Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center at Baylor College of Medicine Awarded Coveted NCI Designation

Kent Osborne, M.D., Director of The Breast Care Center and the Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center, consults with a breast cancer patient.

Cancer has become one of the major areas of focus at BCM and now The Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center is nationally recognized for its scientific and clinical excellence. It has been named a designated Cancer Center by the National Cancer Institute.

BCM has been developing its cancer center since 1997, building programs in research and patient care. More than 100,000 square feet is dedicated to cancer research, and additional space has been set aside in the new Margaret M. Alkek Building for Biomedical Research. Cancer will be one of the major patient care services at the new Baylor Clinic and Hospital, which will open in 2010.

"It is most appropriate that Houston, the fourth largest city in the nation and home to the largest medical center in the world, have two designated cancer centers," said Peter G. Traber, M.D., BCM President and CEO. "We have collaborated with M. D. Anderson, the top-ranked cancer center in the world, on many projects and, in fact, share a department chair. We see this as an opportunity to continue to strengthen that relationship, with patients receiving the greatest benefit."

Only 63 cancer centers have achieved such status in the United States, and only three in Texas. The third cancer center in the state is The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio.

Drs. Zhang and Conneelly with microscopes

Shuo Zhang, Ph.D., (left) and Orla Conneely, Ph.D., discuss leukemic blood samples.

Traber said BCM's cancer center, built around a consortium of hospital institutions, brings different strengths to the table in the fight against cancer. A major strength of the Duncan Cancer Center is BCM's recognized programs in the basic sciences, particularly genetics and molecular and cellular biology.

"Institutions tend to focus on areas of strength and one of the areas of strength in our center is genetics of cancer and having the BCM Human Genome Sequencing Center and other resources allows us to do things other institutions can't," said C. Kent Osborne, M.D., Director of the Duncan Cancer Center at BCM. "We focus a lot of our efforts on genetic studies of cancer—or what is called molecular profiling. We want to understand the genetic makeup of cancers, with the idea of eventually translating that into personalized medicine where we study each individual patient and each individual tumor and then make a decision on the best treatment rather than giving the same treatment to everyone."

As part of the designation, the Duncan Cancer Center will receive up to $3 million over the next three years from the NCI p30 grant.

The designation highlights the strength of BCM's collaboration with its affiliated hospitals, including Ben Taub General Hospital, the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center, St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital and Texas Children's Hospital.

Treating all patient populations

The Cancer Center's physicians have responsibilities for a broad spectrum of patient populations, including veterans, the underserved, children and adults. The Duncan Cancer Center designation will help to create more opportunities for improved patient care and increase translational research, which results in quicker bench to bedside treatments for patients at all affiliated institutions.

"One of the missions of NCI-designated cancer centers is to reach out to the underrepresented and underserved," said Osborne. "Our goal is to improve the care of and include greater numbers of less fortunate patients in state-of-the-art clinical trials."

The Duncan Cancer Center will continue to develop education and outreach screening programs, as community education is a key component of being a designated cancer center.

"The Duncan Cancer Center is really multiple institutions—it's Baylor College of Medicine and all it has to offer in basic sciences, patient care, education and com-munity outreach. It's Texas Children's Hospital with the largest pediatric cancer and hematology program in the country. It's Ben Taub General Hospital and the outstanding care it provides to the community's indigent population. And it's the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center—the finest veterans care provider in the country," said Traber.

Three doctors looking at an image on a monitor

Resident physicians Sarah Fleischman, M.D., and John Anguay, M.D., review a scan with William Fisher., M.D., whose expertise includes the surgical treatment of pancreatic cancer.

Faculty members represent 28 departments or centers from across the College. The Duncan Cancer Center is organized around eight major programs of excellence, including cell and gene therapy, cancer prevention and population sciences, molecular carcinogenesis, nuclear receptor biology, breast cancer, pediatric oncology, cancer biology and prostate cancer.

"In a sense we're all shooting for the same goal. We're all shooting for cure of our particular patient population," said David Poplack, M.D., Deputy Director of the Duncan Cancer Center and Director of Texas Children's Cancer Center, one of the leading children's cancer centers in the world. "The way anyone gets to be a designated center is that they have to have already demonstrated a very significant amount of funding that comes from the National Cancer Institute, and Baylor College of Medicine has an extraordinary amount of funding already. So it's in many ways recognition that you are a center of excellence."

In early 2006, Dan L. Duncan, businessman and philanthropist, contributed $100 million to the center.

Duncan, a member of the BCM Board of Trustees, said, "This designation is an important recognition of the outstanding cancer program that has been put together at Baylor College of Medicine. We believe this program will make a significant contribution to the eventual prevention and successful cure of cancer, in all of its forms."

The College receives about $100 million per year in cancer-related research funding with about $37.8 million from the National Cancer Institute.

Treating all patient populations

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Volume 3, Issue 2, Summer 2007


	Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center at Baylor College of Medicine Awarded Coveted NCI Designation by Kimberlee Barbour Kent Osborne, M.D., Director of The Breast Care Center and the Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center, consults with a breast cancer patient. Cancer has become one of the major areas of focus at BCM and now The Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center is nationally recognized for its scientific and clinical excellence. It has been named a designated Cancer Center by the National Cancer Institute. BCM has been developing its cancer center since 1997, building programs in research and patient care. More than 100,000 square feet is dedicated to cancer research, and additional space has been set aside in the new Margaret M. Alkek Building for Biomedical Research. Cancer will be one of the major patient care services at the new Baylor Clinic and Hospital, which will open in 2010. "It is most appropriate that Houston, the fourth largest city in the nation and home to the largest medical center in the world, have two designated cancer centers," said Peter G. Traber, M.D., BCM President and CEO. "We have collaborated with M. D. Anderson, the top-ranked cancer center in the world, on many projects and, in fact, share a department chair. We see this as an opportunity to continue to strengthen that relationship, with patients receiving the greatest benefit." Only 63 cancer centers have achieved such status in the United States, and only three in Texas. The third cancer center in the state is The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. Shuo Zhang, Ph.D., (left) and Orla Conneely, Ph.D., discuss leukemic blood samples. Traber said BCM's cancer center, built around a consortium of hospital institutions, brings different strengths to the table in the fight against cancer. A major strength of the Duncan Cancer Center is BCM's recognized programs in the basic sciences, particularly genetics and molecular and cellular biology. "Institutions tend to focus on areas of strength and one of the areas of strength in our center is genetics of cancer and having the BCM Human Genome Sequencing Center and other resources allows us to do things other institutions can't," said C. Kent Osborne, M.D., Director of the Duncan Cancer Center at BCM. "We focus a lot of our efforts on genetic studies of cancer—or what is called molecular profiling. We want to understand the genetic makeup of cancers, with the idea of eventually translating that into personalized medicine where we study each individual patient and each individual tumor and then make a decision on the best treatment rather than giving the same treatment to everyone." As part of the designation, the Duncan Cancer Center will receive up to $3 million over the next three years from the NCI p30 grant. The designation highlights the strength of BCM's collaboration with its affiliated hospitals, including Ben Taub General Hospital, the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center, St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital and Texas Children's Hospital. Treating all patient populations The Cancer Center's physicians have responsibilities for a broad spectrum of patient populations, including veterans, the underserved, children and adults. The Duncan Cancer Center designation will help to create more opportunities for improved patient care and increase translational research, which results in quicker bench to bedside treatments for patients at all affiliated institutions. "One of the missions of NCI-designated cancer centers is to reach out to the underrepresented and underserved," said Osborne. "Our goal is to improve the care of and include greater numbers of less fortunate patients in state-of-the-art clinical trials." The Duncan Cancer Center will continue to develop education and outreach screening programs, as community education is a key component of being a designated cancer center. "The Duncan Cancer Center is really multiple institutions—it's Baylor College of Medicine and all it has to offer in basic sciences, patient care, education and com-munity outreach. It's Texas Children's Hospital with the largest pediatric cancer and hematology program in the country. It's Ben Taub General Hospital and the outstanding care it provides to the community's indigent population. And it's the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center—the finest veterans care provider in the country," said Traber. Resident physicians Sarah Fleischman, M.D., and John Anguay, M.D., review a scan with William Fisher., M.D., whose expertise includes the surgical treatment of pancreatic cancer. Faculty members represent 28 departments or centers from across the College. The Duncan Cancer Center is organized around eight major programs of excellence, including cell and gene therapy, cancer prevention and population sciences, molecular carcinogenesis, nuclear receptor biology, breast cancer, pediatric oncology, cancer biology and prostate cancer. "In a sense we're all shooting for the same goal. We're all shooting for cure of our particular patient population," said David Poplack, M.D., Deputy Director of the Duncan Cancer Center and Director of Texas Children's Cancer Center, one of the leading children's cancer centers in the world. "The way anyone gets to be a designated center is that they have to have already demonstrated a very significant amount of funding that comes from the National Cancer Institute, and Baylor College of Medicine has an extraordinary amount of funding already. So it's in many ways recognition that you are a center of excellence." In early 2006, Dan L. Duncan, businessman and philanthropist, contributed $100 million to the center. Duncan, a member of the BCM Board of Trustees, said, "This designation is an important recognition of the outstanding cancer program that has been put together at Baylor College of Medicine. We believe this program will make a significant contribution to the eventual prevention and successful cure of cancer, in all of its forms." The College receives about $100 million per year in cancer-related research funding with about $37.8 million from the National Cancer Institute.		Search all issues: Features Saving Twins Before Birth Blessing to Botswana Preserving Brains Cocaine Vaccine Shows Promise News Building, Bucks & BBQ DNA Discoverer Gets His Own BCM Cancer Center One of Select Few Spotlight Bert O'Malley: A Pioneer in Molecular Endocrinology Making Sense of the Sense of Touch Tissue Samples Go Digital Severe Skin Conditions Take a Back Seat at Camp Dermadillo Health Economist Must Put Price Tag on the Priceless Doctor Creates Cartoon that "Bugs" Kids About the Risks of Tobacco Briefs Living Longer is Smelly Business Clinical Trials for Cancer Southward Bound Green Tea Component Blocks HIV Cell Entry Genetics Technique Takes Bite out of Research Barriers Sports Legends Lend Helping Hands, Arms to College Development & Alumni News Mitchell Gift Furthers Brain Research Lambert Receives Lifetime Achievement Award Kleberg Foundation Gift Establishes RNAi Screening Core Facility Alumnus Named White House Fellow New Trustees Announced Tailoring Technology to Benefit You, the Patient

	Volume 3, Issue 2, Summer 2007



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