Highlights of the AACI 2004 Annual Meeting

AACI 2004 honorees, from left, Edwin Mirand, Stuart Schreiber, and Ellen Sigal with Harold Moses, AACI president, and Frank McCormick, AACI program committee chair.

AACI welcomed cancer center leaders, industry supporters, the National Cancer Institute, and other cancer advocacy and research organizations to Chicago October 25-26 for the AACI 2004 Annual Meeting. Highlights can be found on the AACI website at www.aaci-cancer.org. AACI presented the Distinguished Scientist Award to Stuart L. Schreiber, Ph.D.; the Public Service Award to Ellen V. Sigal, Ph.D.; and a Special Recognition Award to Edwin A. Mirand, Ph.D.

AACI is pleased to welcome the George Washington University Cancer Institute to the Association. Steven Patierno, Ph.D., directs the matrix center in Washington, D.C. that falls under the umbrella of the George Washington University Medical Center.

The GW Cancer Institute encompasses nearly 80 basic science and clinical faculty members from the GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences, the GW School of Public Health and Health Services, the GW Hospital, and the GW Medical Faculty Associates as well as from two affiliated institutions, the Children's National Medical Center and The Institute for Genomic Research.

GW Cancer Institute's core research initiatives are designed to support a multi-disciplinary approach to the study of cancers that disproportionately affect minority and vulnerable populations, particularly breast, prostate, lung and GI/colorectal cancers. The Institute's basic science and applied research activities are structured around molecular and cellular oncology, onco-genomics and onco-proteomics, onco-genetics, experimental therapeutics, tumor cell biology, genomic integrity, technology and imaging, cancer prevention and control, and access to and quality of healthcare. GW's principal clinical research activities include medical, surgical, radiological and imaging trials as well as several ongoing studies on the psychosocial aspects of oncology.

Raymond DuBois will direct Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center

Harold Moses and Raymond DuBois.

Raymond N. DuBois, M.D., Ph.D., an internationally recognized physician-scientist best known for his work on the potential role of aspirin-like drugs to treat and prevent cancers, will become director of the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC) in January.

Dr. DuBois will succeed VICC's founding director, Harold L. Moses, M.D., Benjamin F. Byrd Professor of Oncology, who will refocus his attention on his world-renowned research, his activities on the national cancer scene, and his continued service to Vanderbilt-Ingram as an advisor and fund-raiser.

Currently, Dr. DuBois is associate director for cancer prevention and control at VICC and he holds the Hortense B. Ingram Chair in Molecular Oncology. Dr. DuBois accepted a faculty position at Vanderbilt in 1991 in the Division of Gastroenterology, with a joint appointment in Cell Biology. Five years later, Dr. DuBois was named chief of gastroenterology and held the Mina Cobb Wallace Chair for Cancer Prevention. Dr. DuBois is best known for his seminal work aimed at understanding the molecular causes of colon cancer and in devising better ways to prevent the disease.

Among his accomplishments and honors, Dr. DuBois has received the AACR-Rosenthal and the AACR-Landon awards, the American Gastroenterological Association's Distinguished Achievement Award and recent election by his peers as a fellow in the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). He is a member of the Royal College of Physicians and the NCI's Board of Scientific Advisors. He is on the board of directors for the American Association for Cancer Research, having chaired its annual cancer prevention meeting. He also is one of seven scientific advisors to the National Colorectal Cancer Research Association, an initiative by NBC's Katie Couric and the Entertainment Industry Foundation.

“A cancer center director must be a recognized researcher who is able to command respect from his peers, able to build consensus, and able and willing to work very hard to promote – and find money to support – the careers of others,” Dr. Moses said. “I have no doubt that Ray fits that bill.”

Washington Update

Congress passed legislation on Saturday, November 20 that provides NIH with an FY 2005 appropriation of $28.6 billion, an increase of approximately 2.9% over last year's amount. NCI will receive an appropriation of $4.865 billion, which is 2.7% more than FY 2004's numbers. While these amounts are slightly more than what the House recommended in September, the increases are among the smallest in NIH history.

Members of Congress were under particularly challenging fiscal pressure this year and will likely face more difficult limits in the 2006 appropriations process. AACI remains committed to assuring that cancer centers have the resources necessary to fund current and future research endeavors.  A key element in meeting this goal is educating Members of Congress and their staffs about the unique and promising work being done at AACI cancer centers, and AACI will sponsor a cancer center-specific educational symposium on Capitol Hill in early April.  Co-sponsors of the event are Friends of Cancer Research and the Senate Cancer Coalition and the House Cancer Caucus.  Look for more details and highlights in upcoming issues of the AACI Update.

Fred Hutchinson Scientist Awarded Nobel Prize

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC) scientist Linda B. Buck, Ph.D., will share the 2004 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine with her colleague Richard Axel, Ph.D., of Columbia University for their discoveries or odorant receptors and the organization of the olfactory system. In a series of pioneering studies as a postdoctoral fellow with Dr. Axel in the early 1980s, Dr. Buck clarified how the olfactory system works.

Their work is the first to define one of the sensory systems in the most detailed manner possible by defining the genes and proteins that control this remarkably complex response, and is a landmark achievement in the study of the nervous system.

Dr. Buck joined FHCRC in 2002 after 11 years as a faculty member at Harvard Medical School. She is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator and the recipient of the Gairdner Award, the Unilever Science Award, the Louis Vuitton-Moet Hennessy Science for Art Prize, the R. H. Wright Award in olfactory research and the Lewis S. Rosenstiel Award for work in basic medical research.

Many funding opportunities including new initiatives and re-announcements exist to participate in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Roadmap for Medical Research. Current NIH Roadmap funding opportunities can be found at: http://nihroadmap.nih.gov/grants/index.asp. Visit the NIH Roadmap Home page at http://nihroadmap.nih.gov for up-to-date information throughout the coming year.

News from the Centers

University of Wisconsin Comprehensive Cancer Center
James Cleary, M.D. has recently been named program leader for cancer control and population science at the University of Wisconsin Comprehensive Cancer Center.  Dr. Cleary is president of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine and co-chair of the American Pain Society's Cancer Pain Guidelines. More

Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center
Joanne Mortimer, M.D., is the new deputy director for clinical oncology at the Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Cancer Center. As deputy director, Dr. Mortimer directs the Center's oncology service line operations, coordinates the clinical care of patients and oversees clinical research operations. More

San Antonio Cancer Institute
Karen K. Fields, M.D., has been appointed president and CEO of the Cancer Therapy & Research Center (CTRC). CTRC is a partner in the San Antonio Cancer Institute (SACI), a collaborative research effort between CTRC and The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. More

Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute
A first-ever study of parental role in children's cancer treatment has been initiated at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute. Lead investigator Terrance L. Albrecht, Ph.D., director of the Karmanos program in communication and behavioral oncology, and other researchers in the program, which is funded by a $1 million grant from NCI, will use video to record and analyze interactions between parents and child patients. More

The Wistar Institute
A new study by scientists at The Wistar Institute suggests that instructions that control gene activity and are recorded solely in the molecular packaging of the DNA can also be passed to an organism's progeny, according to the new data. This heritable information is distinct from the genetic information coded in the DNA and is referred to by scientists as being "epigenetic" in nature. A report on the study appears in the November 1 issue of Genes & Development. More

Director, Clinical Research Operations
University of Chicago Cancer Research Center

The University of Chicago Cancer Research Center is recruiting a director for clinical research operations. Position manages cancer clinical trials office (CCTO), a CCSG core facility, and staff of 12 individuals responsible for the regulatory and data and safety monitoring activities of over 300 clinical trials. Responsibilities include managing personnel, regulatory affairs, quality control, and organization of cancer clinical trials in the UCCRC and its clinical network of affiliated hospitals in Indiana, Chicago, and outlying suburbs. Expand the umbrella of CCTO operations to include the cancer clinical trial activities of other University of Chicago departments not currently under CCTO direction. Successful integration of these activities is critical to the overall cancer center mission and NCI grant support. Direct and supervise all CCTO personnel involved in these activities. Work with industry, government and cooperative groups and a wide range of institutional financial, research and regulatory committees (eg., IRB, contracts office). Function as the primary liaison to these entities with respect to cancer clinical trials research activity and serve as a member of the UCCRC leadership team with responsibility for the quality assurance and compliance with regulatory affairs for all cancer clinical trials. Work with the cancer center director and director for administration in overall cancer center strategic planning, particularly as it related to clinical research.

Position Qualifications: Bachelor's degree or nursing degree required, coursework in oncology preferred, Master's degree preferred; a minimum of five years experience in clinical trials program development and coordination required; thorough knowledge of oncology research program management with expertise in cancer medicine and protocol theory required; ability to work in a complex healthcare delivery system required; broad experience in conduct and administration of research required; extensive experience in program planning, implementation and evaluation in a variety of settings (both University and community) required; strong decision-making, problem solving and analytical skills required; strong communication and interpersonal skills required; excellent scientific writing capabilities required; ability to work independently while being able to prioritize and set and accomplish objectives in a timely manner required; ability to produce under pressure and meet deadlines required.

To apply for this position, please click here.

Contact: Maria Reyes
Director for Finance
University of Chicago Cancer Research Center
Ph: (773) 834-2312 ext. 5-5968
Fax: (773) 702-9311
mreyes@medicine.bsd.uchicago.edu

Financial and Administrative Manager, CCSG
UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center

The UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center is recruiting for a financial and administrative manager for the Cancer Center Support Grant (CCSG). Jonsson's CCSG is a multi-departmental, multi-school grant, currently in its 31st year of funding. This position is responsible for pre-award and post-award management of budgets for 12 shared resources, five recharge accounts, as well as budgets for all research programs, developmental funds, senior leadership, program planning and evaluation. Incumbent is also responsible for oversight, gathering and review of information for four required summaries, including research programs, cancer center members, existing funded projects, accruals to clinical trials. In order to successfully present the non-competing continuation CCSG application and competing renewal applications, the successful applicant must possess current knowledge of CCSG Guidelines, especially regarding rebudgeting, and allowable and non-allowable expenses; requirements for cancer center membership and all other reporting requirements.

For more information contact: Robert DuWors at rduwors@mednet.ucla.edu or (310) 825-5268.

Vice President for Academic Affairs
The Wistar Institute

The Wistar Institute, a non-profit biomedical research facility, located on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania has an opening for its vice president for academic affairs.

The chosen candidate will serve as the senior administrator responsible for faculty affairs and scientific operations at the Institute. Primary duties include providing advice and counsel to the president/CEO on institutional research priorities, recruitment and promotion of faculty, policy development, and strategic planning.

The successful candidate should be a “working scientist” with an M.D., Ph.D. or D.V.M. who is conducting research in immunology, molecular & cellular oncogenesis, or gene expression & regulation. Senior administrative experience in an academic medical center or research institute required, preferably with respect to academic or faculty affairs.

We offer a competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package, including health/dental insurance and tuition assistance. Send resume to Director, Human Resources, The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce St., Philadelphia, PA 19104.