colleagues will investigate the role opioids may play in breast cancer.

Sylvester Hosts Third Biennial Miami Leukemia Symposium

The latest diagnostic and treatment advances for blood cancers were highlighted at the third Miami Leukemia Symposium hosted by Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center March 31-April 2 in Miami. Sylvester’s leukemia experts were joined by other specialists from top U.S. and international cancer centers to share new research findings and other insights to improve diagnosis and treatment for this challenging, multifaceted blood disease. “As a National Cancer Institute-designated cancer, we are proud to convene conferences like this, where clinicians and bench scientists from top institutions, including MD Anderson, Memorial Sloan Kettering,  St. Jude and the University of Michigan, can share ideas, discuss collaborations and ultimately benefit patients here and around the world,” said Sylvester Director Stephen D. Nimer, M.D.    

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