UAB – Survivors CAN!

Could you help UAB find targeted new treatments for cancer?

Call it “targeted therapy” or “precision medicine,” but we just call it the cutting edge of cancer research! Part of our hope for the future is finding customized treatments that work very specifically on different cancers and different people. In Alabama, we are lucky to have institutions such as the University of Alabama at Birmingham playing a critical role in this kind of research.

Most recently came the news that UAB’s Comprehensive Cancer Center is enrolling patients for the National Cancer Institute Molecular Analysis for Therapy Choice, or NCI-MATCH study, the largest, most scientifically rigorous precision medicine trial in cancer to date.

http://www.uab.edu/news/focus-on-patient-care/item/7469

According to the article, the clinical trial is open to patients whose cancer has returned, has gotten worse after standard treatment, or has no standard treatment at all.

This is the way possible new treatments are usually explored and developed, and those of us who have personally experienced cancer are always indebted to those who went before us and participated in these trials that ultimate saved our lives.

The hope is that researchers will now find even more weapons in their arsenal against this disease, and that the new therapies will attack each cancer where it is vulnerable and in ways that don’t inflict so much collateral damage.

“We are at an exciting point in cancer where we can tailor care to the individual patient based on emerging treatment and prevention that takes into account individual variability in genes, environment and lifestyle for each person,” Carla Falkson, M.D., professor in the UAB Division of Hematology and Oncology and principal investigator for the trial, is quoted as saying.

The hope is eventually to enroll 3,000 adult patients at UAB in the research study. If you think you might be a candidate, talk with your oncologist. Or to find out more details about eligibility, etc., contact Liz Busby, director of Oncology Clinical Trials at the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center, at 205-934-0337 or [email protected].

UAB study finds possible frontline therapy for older patients with Hodgkin Lymphoma

By Beena Thannickal/UAB News/Oct. 5, 2015

andres forero1

A new University of Alabama at Birmingham research study reports that brentuximab vedotin is an effective and safe first course of treatment for older patients with Hodgkin lymphoma that cannot be treated with conventional combination chemotherapy.

Results of the study, led by Andres Forero, M.D., professor in the UAB Division of Hematology and Oncology, were published online last month in Blood, the journal of the American Society of Hematology.

In 2014, about 9,190 patients were diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma in the United States, and up to 20 percent of newly diagnosed Hodgkin Lymphoma patients are 60 years of age or older.

While standard chemotherapy can achieve complete remissions and cures in younger patients with Hodgkin lymphoma, the majority of those 60 and older either are ineligible because of other serious medical conditions or refuse treatment in order to avoid complications related to drug toxicity.

“The biology in older patients may differ from that of younger patients,” Forero said. “Additionally, the presence of other illnesses, particularly cardiac dysfunction, may limit administration of standard regimens. It became clear to us that, as the rate of remission is much lower for older compared to younger Hodgkin lymphoma patients, there is a clear need for less toxic treatments that allow patients 60 and older to complete their full regimen without complications or interruptions.”

Forero, a senior scientist at the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center, has a long history of developing promising therapies for lymphoma and of working with drugs like brentuximab vedotin, a therapy that targets Hodgkin lymphoma cells and delivers a potent dose of chemotherapy without harming healthy cells. In previous studies, brentuximab vedotin has been shown to achieve remissions in patients with relapsed or treatment-resistant disease.

To examine the potential of brentuximab vedotin as a first course of treatment for older Hodgkin lymphoma patients, Forero and his team evaluated 26 patients, ages 64-92, who were ineligible for conventional chemotherapy or declined treatment after receiving information about its risks. The aim was to gather more information about the safety of brentuximab vedotin and how well it worked.

Researchers administered 1.8 mg/kg of intravenous brentuximab vedotin treatment every three weeks for up to 16 doses. Those who benefited from the drug could continue beyond this time period until disease progression, unacceptable toxicity or study closure. Patients received a median of eight cycles, with four completing 16 and one completing 23 cycles.

“In this population of older patients with Hodgkin lymphoma who were unfit for standard chemotherapy, we observed that brentuximab vedotin as a single agent produced a very high rate of response, including a very high rate of complete remission,” Forero said.

At the time of analysis, 92 percent of patients achieved a complete or partial response to the drug that lasted about 9.1 months. Of those, 73 percent achieved a complete remission that lasted about 9.2 months. The treatment was generally well-tolerated and consistent with previous reports of brentuximab vedotin in patients with relapsed and treatment-resistant Hodgkin lymphoma. As expected, the toxicity that was observed was mild and reversible sensory neuropathy, which is decreased sensitivity in the fingers and toes. Fewer than half of the patients experienced fatigue and nausea.

“While we observed promising responses, the next step is to evaluate this drug in combination with additional chemotherapy or immunotherapies that might allow us to prolong the response without relapse,” Forero said.

Direct funding for this research was issued by Seattle Genetics, Inc., through the joint financial support of Seattle Genetics, Inc., and Takeda Pharmaceuticals International Co.

http://www.uab.edu/news/focus-on-patient-care/item/6569-uab-study-finds-possible-frontline-therapy-for-older-patients-with-hodgkin-lymphoma

HudsonAlpha and UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center launch consortium, announce multiple hires

August 19, 2014

The HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology and the University of Alabama at Birmingham Comprehensive Cancer Center have established a joint cancer research consortium that will combine pioneering efforts to diagnose, treat and care for patients and families affected by cancer. As a demonstration of each institution’s commitment to tackling the second leading cause of death in the United States, both organizations announced their intention to hire multiple faculty investigators in cancer genomics.

Genomics is the study of the entirety of deoxyribonucleic acid within a living organism. DNA contains the instructions for the development and function of all living organisms and many viruses. As such, the molecular basis for a great deal of human disease is believed to be in the genome.

“We aim to have a global impact. Over the last five years, researchers have really begun to recognize the broad role that DNA plays in all human diseases,” said Richard M. Myers, Ph.D., HudsonAlpha’s president and science director. “Bringing genomics to the forefront in cancer health care is one of HudsonAlpha’s biggest projects. We have research in breast cancer, ovarian cancer, and kidney and prostate cancer, to name a few, and for us, a partnership with one of the most respected NCI comprehensive cancer centers will help us fulfill our mission.”

HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology is a nonprofit research institute dedicated to realizing the promise of genomics in medical, agricultural, educational and commercial practice. Since opening its doors in 2008, HudsonAlpha has expended more than $30 million on cancer-related research and generated more than a half-dozen discoveries related to genomic techniques and biomarkers.

The UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center is one of only 41 comprehensive cancer centers in the United States, and the only one in the Deep South’s six-state region, meeting the stringent criteria for the designation awarded by the National Cancer Institute. To garner this designation, the UAB CCC possesses the region’s greatest depth and breadth in laboratory, clinical and population-based research, as well as substantial transdisciplinary research that bridges these scientific areas. It has held the designation continuously since 1973.

The UAB CCC is home to more than 350 physician-scientists and researchers with the largest group of cancer specialists in Alabama who focus on specific cancer disciplines. Patients also have access to more than 180 cancer-related clinical trials, positioning the UAB CCC to solve the problem of cancer while providing the best possible care to the patients they serve.

The UAB-HudsonAlpha Cancer Consortium formalizes the two organizations’ fruitful collaborations dating from 2010. The Consortium’s goals are to improve cancer patient diagnosis, treatment and care through research and to reduce disparities in cancer outcomes among different demographic groups. The UAB CCC and HudsonAlpha have individual education and public outreach programs that are complementary and will likely amplify each other’s impact.

“Our philosophy is that we’re better together,” Myers said. “Genomics is a highly dynamic field with a great deal of potential. Its application also requires a great deal of experience to interpret the vast quantities of data generated by sequencing DNA and performing other experiments on the human genome. This is where HudsonAlpha excels, and we need partners who are experts at clinical diagnosis, treatment and care so that we can relate genomic data to patient attributes. Getting the most out of new discoveries so that we impact patient care substantially and quickly is the reason HudsonAlpha was founded.”

“Both of our organizations have a passion for improving the lives of those affected by cancer,” said Edward E. Partridge, M.D., director of the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center. “The UAB CCC serves about 5,000 new patients and provides oncology to more than 20,000 patients annually, and we are determined to bring state-of-the-art genomics to their care. Partnering with HudsonAlpha brings to this challenge a deep reservoir of knowledge about the genetic and epigenetic basis for human disease, as well as HudsonAlpha’s leadership in devising genomic techniques.”

In recent years, as part of its mission to expand and grow its centers, the National Cancer Institute has encouraged the development of consortium cancer centers, especially those that reach into geographic regions that have unmet needs and opportunities to improve cancer health care.

As a cancer consortium, UAB and HudsonAlpha create an attractive destination for researchers in cancer genomics. HudsonAlpha intends to hire multiple faculty investigators, especially those with an interest in cancer genomics and computational biology, who will be part of the UAB-HudsonAlpha Cancer Consortium, taking full advantage of UAB’s clinical setting and HudsonAlpha’s genomics expertise and state-of-the-art infrastructure. Faculty investigators carry joint or adjunct appointments at both institutions.

The UAB-HudsonAlpha Cancer Consortium is one part of the institutions’ joint venture, which also includes the UAB-HudsonAlpha Center for Genomic Medicine announced earlier this summer with the intention of incorporating research knowledge into predicting and diagnosing personalized therapies and cures.

HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology
Media Contact: Heather Smith
[email protected]
256-327-0443

UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center
Media Contact: Beena Thannickal
[email protected]
205-975-3967

About HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology: The HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology possesses a unique concentration of genomics expertise and infrastructure, thanks to more than $200 million invested by private philanthropists and the state of Alabama and externally sponsored research. The nonprofit research institute houses in its facilities a unique blend of nonprofit scientists and for-profit entrepreneurs and corporate leaders who share know-how and challenges across organizational boundaries — an arrangement designed to accelerate application and commercialization.

About the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center: The UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center is among the 41 cancer centers in the nation that meet the stringent criteria for the National Cancer Institute’s comprehensive designation. The center is a leader in groundbreaking research and patient care, and in reducing cancer disparities.

http://hudsonalpha.org/press-releases/hudsonalpha-and-uab-comprehensive-cancer-center-launch-consortium-announce-multiple-hires

In cancer’s aftermath, helping survivors confront “late effects” — UAB News

By Matt Windsor/UAB News/July 16

This article is adapted from a video interview with Dr. Bhatia on UAB’s MD Learning Channel.

Even after cancer is defeated, it can cast a lifelong shadow. “Cancer survivorship represents a very critical phase,” said Smita Bhatia, M.D., M.P.H., a pediatric oncologist and director of the new Institute for Cancer Outcomes and Survivorship in the UAB School of Medicine and associate director for cancer outcomes research at the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center. “We and others have shown in our research studies that our cancer survivors are a vulnerable population,” she said. “When you follow them long-term, you find that they have a very high burden of chronic health conditions.”

Often, these health problems can be linked back to cancer treatments, including chemotherapy, radiation and even surgeries, Bhatia said. Because these complications can occur “many years after the completion of treatment,” they are called “late effects.” One example involves a particular class of chemotherapy drug known as anthracyclines. “We use these agents often because they are highly effective in a large variety of cancers,” Bhatia said. But research shows that patients who take these drugs have a high risk of developing congestive heart failure many years later.

Girls who have “received radiation to the chest around puberty for lymphoma,” have “an increased risk of breast cancer,” Bhatia added. And this breast cancer “occurs at a much younger age than would be anticipated in the general population. So these girls are developing breast cancer at age 30 and 40, whereas in the general population you’d be anticipating breast cancer at age 60.”

Results from a survey have shown that only a third of patients realize they are at risk for these late effects, and because the family practitioners and internists who are seeing these patients do not encounter cancer survivors very often, “it is not in the forefront in terms of their understanding, in terms of their knowledge base and in terms of their experience of what they should anticipate,” Bhatia said. Addressing this situation becomes even more urgent as the number of survivors grows, she adds. “The number of cancer survivors is growing at the rate of about 2 percent every year,” Bhatia said. “We will, by about 2022, have 18 million cancer survivors.”

That is why UAB is establishing special survivorship clinics. “In order to provide the most comprehensive long-term care to our survivors, we need care plans,” Bhatia said. These “are essentially a summary of all the treatment that the patients received for their particular cancer, along with recommendations for long-term follow-up in order to detect complications.”

The idea, Bhatia said, is to lay out “a roadmap for our cancer survivors for life. That’s what I would like to do for all our cancer survivors who are coming to UAB, no matter what diagnosis they have, no matter what their age is, from here on.”

Survivorship clinics are staffed by physicians, nurse practitioners, social workers, psychologists, and dietitians, “who provide absolutely comprehensive but very tailored care to the survivors,” Bhatia said. “So we would, for example, do heart tests in order to detect heart failure at an earlier stage only amongst patients who’ve received treatments that are toxic to the heart. Mammograms would be recommended for patients who’ve received radiation to the chest at a young age, and who are at risk for breast cancer.”

This “very tailored but anticipatory screening” is designed “to detect these complications at an earlier stage,” said Bhatia.

The same survivorship model can now be extended to care for patients with many different chronic health conditions, Bhatia says. These include patients with sickle cell disease, HIV, congenital heart disease — “any chronic condition where the health care providers can really coordinate the care of the patient as a whole, the entirety of their health, and provide complete and comprehensive care long-term.”

http://www.uab.edu/mix/stories/in-cancer-s-aftermath-helping-survivors-confront-late-effects