Richard and Annette Bloch Cancer Care Pavilion
The University of Kansas Medical Center
The University of Kansas Hospital
THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS CANCER CENTER he University of Kansas Cancer Center is transforming cancer research and clinical care by linking an innovative approach to drug discovery, delivery and development to a nationally accredited patient care program.
T
To further advance exceptional research and patient care, The University of Kansas Cancer Center plans to apply for designation as a National Cancer Institute (NCI) cancer center. This designation will bring millions of dollars in additional research grants to KU and attract world-class cancer physicians and researchers to develop lifesaving treatments. But more importantly, recent statistics indicate that the survival rate for patients treated at an NCI designated cancer center is approximately 25 percent better than those treated elsewhere. Currently, the Kansas City metropolitan area is one of the largest cities in size and scope without an NCI-designated cancer center. The people of our region deserve better. With an NCI application deadline of September 2011, there is an urgent need for philanthropic funding to recruit outstanding researchers and physician scientists to further our quest for NCI designation. Roy Jensen, Director The University of Kansas Cancer Center
COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS & PARTICIPATION n the fight against cancer, great strength lies in partnerships — especially when they consist of leading edge researchers, dedicated health-care providers, determined patients, and generous donors.
I
Today, these partnerships are reaching across state lines and political parties in the Kansas City metropolitan area to converge in a synergy that will result in saving lives and greatly improving the patients’ quality of life. By stepping into the highest tier of cancer centers, The University of Kansas Cancer Center will be positioned to attract new research faculty members, greater federal and private research funding, new resources for determining and providing more effective treatments, and greater opportunities for researchers to collaborate with programs across the country. Perhaps most importantly, cancer patients in this region who currently travel to distant states will be able to receive the most advanced cancer treatment methods closer to home.
THE CRITICAL ROLE OF CANCER RESEARCH ost of us see cancer on the human scale — we see how it affects people who are sick from cancer and from cancer treatment. We see the effect cancer has on the families and friends of those who are ill.
M
Cancer researchers examine cancer on the cellular and molecular level. Normally, cells grow, divide and produce more cells when needed in an orderly process that helps to keep the body healthy. Sometimes, however, cells keep dividing when new cells are not needed and develop into tumors. Specific types of cancers differ from patient to patient, and cell populations within tumors may even be different. This wide variance means that researchers have a highly complex web of problems to solve in developing treatments that are more precisely targeted at cancerous cells. What mechanisms or messages turn cells into cancer cells? How are those messages conveyed to individual cells? Are there ways to influence or change those messages? Finding the answers to such questions leads to more effective cancer treatments and cures, but the very nature of such work is highly detailed and time consuming. Therefore, recruiting the intellectual capital to lead this mission is critical in our quest for NCI designation.
RECRUITING THE PHYSICIAN SCIENTIST ancer physicians have many demands on their time. They must devote substantial time to the actual care and treatment of their patients while maintaining an active clinical research agenda. Time devoted to studying the results of their treatment protocols is at a premium. However, it is this confluence of research, innovation and care that distinguishes academic physicians from their traditional counterparts.
C
At The University of Kansas Cancer Center, the recruitment of physician scientists to assume leadership roles is a top priority. Over the next coming months, as we move toward NCI application in September 2011, The University of Kansas Cancer Center must identify and hire physicians who not only are extraordinary clinicians but also scholars. These individuals will be called upon to fill several key positions: •
Deputy Director of The University of Kansas Cancer Center - The deputy director supports and assists the Cancer Center director through developing, refining, and implementing the vision for clinical cancer care and clinical cancer research. The deputy director will lead the formulation of the strategic plan for the future of the Cancer Center that will result in The University of Kansas Cancer Center being viewed nationally as a leader in cancer research. He or she will also coordinate the activities of the division chiefs of medical oncology, surgical oncology, radiation oncology and gynecological oncology.
•
Associate Director of Basic Science - The associate director for basic science will lead the Cancer Center’s efforts to study and analyze the fundamental internal machinery of normal cells and how it is altered in cancer. These studies provide the basic understanding from which clinical scientists can devise treatments and cures. The associate director will foster collaborative, interdisciplinary basic science research that supports the mission of the Cancer Center. • Associate Director of Clinical Research - The associate director for clinical research will lead the cancer center’s efforts to take the knowledge gained through cancer research at the basic science level and determine if these advances can be utilized to benefit patients suffering from different types of cancer. The associate director will oversee the research programs within the Cancer Center that focus on clinical cancer research, while providing advice and guidance to the Cancer Center members relative to clinical research activities within the Cancer Center. • Eminent Scholar in Basic Science Research - This scientist will be one of national renown in cancer research who will bring with him or her significant funding from the National Cancer Institute and the National Institutes of Health. This individual will specialize in one of the Cancer Center’s areas of research focus (breast, lung, gastrointestinal, and genitourinary) and will be under the leadership of the Associate Director of Basic Science.
AN INVESTMENT TOWARD NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE DESIGNATION
KANSAS CITY POWER & LIGHT A FIVE YEAR COMMITMENT TO THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS CANCER CENTER 2010 - 2014 t this time, several exceptional physician scientists are in the recruitment pipeline for The University of Kansas Cancer Center. The threeto-five year startup and recruitment packages for these leadership positions can exceed $6 million. On behalf of The University of Kansas Cancer Center, KU Endowment respectfully asks Kansas City Power & Light to consider an investment of $2.5 million to be paid over the next five years. Support in the amount of $2 million will create and endow The Kansas City Power & Light Chair at KU Medical Center. This chair would fund one of the aforementioned essential leadership positions that Kansas City Power & Light selects.
A
The remaining $500,000 from Kansas City Power and Light will provide funding to create an innovative startup package for the position the company selects to endow with the chair. This is important as The University of Kansas Cancer Center makes offers to outstanding individuals for these positions deemed
Key Cancer Positions Deputy Director Associate Director of Basic Science Associate Director of Clinical Research Eminent Scholar in Basic Science The endowment provides sustainable support for salary, additional staff, required travel and/or other expenses essential for conducting scholarly activity. Funding from the endowment is provided to supplement state and other funds that support salary, benefits and scholarship.
Faculty Recruitment Investment $2.0 million endowment per position $500,000 expendable for first-year startup expenses
Annual Projected Income $92,000 at 4.6 percent earnings from endowment
Joe and Jean Brandmeyer, El Paso, TX, gave $10 million for an endowed chair in radiation oncology, and to support patient care as well as other NCI priorities: “Curing cancer has a special place in our hearts. My mother, sister and several aunts and uncles died of cancer, and our grandson is a cancer survivor.� - Joe Brandmeyer
THE VALUE OF PRIVATE PHILANTHROPIC SUPPORT rivate donations make a significant impact in enhancing The University of Kansas Cancer Center’s ability to attract and retain the nation’s finest cancer researchers and physician scientists to the institution by providing funds that the state of Kansas alone cannot.
P
For more than 40 years, funds dedicated to the recruitment and ongoing support of physicians and researchers at the University of Kansas Medical Center have helped KU remain steadfast in investing in its most viable resource: our faculty. Without private support, The University of Kansas Cancer Center will be unable to compete with other institutions to retain and recruit the brightest minds in cancer research. Endowed professorships created through KU Endowment become eligible for the Kansas Partnership for the Faculty of Distinction Program. Under this program, the state of Kansas will enhance the endowed professorship’s income earnings to supplement professorships. Gifts that qualify for the Faculty of Distinction Program must be in the form of cash or other in-kind gifts easily converted to cash. A gift may be received in installments, but it will not qualify for state support until it meets or exceeds a total of $500,000. The gift must be made to KU Endowment, the official fundraising and fund-management foundation for KU. Founded in 1891, KU Endowment was the first foundation of its kind at a U.S. public university.
The Hall Family Foundation, Kansas City, Missouri, gave $18 million for a Phase I clinical trials building in Fairway and to recruit scholars: “Kansas City deserves to be one of the 65 places where patients can receive the most advanced cancer treatment. Achieving NCI designation will bring prestige to the entire region as a center for advanced cancer research and treatment.” - Bill Hall, President of the Hall Family Foundation
The Burns & McDonnell Foundation gave $1 million to establish a clinical high-risk prostate cancer prevention program at the Richard and Annette Bloch Cancer Care pavilion. It is the largest gift the foundation has ever made: “With this gift, we are building hope for prostate cancer patients throughout the Midwest. And, we want our gift to build momentum for more companies to support the drive for NCI designation.” - Greg Graves, Chief Executive Officer of Burns & McDonnell
THE CRITICAL IMPORTANCE OF NCI DESIGNATION he University of Kansas Cancer Center’s effort to achieve National Cancer Institute (NCI) designation as a Cancer Center has been identified as the single greatest opportunity to significantly change the landscape of our community for future generations. The “Time to Get It Right,” a 2005 blue ribbon report, identified the life sciences as the area in which Kansas City has the greatest potential of becoming a world leader. The report, commissioned by several area foundations and led by the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation, cited achieving NCI designation as the highest priority within that goal.
T
This has led to the formation of Cancer Funding Partners, a group of business and civic leaders from Kansas City and Wichita, who are leading the effort to raise private funds to help achieve NCI designation. These individuals share a common belief that achieving NCI designation must be the top civic priority because of the positive effects it will have for our community and region. This year more than 25,700 citizens in Kansas and western Missouri will be diagnosed with cancer and, while cancer death rates are declining nationally, rates in this region are falling at only one-third of the pace of the rest of the nation. An NCI-designated cancer center in our community will improve cancer care and save lives through the synergistic relationships developed between researcher and physician, while also improving access to cuttingedge clinical trials leading to better health in the region. As health care will no doubt continue to comprise an ever increasing share of our local, state, and national gross domestic product, it will also become a driver for future jobs in our region. In 2009, a five-year update to the “Time to Get It Right” report was released that emphasized the importance of achieving NCI designation as a cornerstone of the long-term strategy to secure Kansas City’s future as a competitive, world-class city in the global economy. The economic benefits of bringing an NCI designated cancer center to Kansas City are significant and quantifiable. Currently, every $1 million in National Institutes of Health funding translates to $2.21 million in new economic activity generated by the receiving institution. It is estimated that the region stands to gain 9,400 permanent new jobs creating $1.3 billion
in annual economic activity after The University of Kansas Cancer Center receives Comprehensive Cancer Center designation from the NCI. In addition, the region will save $584 million from reduced cancer mortality while, at the same time, saving lives. The University of Kansas Cancer Center’s efforts to achieve NCI designation have been identified as a top priority of both the current chair of the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce Peter deSilva, as well as incoming chair Greg Graves. NCI designation provides a unique opportunity for cooperation that transcends the historical and political boundaries that continue to play a significant role in the culture of our region. Through bi-state collaborative efforts such as the Midwest Cancer Alliance, this civic effort has the chance to fundamentally change the paradigm of how our community is perceived and ensures our position as a world-class city whose region can and will complete in the international marketplace. On behalf of Dr. Roy Jensen, and the staff of The University of Kansas Cancer Center, KU Endowment thanks the executive leadership of Kansas City Power & Light and Great Plains Energy for their consideration of this proposal.
TIME TO GET IT RIGHT:
STAYING COMPETITIVE IN THE NEW ECONOMY
THE VIEW FROM YEAR FIVE
NCI designation is an important part of the (again) collaborative and overall effort to grow the region’s life sciences. Combined with the resources of the Stowers Institute and the KC Animal Health Corridor, NCI designation will provide a significant step forward for our community. I hope you will do whatever you can to support the effort. - Peter deSilva, Chairman, Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce
“NCI designation would be very important to the KC community, since it provides high visibility, attracts further investments and talent to the region and has the potential for significant economic impact.” - The Time To Get It Right: Staying Competitive In The New Economy (2010) The Report of a Blue Ribbon Task Force commissioned by the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation
www.kuendowment.org