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MD Anderson ranks as the nation’s top cancer hospital. Again. See page 10.
M. D. Anderson ranked as the nation’s top cancer hospital. Again.
U.S. News & World Report
Summer 2010 A publication for friends of MD Anderson
Run for the Rose: $2 Million and Still Growing
NCAA Lacrosse Teams
Beat Cancer With a Stick
Structural Biology: The Shape of Research to Come
Learn more at www.MakingCancerHistor yCampaign.org
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Beauty and the Beast
Molecular Works of Art Help Stop Cancer in Its Tracks By Sarah Watson
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ylinders of turquoise and purple surrounding chains of electric blue, orange and yellow resemble fireworks against the black computer screen. John E. Ladbury, Ph.D., a professor in The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center’s Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and director of the institution’s Center for Biomolecular Structure and Function (CBSF), clicks the mouse and swirling ribbons of neon pink and green appear. The color-coded three-dimensional protein structures are eyepopping indeed. As Ladbury explains their relevance in the fields of pharmaceutical and biomedical research, they are nothing short of awe-inspiring. Scientists at the CBSF, one of seven research centers within MD Anderson’s Institute for Basic Science, use X-ray crystallography to turn proteins into these 3-D works of art. They not only are fascinating and beautiful, but also provide fundamental clues to the ways in which proteins function and aid researchers in designing potential new therapies. The process can be arduous and time-consuming. “We can have a high-resolution atomic structure of a protein in two or three days,” says Ladbury, “or it can take 20 years.” The process begins with researchers using living cells to produce a given protein of interest. Once the protein has been purified and concentrated, it’s placed in indented trays, each well holding a range of reagents to encourage the proteins to crystallize. The tiny protein crystals are cooled down with liquid nitrogen (“to make them more robust”), then X-rayed from every angle possible. The X-ray beams produce a diffraction pattern on a detector with hundreds of thousands of data points that correlate to the way in which the high energy light source has interacted with atoms in the protein crystal. Finally, the data points are mathematically analyzed to compile structural determinations, detailed molecular snapshots revealing the positioning of atoms with respect to one another in the structure. Armed with this pictorial understanding of a protein’s form, scientists and clinicians gain insight into solving complex genetic mysteries and developing new targeted drug therapies aimed at cancer and other diseases. “Any drug development company not using structural biology is missing an opportunity,” says Ladbury, who recently arrived from London and now holds the Edward Rotan Distinguished Professorship in Cancer Research at MD Anderson. Studying life at the molecular level in a cell 2 Promise sUMMER 2010
Above: Structural determinations of life at the molecular level, such as this fibroblast growth factor receptor, can unlock medical mysteries and give drug developers the keys to novel, targeted therapies. Figure courtesy of John E. Ladbury, Ph.D. Left: John E. Ladbury, Ph.D., and colleagues at the Center for Biomolecular Structure and Function at MD Anderson create pictorial representations of life at its most basic level. Photo by Erin McCormick
is akin to understanding how the parts of an automobile engine work to repair a component gone awry. “Knowing the structure of a molecule helps you understand how it works or how it could go wrong, and hence define your target for pharmaceutical intervention,” he says. A single mutation in the gene that encodes a protein molecule can affect the protein’s function by inducing changes in its threedimensional shape or by altering its ability to carry out a specific chemical reaction, explains Ladbury. Genetic mutations can
cause protein molecules to malfunction, which can lead to cancer and other diseases. MD Anderson established the CBSF in January 2009 as a collaborative environment for discovery. Ladbury and colleagues Richard G. Brennan, Ph.D., and Maria A. Schumacher, Ph.D., experts in structural determination, settled into their space on the seventh floor of the George and Cynthia Mitchell Basic Sciences Research Building and set to work bridging the gap between basic scientists and translational and clinical researchers. Basic scientists, on the one hand, look at A publication for friends of MD Anderson
A Message from John Mendelsohn
Maria A. Schumacher, Ph.D., from left, Lawrence Pope, Halliburton’s executive vice president of administration and chief human resources officer, and Cathy Mann, Halliburton’s director of corporate affairs, listen as Richard G. Brennan, Ph.D., explains the X-ray crystallography process. Photo by Rob Atherton
Halliburton Offers a Helping Hand Halliburton executives recently visited the Center for Biomolecular Structure and Function (CBSF) at MD Anderson to tour the laboratory of Richard G. Brennan, Ph.D., and Maria A. Schumacher, Ph.D. A plaque at the entrance to the lab recognizes the company’s longtime philanthropic support of MD Anderson. Halliburton recently contributed $100,000, the first installment of a five-year pledge that has kick-started the growth of the CBSF. “Discoveries take time,” said Brennan, thanking Halliburton for its commitment to basic science research at MD Anderson. “With Halliburton’s ongoing support, we’ll be able to do some great things.” Video at www.youtube.com/mdandersonorg
“We can have a highresolution atomic structure of a protein in two or three days, or it can take 20 years.” — John E. Ladbury, Ph.D., Director, Center for Biomolecular Structure and Function the structures of macromolecules to determine their capacity to carry out normal functions such as gene regulation, DNA replication, DNA repair and cellular signaling — all of which helps translational and clinical researchers as they seek to identify new drug targets (i.e., proteins) and design treatments based on molecular interactions, such as binding patterns and signaling pathways. Applying structure-function studies to multidisciplinary research in MD Anderson’s Department of Experimental Therapeutics, Center for Targeted Therapy and Institute for Personalized Cancer Therapy can have a transformational impact on drug discovery and speeding those discoveries to the clinic where they can benefit patients, says Ladbury. A recent five-year pledge of $500,000 from The Halliburton Foundation helped establish a unique research hub at the CBSF called the Protein Production Group, from which Ladbury predicts a wellspring of new ideas in biomedical research that can be used in preventing and treating all types of disease. Its services are available
to members of the Gulf Coast Consortia, which with MD Anderson includes Baylor College of Medicine, Rice University, The University of Houston, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. Ladbury worked with a similar program in London before joining MD Anderson, and he has high hopes for the discoveries sure to spin off from the collaboration. “This is why I came to MD Anderson,” says Ladbury, who was recruited to Houston in 2008 from University College in London. “We have an extremely strong community of structural biologists in the Texas Medical Center and the Gulf Coast area, but there hasn’t been anything to bring these people together. We’re breaking down the barriers between clinicians and structural biologists to make it easier to interface with other disciplines. It’s a fantastic opportunity to bring new and more effective treatments to patients everywhere.” Philanthropic support continues to be crucial in “this whole collaborative effort,” says Ladbury. “Halliburton’s contribution has been fundamental in setting up the Protein Production Group,” he says. “With the work now in progress, it’s given us a focus and enabled us to build something real that will have a tangible effect on research and new drug development.”
Learn more at www.MakingCancerHistor yCampaign.org
Basic laboratory research has fueled many advances in cancer diagnosis, prevention and care. By revealing the nature of specific cancers and unlocking their mysteries, basic John Mendelsohn, M.D. science has led to the development of more effective cancer therapies, earlier and better detection methods and improved outcomes for cancer patients everywhere. To effectively diagnose and treat cancers, we must understand the biology underlying their development. To that end, MD Anderson established the Institute for Basic Science (IBS) in 2008. Its goal is to accelerate scientific discoveries in a collaborative environment that maximizes individual and collective success. Encompassing MD Anderson’s traditional basic science departments, from biochemistry and molecular biology to veterinary sciences, the IBS also comprises seven multidisciplinary centers of research excellence. Interactive teams at the IBS focus on cutting-edge work in cancer genetics, epigenetics, inflammation, carcinogenesis, molecular structures, cell-tocell signaling, stem cell biology and more. We are grateful to those who are committed to MD Anderson’s mission of eliminating cancer by contributing to the creation and continued growth of the IBS. With your philanthropic support, we are building on MD Anderson’s world-class research strengths and forging new paths of discovery that will directly benefit cancer patients now and for generations to come. Thank you for joining us in Making Cancer History®.
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John Mendelsohn, M.D. PRESIDENT
Kellye Sanford DESIGNER
Patrick B. Mulvey VICE PRESIDENT FOR DEVELOPMENT
Lana Maciel Julie Penne Victor Scott Contributing WriterS
Stephen C. Stuyck VICE PRESIDENT FOR PUBLIC AFFAIRS Sarah Watson EDITOR DeDe DeStefano ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNICATIONS
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Development Office - Unit 705 P.O. Box 301439 Houston, TX 77230-1439 713-792-3450 800-525-5841 www.mdanderson.org/gifts Promise@mdanderson.org This publication was not printed at state expense.
On the cover: The Fairfield University Stags’ Brent Adams, left, a sophomore from Norwalk, Conn., and Neal Hicks, a senior from Atlanta, Ga., of the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish, compete before 2,000 spectators at The Kinkaid School’s Beating Cancer With a Stick Lacrosse Classic. Story on page 4. Photo by David Shutts
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Lacrosse Provides Unique Way to Beat Cancer: With a Stick There’s a new weapon in the fight against cancer, and it comes in the unlikely form of a lacrosse stick. Four high school boys’ teams and two National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college men’s lacrosse teams came together in Houston March 13 for The Kinkaid School’s inaugural Beating Cancer With a Stick Lacrosse Classic to raise money for MD Anderson Children’s Cancer Hospital. About 2,000 spectators turned out to watch the marquee match-up between the University of Notre Dame and Fairfield University, the finale to the preceding games between four high school teams. The $10,000 raised will benefit the Children’s Cancer Hospital’s Pediatric Clinical Research Program. “Our community here at Kinkaid has been affected in a big way by cancer, and particularly right here in our coaching office,” says Jeremy Platt, Kinkaid’s head boys’ lacrosse coach. “Our eighth-grade coach, Kelly Bolin, was treated for throat cancer at MD Anderson two years ago, and Amy Zimmerman, the wife of another of our lacrosse coaches, is being treated there now for Hodgkin’s lymphoma. So when I started thinking of organizations that this event could benefit, there’s certainly no better place than MD Anderson.” During halftime, Bolin and Zimmerman presented the $10,000 check to Dennis Hughes, M.D., Ph.D., of the Children’s Cancer Hospital, and two of his patients. “I have such respect for MD Anderson. They saved my life,” says Bolin. Platt says he plans on making the Lacrosse Classic an annual event to help grow the sport in Texas and to continue supporting the institution. The Notre Dame–Fairfield game marked the first NCAA Division I lacrosse game in Houston in 40 years. Teams from The Kinkaid School and Episcopal High School in Houston, Gulliver Preparatory in Miami and Palo Verde High School in Las Vegas also participated. —Lana Maciel
The Kinkaid School’s inaugural Beating Cancer With a Stick event raised $10,000 for MD Anderson Children’s Cancer Hospital. Photo by David Shutts
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Promise summer 2010
Bob Schieffer, left, and former senator from Georgia Sam Nunn engage in a one-on-one interview at the inaugural A Conversation With a Living Legend® in Atlanta. Photo by James Fitts
Atlanta Legends Event Featuring Sam Nunn Exceeds Fundraising Goals
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D Anderson’s first A Conversation With a Living Legend® dinner in Atlanta, honoring former Georgia Senator Sam Nunn, raised more than $668,000 for cancer research at the institution. Approximately 500 guests gathered at the InterContinental Buckhead May 17 for an evening that included an interview between Nunn and veteran CBS news journalist Bob Schieffer. Chaired by MD Anderson Board of Visitors member Tom Johnson and his wife, Edwina, the event featured testimonials by four patients reminding audience members of philanthropy’s role in the fight against cancer. Lung cancer survivor Jeff Wigbels received the Making Cancer History® Award. Since establishing the Wigbels-Herbst Cancer Research Fund at MD Anderson, Wigbels has pledged to raise $10 million for lung cancer research under the direction of his oncologist, Roy S. Herbst, M.D., Ph.D., professor in
Kim Johnson of San Antonio joined MD Anderson’s Advance Team in 2009. She co-founded the Teal Lunch for Life in 2008 to raise money for the Blanton-Davis Ovarian Cancer Research Program at MD Anderson. Kim and her husband, Clyde Johnson IV, with his parents Paula and Clyde Johnson III, are co-chairs of the inaugural A Conversation With a Living Legend® in San Antonio, Oct. 29, honoring former President of Mexico Vicente Fox. In February of 2007, my life changed forever when I called my mother to hear
the Department of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology and co-principal investigator of an innovative set of clinical trials called BATTLE (Biomarker-integrated Approaches of Targeted Therapy for Lung Cancer Elimination). AirTran Airways donated a pair of business class tickets at each table. The tickets, offered as silent auction items, raised $50,950. Other major sponsors included the Coca-Cola Company, AT&T, Edwina and Tom Johnson, the Fuqua Family Foundation and Nellie Axelroad. The evening’s proceeds will support research “designed to extend, and to save, the lives of those with cancer,” said Johnson. “My friends, we are going to fight this battle against our common enemy at every level — cancer prevention, cancer research, cancer treatment and cancer care — until one day cancer loses, and we win,” he said. —Sarah Watson
how a doctor appointment went. I still remember her words: “Not good, Kim. I have cancer.” It was Stage 3C ovarian cancer. My world crumbled. This was my mother, my best friend. I felt helpless. Gradually, I learned more about this horrible disease. More than 20,000 women are diagnosed each year, 75 percent of them in the later stages. The mortality rate is 75 percent. The more I learned, the more I wanted to do something. I dedicated myself to raising money to fight cancer. In the process, I’ve become aware of how much MD Anderson is doing to help in that fight. It’s a place of passion to fight and hope to succeed. It’s easy to understand that because of its research, treatments and patient care, the institution has been rated the number one cancer hospital in the nation. I’m honored and thankful to be associated with MD Anderson.
A publication for friends of MD Anderson
Philanthropy
in Act ion
Anderson Assembly
Participants in the third annual Avon Walk in Houston, a noncompetitive walk that aims to save lives, came from 33 states. Photo by Sylvia Garza
Avon Walk in Houston Sets New Standard
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ore than 1,000 Avon Walk for Breast Cancer participants gathered at Stude Park in Houston April 10-11, clad in walking shoes and pink and white shirts, ready to walk for a common goal: to raise awareness and funds for the fight against breast cancer. After 39.3 miles, they had raised more than $2 million. The Avon Foundation for Women immediately awarded more than $1.4 million in grants to six local organizations, with MD Anderson receiving more than $730,000, including $605,000 in grants for two major projects. The first grant will fund a research study aimed at better understanding the earliest changes in breast cells that may lead to cancer. The second grant will go toward the purchase of equipment upgrades for a mobile mammography van that provides breast cancer screening for Houston’s underserved and uninsured population. The foundation also awarded a $127,645 grant to MD Anderson’s Virginia Harris Cockrell Cancer Research Center, Science Park, in Smithville, Texas. The grant will further a prevention study of analyzing markers in blood and breast tissue associated with risk factors for breast cancer. The study also will develop a test strip similar to a pregnancy test strip for detecting early breast cancer. “The Avon Foundation for Women is thrilled we could award more than $1.4 million in grants to six Texas organizations,” says Marc Hurlbert, director of the Avon Foundation for Women Breast Cancer Crusade. “MD Anderson is one of the leading cancer clinical and research organizations in the world and is changing the course of breast cancer.”
Photo by Wyatt McSpadden
John Mendelsohn, M.D., president of MD Anderson, from left, welcomes Sheridan and John Eddie Williams to the Anderson Assembly at an October 2009 dinner at Tony’s restaurant in Houston. The evening, underwritten by Donna and Tony Vallone, featured an induction of new members of the group, which was established in 1989 to honor donors who have made a lifelong commitment of $1 million or more to MD Anderson. The Anderson Assembly welcomed more than 50 new members in 2009. Photo by Pete Baatz
Making Cancer History®: The Campaign to Transform Cancer Care
MD Anderson executive leadership and Development Office representatives traveled to Dallas, Fort Worth and Austin, Texas, in March to launch the institution’s $1 billion Making Cancer History®: The Campaign to Transform Cancer Care. Above, Harry Longwell, campaign chair, from left; John Mendelsohn, M.D., president of MD Anderson; and Patrick B. Mulvey, vice president for development, at a luncheon at the Driskill Hotel in Austin. Below, cancer survivors Chris Crosby, from left, his granddaughter, Marit Peterson, and her mother, Candy Peterson, at a dinner at Arlington Hall at Lee Park in Dallas. Left, Gloria Moncrief Holmsten, an MD Anderson Advance Team member, and her mother, Kit A. Moncrief, a senior member of The University Cancer Foundation Board of Visitors, at a luncheon at Fort Worth’s City Club.
Photos by Nan Coulter
Making Cancer History®: The Campaign to Transform Cancer Care
*as of June 30, 2010
$834,647,759*
$1,000,000,000
Raised to Date
Goal
—Lana Maciel Learn more at www.MakingCancerHistor yCampaign.org
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AmongFriends lanie Rose
Run for the Rose Rooted in Mom’s Can-Do Attitude
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ver lunch one day in 2002, a wellintentioned Houston philanthropist suggested Lanie Rose and her best friend set a fundraising goal of $10,000 for an event honoring the memory of Lanie’s daughter, Marnie Rose, M.D., whose pediatric medical residency at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital had been cut short that year by a rare form of brain cancer. The two women politely thanked the gentleman for his advice and later shared a private laugh. “There was no way we were going to set our sights that low,” says Lanie, recalling the creation of The Dr. Marnie Rose Foundation and its highly successful Run for the Rose fun run and walk. The event is held in April at Reliant Park in Houston to support brain cancer research at MD Anderson as well as pediatric initiatives at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital. The inaugural Run for the Rose, held in 2003, netted $90,000. Proceeds have been consistently higher each year: $100,000 in 2004; $110,000 in 2005; $223,000 in 2006; $320,000 in 2007; $400,000 in 2008; and $425,000 in 2009. This year’s eighth annual Run for the Rose netted $440,000, pushing total contributions to $2,108,000. The daughter of Lanie and Jerry Rose of Houston, Marnie was 27 years old and a first-year resident at the time of her diagnosis. She continued to work throughout treatment at MD Anderson, sharing her personal and professional life with a television crew from the ABC reality series “Houston Medical.” The show’s final episode aired in July 2002; Marnie died five weeks later, on Aug. 23. Three days after the Roses buried their daughter, they attended a Houston City Council meeting featuring a moment of silence in her honor. Afterward, then City Councilman Michael
Amy B. Heimberger, M.D., associate professor of neurosurgery at MD Anderson, from left, Lanie Rose and husband Jerry Rose take a break after this year’s Run for the Rose event at Reliant Park in Houston. The Dr. Marnie Rose Foundation has been a major supporter of brain cancer research under the direction of Heimberger. Photo by Karen Thibodeaux
“Once we saw it was so successful, we had to keep going. We want to do more and more. We can’t stop.” — Lanie Rose Berry accompanied the couple to their car and proposed a fun run/walk as an outlet for their grief and a tribute to Marnie, an avid runner before her diagnosis. The Roses established The Dr. Marnie Rose Foundation, asked a friend to set up a website and enlisted friends and family to help with registrations and solicit interest in the fledgling event. The next day their first major sponsor, the Republic of Tea, sent a check for $5,000. “Nobody said no,” says Lanie. “People were just wonderful. We’re nowhere without the community.” A psychotherapist, Lanie no longer practices, devoting herself full-time to The Dr. Marnie Rose Foundation. Some 200 volunteers help with the many-faceted event, which now includes a motorcycle ride. The 2010 Run for the Rose attracted 4,000 participants from across the country. Yet, despite its continued growth, the event remains a grass-roots effort: Lanie’s friend from the aforementioned lunch in 2002
Survivors Say
Mike Shad, of Jacksonville, Fla., is president of Mike Shad, P.L., a CPA firm that provides business valuations, litigation support, management consulting and dealer counseling for the retail automobile industry.
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received my prostate cancer diagnosis on Valentine’s Day 1997. Thoroughly overwhelmed, I bought books on prostate cancer, talked to survivors and sought additional medical opinions. Then I met Dr. Chris Logothetis (chair of the Department
6 Promise sUMMER 2010
of Genitourinary Oncology at MD Anderson). After reviewing the results of tests performed at MD Anderson and elsewhere, Dr. Logothetis disagreed with those who said there was nothing to be done. He felt he could give me another 30 years.
manages the water stations, for example. Her best friends manage the post-run party and the family 1K fun run/walk, and her cousins, next-door neighbor and two sons’ mothersin-law are in charge of registration and packet pickup, the raffle and the kids’ area. The success of the event, says Lanie, depends on small donations that add up to make a difference in the lives of many. Today The Dr. Marnie Rose Foundation is the only Houston foundation funding brain cancer research at MD Anderson, and it’s the single largest donor to Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital, says Lanie. Two years ago Lanie, who tries to personally acknowledge every donation to the foundation, hired a part-time staffer. Administrative expenses, she says, are supported only by registration fees, “not one penny of donations and sponsorships.” “Contributions go straight to the hospitals,” she says. “All we get is the satisfaction of knowing that somebody has been helped through the programs we support. We’re seeing brain cancer patients living twice as long as Marnie did after she was diagnosed. It’s nowhere near enough, but it’s the gift of time.” The next run is April 10, 2011. For information, visit www.runfortherose.com. —Sarah Watson
It’s been 13 years since I had chemotherapy, hormone ablation therapy and a radical prostatectomy at MD Anderson. Along the way, I’ve learned many lessons. I believe that being open and forthright about my prostate cancer experience has saved, and will continue to save, lives. I’ve spoken to dozens of men (and their wives or daughters) about cancer, and I’ve directed many to MD Anderson for treatment. I tell them: Prostate cancer is not just an old man’s disease. Get checked. Do the research. Get second and third opinions. Don’t give up. Welcome the support of those who care about you, and get all of the prayers you can.
A publication for friends of MD Anderson
RESEARCHHIGHLIGHTS
For complete news releases about these studies, please visit MD Anderson’s online newsroom at www.mdanderson.org/newsroom.
Selenium Shows No Benefit in Preventing Lung Cancer
Hagop M. Kantarjian, M.D., says research confirms dasatanib as a superior front-line therapy for CML. Photo by John Smallwood
Second-line CML Drug Evokes Faster Response, Fewer Side Effects
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N a multinational Phase III study, MD Anderson researchers found that treating chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) patients with dasatanib as a first therapy rather than the existing front-line drug, imatinib, or Gleevec®, provided quicker, better responses. Hagop M. Kantarjian, M.D., professor and chair of MD Anderson’s Department of Leukemia and corresponding author on the study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, presented the findings at the 46th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in June. While imatinib is the approved initial therapy for CML and has increased the five-year
CA-125 Blood Test Shows Promise in Detecting Ovarian Cancer
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A-125, the protein long recognized for predicting ovarian cancer recurrence, shows promise in screening for early-stage disease. In conjunction with the ASCO annual meeting in June, Karen H. Lu, M.D., a professor in MD Anderson’s Department of Gynecologic Oncology, presented the findings of a prospective, single-arm study of more than 3,000 women enrolled from seven sites across the country. MD Anderson is the lead site of the ongoing study, and Lu is principal investigator. If a larger study shows survival benefit, the simple blood test to detect CA-125 could be used to screen for ovarian cancer in postmenopausal women at average risk for the
survival rate from 50 percent to 90 percent, says Kantarjian, 30-40 percent of CML patients taking imatinib do not achieve confirmed cytogenic complete response, or the absence of the defective chromosome that causes the disease, within a year. Moreover, patients taking dasatanib had fewer side effects. “We’ve learned in cancer therapy that it’s important to use your big guns up front,” says Kantarjian. “Using this second-generation drug first will likely improve outcomes for patients with chronic myeloid leukemia.” The study was supported by Bristol-Myers Squibb, makers of dasatinib.
disease, which when caught early is “not just treatable but curable,” says Lu. Robert C. Bast Jr., M.D., vice president for translational Karen H. Lu, M.D. research at MD Anderson and co-investigator on the ASCO study, discovered CA-125 and its predictive value of ovarian cancer recurrence in the 1980s. “With these findings, I’m cautiously optimistic that in the not-too-distant future we may be able to offer a screening method that can detect ovarian cancer in its earliest, curable stages and make a difference in the lives of women with this now-devastating disease,” says Lu. The National Cancer Institute supported the study, a research project of MD Anderson’s ovarian cancer Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPORE). Golfers Against Cancer, The Jane P. and Wiley L. Mossy Jr. Foundation, the Tracy Jo Wilson Ovarian Cancer Foundation and the Norton Fund also provided funds for the project.
Learn more at www.MakingCancerHistor yCampaign.org
An international Phase III clinical trial sponsored by the National Cancer Institute has found selenium, a supplement taken daily by millions in hopes of protection against cancer and other diseases, to be of no benefit in reducing a patient’s risk of developing lung cancer, a recurrence or second primary malignancy. Daniel D. Daniel D. Karp, M.D. Karp, M.D., a professor in MD Anderson’s Department of Thoracic/ Head and Neck Medical Oncology, presented results of the decade-long study, initiated by the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group, at ASCO’s annual meeting in June. “Our results demonstrate that selenium is not an effective chemoprevention agent in an unselected group of lung cancer patients, and it’s not something we can recommend to our patients to prevent a second cancer from developing or recurring,” says Karp, the study’s principal investigator. Heated Chemotherapy: New Option for Rare Pediatric Abdominal Cancer An MD Anderson study published in the Journal of Pediatric Surgery has found that adapting an adult surgical procedure called hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) or “heated chemotherapy” can increase the survival of children with rare and aggressive tumors in the abdomen. Andrea HayesJordan, M.D., an assistant professor and pediatric Andrea Hayes-Jordan, M.D. surgical oncologist at MD Anderson Children’s Cancer Hospital, is the first and only surgeon in the country to perform the adult procedure on children. Before using HIPEC, Hayes-Jordan spends 10 to 12 hours removing, or debulking, the hundreds of tumors in a patient’s abdominal cavity. Then she runs the chemotherapy, heated at 40 to 41 degrees Celsius (104 to 106 degrees Fahrenheit), throughout the cavity while the patient lies on a cooling blanket to keep body temperatures at a safe level. The chemotherapy helps to kill microscopic tumor cells left behind after the debulking surgery. Within one to two months, patients are often fully recovered from surgery and back to regular activities. “We really are encouraged that this is going to help many children with abdominal tumors,” says Hayes-Jordan, first author of the paper. “In the years to follow, we hope to try different chemotherapies with the procedure to improve the outcomes and decrease any toxicities.” 7
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Cancer Survivor and Wife Say ‘Thanks a Million’ to Oncology Team
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harmaceutical consultant Charles Stiefel says he owes his life to MD Anderson. In gratitude for the care he received as a squamous cell carcinoma and thyroid cancer patient, Stiefel and his wife, Daneen, have pledged $1 million to establish the Charles and Daneen Stiefel Chair in Cancer Research. The gift is a tribute to Stiefel’s medical oncologist, Merrill S. Kies, M.D., professor in the Department of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology; his radiation oncologist, David I. Rosenthal, M.D., section chief, Head and Neck, Division of Radiation Oncology; and his surgeon, Randal S. Weber, M.D., chair of the Department of Head and Neck Surgery. “I wanted to honor and thank them, and to give back to MD Anderson,” says Stiefel, 59. “We’re the ones who received the gift. Those three amazing doctors saved my life.” Diagnosed in Miami in December 2006 with a squamous cell carcinoma at the base of his tongue, Stiefel sought care at MD Anderson after a physician friend insisted it was his best option. “We instantly fell in love with the institution,” Stiefel says. “It’s warm and inviting, and everyone we met was wonderful. My doctors went above and beyond the call of duty.” Though life is good now, it wasn’t always
Charles and Daneen Stiefel enjoy a vacation in Madrid, about six months before his December 2006 diagnosis. Now that he’s cancer free, the couple is giving back to MD Anderson and his oncology team.
Photo courtesy of Charles and Daneen Stiefel
easy along the road to recovery via radiation, chemotherapy and surgery at MD Anderson, says Daneen. “Charles hit every speed bump possible,” she says. Certainly not the least of those was the detection of thyroid cancer during what the couple thought was his final checkup. An ultrasound revealed that, while the carcinoma appeared to be gone, there was a tumor on his papillary thyroid gland. The cancer was eliminated through surgery. “Fortunately, it’s the most easily treatable of thyroid cancers,” says Stiefel, former chair and CEO of Stiefel Laboratories, a pharmaceutical
Teak Tree Farm Bears Fruit in Planned Gift
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hey say money doesn’t grow on trees. A couple of years ago a smart investor found a creative way to prove the old adage wrong. Retired Exxon geophysicist Lewis A. Lester, of Houston, established a charitable gift annuity with proceeds from the sale of a teak tree farm in Costa Rica. Through his will, he’s directed the principal to fund chronic lymphocytic leukemia research at MD Anderson under the direction of Michael Keating, M.B., B.S., professor in the Department of Leukemia. A charitable gift annuity, which can be made to the institution in cash or stock, offers the donor an income tax deduction and fixed payments, partly tax-free, for life. Lester set up the annuity to honor his wife, Diana, an MD Anderson patient who died in 2005 of mesothelioma, and to help improve outcomes for future patients. Keating became Diana’s oncologist when her leukemia presented three years after her first diagnosis in 1968, of ovarian cancer, also treated at MD Anderson. 8 Promise sUMMER 2010
Lewis Lester supports chronic lymphocytic leukemia research. Photo by Eli Gukich
“My wife and I discussed supporting research at the institution,” says Lester. “Through the charitable gift annuity, I can do just that.” Lester, a melanoma survivor, says a brochure he read in an MD Anderson waiting room armed him with lifesaving information. Thanks to early detection and prompt surgery by Frederick C. Ames, M.D., clinical professor of surgical oncology, Lester is cancer-free. His 33-year career with Exxon took him from Venezuela to Argentina, where he met Diana, to Colorado, where they were married. From
company specializing in dermatological products. The company had been in his family for six generations until it was sold in July 2009 to GlaxoSmithKline. Now living in semi-retirement in their new home in Raleigh, N.C., the Stiefels celebrated Charles’ third cancer-free anniversary in April. “Life is perfect,” says Daneen, who enjoys traveling with her husband and spending time with their two children and four grandchildren. “Without Dr. Kies, Dr. Rosenthal and Dr. Weber, my husband wouldn’t be here. Our family is very beholden to them for their compassion, concern and care.” —Sarah Watson
Colorado the couple moved to Libya and later settled in Lester’s home state of Texas. After retiring, the Lesters traveled extensively, with Houston as their base. During a visit to Costa Rica, Lester happened upon a presentation designed to interest locals in reforestation. Intrigued, the couple made some inquiries and soon found themselves the proud owners of 15 acres near Hojancha, in the province of Guanacaste. Thus Lester became a tree farmer who never planted a tree. That job went to a nurseryman who nurtured the tender teak seedlings through a devastating drought. Eventually, the rains came, and the trees grew tall and straight, suitable for lumber. The endeavor lasted 17 years until Lester sold the property to the nurseryman’s son. “Our family has been touched many times by cancer,” says Lester, who counts 13 cancer occurrences among 11 family members, including his parents. “Through the charitable gift annuity, I hope Dr. Keating and his colleagues can find better and faster ways of treating, and hopefully curing, leukemia.” —Sarah Watson
Read more about planned giving at www.mdanderson.planyourlegacy.org. A publication for friends of MD Anderson
Cancer Proves No Competition for Polo Player
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Tycha and Ron Stading enjoy a moment in the Bartolotta Family Garden at the Lowry and Peggy Mays Clinic. They’ve made it their philanthropic goal to help individualize therapies for fellow patients at MD Anderson. Photo by John Everett
On Cancer Journey Together, Couple Makes Path Easier for Others
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ince his diagnosis in October 2009 of inoperable lung cancer, Ron Stading has sent weekly e-mails sharing medical updates, memories and inspirational musings with many friends, family and associates. The online journal helps Stading, a nonsmoker, deal with the physical and emotional challenges of adenocarcinoma, a type of nonsmall cell lung cancer. It also provides hope and inspiration for readers or their loved ones on their own cancer journeys. Borrowing a popular anonymous quote, he writes in an early post: Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass. It’s about learning to dance in the rain. The words have become a mantra for Stading and his wife, Tycha, who was diagnosed in 2007 with advanced breast cancer. Inspired by the care and expertise they’ve collectively received over the past three years, the couple has made a generous commitment to support lung cancer and breast cancer research at MD Anderson. “We love everything about MD Anderson,” says Tycha, a retired teacher. “We wish we could give more.” Supporting the work of their doctors, Daniel J. Booser, M.D., a professor in the Department of Breast Medical Oncology, and Edward S. Kim, M.D., an associate professor in MD Anderson’s Department of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology, the Stadings want to help other patients by funding efforts in personalized cancer therapy that can have a direct, immediate benefit. One focus of the Stadings’ gift is the purchase of a gene sequencer dedicated to identifying molecular markers in the tumors of lung cancer patients. Armed with this information, Kim and colleagues can plan personalized therapies that target these markers for greater efficacy. The Stadings’ purchase will provide immediate help for hundreds of patients. “The Stadings’ generosity has allowed
“Learning you have cancer makes you have a different approach to life. You become more aware of what’s around you, and you begin to ask yourself what you want to do with the rest of your life.” — Ron Stading our research in lung cancer to go to the next level in personalized cancer care,” says Kim, principal investigator for an innovative set of clinical trials called BATTLE (Biomarkerintegrated Approaches of Targeted Therapy for Lung Cancer Elimination). “The research generated from this technology will facilitate collaborations that will help us fight the BATTLE against lung cancer. It’s truly a game changer for us.” The couple also plans to fund similar equipment for the Department of Breast Medical Oncology that will help clinicians individualize and customize therapies for breast cancer patients. Impressed by the care his wife received at MD Anderson, Stading joined the institutions’s advisory board, The University Cancer Foundation Board of Visitors (BOV), in September 2009. He received his diagnosis on Oct. 14. Two weeks later, during the BOV’s annual meeting, Stading looked past his shock to seize an opportunity. “It’s good to know that not only are our gifts helping other lung cancer and breast cancer patients right now, but also that MD Anderson can leverage our dollars as seed money toward large research grants with lasting, long-term potential,” he says. Life is like an echo, reads another e-mail post from Stading. What you send out comes back to you.
Learn more at www.MakingCancerHistor yCampaign.org
—Sarah Watson
rendan Fikes is an avid race car driver, inspired polo player and competitive business owner. He focuses on success. One competitor Fikes never imagined he would face, however, was cancer. That all changed in 2005. “A few years ago, the left side of my neck began to swell,” says Fikes, of Midland. A friend, who is an orthopedic surgeon, recommended Fikes have the lump examined by an otolaryngologist. He followed that advice and was told it looked like cancer. At the encouragement of his friend Melinda Musselman, whom he’d met through Polo on the Prairie, an MD Anderson fundraiser she and her family started more than 20 years ago, Fikes made an appointment at MD Anderson. He was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a type of cancer that typically manifests in the lymph nodes. With the help of an oncology team led by Larry W. Kwak, M.D., Ph.D., chair of MD Anderson’s Department of Lymphoma/ Myeloma, Fikes faced this new challenge and completed his treatments in November 2005. Committed to following his family’s tradition of philanthropic support for medical research, he made a substantial donation to Hodgkin’s lymphoma research at MD Anderson. He’s also donated to the Children’s Art Project, the institution’s Annual Fund and Polo on the Prairie. “An unfortunate fact of life is that a lot of people are going to get cancer,” says Fikes. “But with MD Anderson behind you, you really stand a chance of living through it and going on to see a lot more sunsets.” Fikes recently joined the Advance Team, an advisory board launched in 2001 to enhance the institution’s commitment to excellence and future growth. And as for the Musselmans? Fikes now refers to them as his in-laws. He married their daughter, Louisa, in July 2009. —Victor Scott
Video at www.youtube.com/mdandersonorg
Brendan and Louisa Fikes await the birth of their first child in November. Photo by Rolando Castor
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NewsMakers
Please visit MD Anderson’s online newsroom at www.mdanderson.org/newsroom.
UT MD Anderson No. 1 in Cancer Care
institution’s gynecologic oncology outreach site at Harris County Hospital District’s Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ) General Hospital. She works with Lois Ramondetta, M.D., associate professor in MD Anderson’s Department of Gynecologic Oncology and chief of the Division of Gynecologic Oncology at LBJ, on a team that provides underserved patient populations access to clinical trials of potential new therapies, state-of-the-art patient care and psychosocial support. “The opportunity to make a powerful difference there is tremendous,” says Fields.
MD Anderson is the leading hospital in the nation for cancer care for the fourth year straight, according to the annual “America’s Best Hospitals” survey published in U.S. News & World Report’s August issue. Six subspecialties at MD Anderson also ranked highly: ear, nose and throat (6); urology (10); gynecology (11); pediatrics (12); gastroenterology (19); and diabetes and endocrinology (21). The 2010 results mark the seventh time in the past nine years that MD Anderson has ranked No. 1. Since 1990, the institution has ranked as one of the top two cancer hospitals in the United States. “This achievement is due to the dedication and hard work of everyone who is part of the MD Anderson team, including the members of our Board of Visitors and Advance Team,” says John Mendelsohn, M.D., president of MD Anderson. The institution received funds from two new government sources this year: $53.8 million over two years through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and $29 million from the state of Texas’ Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas. MD Anderson’s $1 billion Making Cancer History®: The Campaign to Transform Cancer Care, publicly launched in February 2010, has raised $834.6 million to date (see page 5) for cancer prevention and risk assessment; basic science; translational research; personalized therapy; and care quality, safety and effectiveness.
—Sarah Watson
—Julie Penne
Peg Fields is all smiles as colleagues at MD Anderson’s Mays Clinic surprise her with the news that she is the 2010 recipient of the Ethel Fleming Arceneaux Outstanding Nurse-Oncologist Award. Photo by Barry Smith
Advanced Practice Nurse Peg Fields Receives Prestigious Arceneaux Award
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er peers describe her as knowledgeable and dedicated to delivering the highest quality patient care. Patients and caregivers say she blends “superb professionalism with the ease of a long-known friend.” Peg Fields, an advanced practice nurse in MD Anderson’s Department of Gynecologic Oncology, is the recipient of the 2010 Ethel Fleming Arceneaux Outstanding NurseOncologist Award, MD Anderson’s highest nursing honor. Fields formally accepted the award, established in 1982 by The Brown Foundation, Inc., at an MD Anderson ceremony June 21. Fields plays an integral role at the
Video at www.youtube.com/mdandersonorg
Video at www.youtube.com/mdandersonorg
Bill and Denise Monteleone are among more than 160 guests at a luncheon in May at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in New Orleans. Photo by Frank Aymami
Louisiana, Florida Events Focus on Oncology MD Anderson supporters heard the latest in cancer research news and patient care initiatives at recent events hosted in New Orleans, La., and the Palm Beach and Miami, Fla., areas. A March 6 symposium in West Palm Beach, for example, highlighted developments in prostate cancer research and integrated medicine. 10
Promise summer 2010
John Mendelsohn, M.D., president of MD Anderson, from left, Anne Mendelsohn, Jack Nicklaus, Barbara Nicklaus and Patrick Park visit during a reception in March at Park’s home in Jupiter Beach, Fla. Photo by Lucien Capehart
A publication for friends of MD Anderson
Osteoporosis Group Honors Couple for Strengthening Bone Health Awareness
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erdon Lawrence’s drive and determination have fueled numerous career successes, from his start operating a single towboat and barge to recently retiring as chairman of the largest inland tank barge operation in the nation. After a diagnosis of osteoporosis, he applied that same drive and determination to helping create The Bone Disease Program of Texas. The program is a collaboration of MD Anderson and Baylor College of Medicine and was established to generate the critical treatments necessary to prevent spine and hip fractures in those affected by bone disease. Lawrence and his wife, Rolanette, provided the first of two endowments, and in 2002 the program became a reality. It’s now named in honor of the Lawrences, whose total donations have reached $6 million. The National Osteoporosis Foundation (NOF) recently recognized the Lawrences as champions for bone disease research at the annual NOF Silhouette Awards Dinner in May at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Washington, D.C. “I’m extremely grateful for the passionate care I received at MD Anderson,” says Lawrence, who is a patient of Robert F. Gagel, M.D., head of MD Anderson’s Division of Internal Medicine. Over time, Gagel has been able to increase Lawrence’s bone density and lower his risk of spinal fractures. “I want more people to know that there’s hope when it
comes to reversing the crippling effects of osteoporosis,” says Lawrence. Bone disease, specifically osteoporosis causing spine and hip fractures, is “a large and unrecognized medical problem,” says Gagel, co-director of the program. “The Rolanette and Berdon Lawrence Bone Disease Program of Texas has been established to develop new therapies to prevent fractures,” he says. “The MD Anderson component focuses on optimizing bone health for patients with cancer. We’re indebted to the Lawrences for their pivotal role in developing this program.” —Victor Scott
Berdon and Rolanette Lawrence have given $6 million toward bone disease research. Photo by Anne Lord
From left, Dihua Yu, M.D., Ph.D., professor of molecular and cellular oncology, pauses after receiving this year’s TBW Award with Aysegul A. Sahin, M.D., professor of pathology; Mien-Chie Hung, Ph.D., chair of the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology; and Constance Albarracin, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of pathology. Photo by Barry Smith
Texas Business Women Honors Professor’s Outstanding Achievements Since joining the MD Anderson team in 1991, Dihua Yu, M.D., Ph.D., professor of molecular and cellular oncology, has devoted her time and research to fighting breast cancer and improving the lives of breast cancer patients. In honor of her internationally recognized efforts, Yu has received the 2010 Texas Business Women’s Award. Yu has served as the director of the Cancer Biology Program at The University of Texas Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at Houston and has published more than 80 articles in peer-reviewed journals. “The Texas Business Women organization is honored that Dr. Yu was chosen to receive the award this year,” says Beth Johnson, president of Texas Business Women (TBW). Formerly known as The Texas Federation of Business and Professional Women’s Clubs, TBW was instrumental in encouraging Texas lawmakers to establish MD Anderson in 1941. The organization’s support also prompted the state legislature to fund atomic energy-radiological facilities at the institution in 1949. Since 1974, TBW has given more than $1.2 million to MD Anderson. —Lana Maciel
Cancer Genetics Pioneer Wins Margaret L. Kripke Legend Award
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anet Davison Rowley, M.D., a trailblazing researcher of genetic variation in cancer, mentor of young scientists and role model for the possibilities of work-life balance, is the 2010 winner of MD Anderson’s Margaret L. Kripke Legend Award. The award was funded by Polo on the Prairie and the Vivian L. Smith Foundation. Rowley is the Blum-Riese Distinguished Service Professor of Medicine, Molecular Genetics and Cell Biology, and Human Genetics at the University of Chicago. “Janet Rowley has transformed the fields of cancer and cytogenetics, and, as a result, the field of molecular oncology,” says Elizabeth Travis, Ph.D., associate vice president for
MD Anderson’s Women Faculty Programs, which sponsors the Kripke Legend Award. Rowley’s research laid the foundation for personalized cancer care and targeted therapy, the primary focus of cancer research today. The award was established in honor of Margaret L. Kripke, Ph.D., a professor emerita at MD Anderson, whose leadership earned her appointment to the three-person President’s Cancer Panel. Kripke was the first woman to chair a department at MD Anderson and the first to advance to senior vice president and chief academic officer, and then to the positions of executive vice president and chief academic officer.
Learn more at www.MakingCancerHistor yCampaign.org
—Sarah Watson
Janet Rowley, M.D., from left, marks the occasion with Margaret L. Kripke, Ph.D., professor emerita at MD Anderson, and Elizabeth Travis, Ph.D., associate vice president for MD Anderson’s Women Faculty Programs. Photo by Barry Smith
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