Why Give Wednesday: Breast Cancer

What is Breast Cancer?

Breast cancer is a malignant (cancer) tumor that starts in the cells of the breast. It occurs in both men and women, although male breast cancer is rare. It is estimated that there will be 232,570 new cases of invasive breast cancer in women this year and about 40,000 women will not survive. Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in the United States, other than skin cancer. It is the second leading cause of cancer death in women, after lung cancer.

What is UAB doing to find the cure?

The UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center is a nationally recognized leader in the field of breast cancer research. The center is one of only 11 institutions in the nation to hold a SPORE (Specialized Program of Research Excellence) grant in breast cancer. These highly prestigious grants are designed to move research findings quickly and safely from the laboratory to the clinical setting.

Komen Promise Grant awardees at UAB

The Cancer Center is also a member of the Translational Breast Cancer Research Consortium, a national group of 14 research centers that conducts innovative, high-impact clinical trials in breast cancer. Also, in 2009, the Cancer Center was awarded a $6.4-million Promise grant from the Susan G. Komen Foundation to study triple-negative breast cancer, a particularly aggressive form of the disease.

Breast Cancer Research Foundation of Alabama

Since 1996, the BCRFA has raised and invested nearly $4 million dollars of seed money to pave the way for the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center to receive sought-after and sustaining grant dollars. These funds have been instrumental in developing the following:

-$11.5 Million Dollar Grant Pilot funding that led to the receipt and renewal of the Breast Cancer SPORE Grant (Specialized Program of Research Excellence)

-Microarray Facility Helped create the UAB CCC Microarray Facility that can determine the genetic footprint of breast cancers

-$6.4 Million Dollar Grant Pre-clinical lab testing to prepare for a $6.4 million Promise Grant from the Komen Foundation to change the prognosis and treatment of Triple Negative Breast Cancer

-Imaging Facility Helped fund the In Vivo Imaging facility which supports Three Distinct Research Studies in breast cancer
-Talent Funds to recruit and retain world-class breast cancer researchers

Dr. Edward Partridge, UAB CCC director

“The BCRFA works tirelessly to raise money for breast cancer research at the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center.  Their investment provides essential pilot funding for several projects that have potential to translate into new discoveries for cures and disease modifying treatments. This philanthropic support is absolutely critical, enabling us to receive additional, high-profile grants, as well as recruit and retain world-renowned breast-cancer researchers. For every dollar we receive from charitable contributions, the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center is able to generate an average of $16 in federal and other funding.” - Dr. Edward Partridge, UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center Director

The Breast Health Center at UAB

The UAB Breast Health Center is a leader in breast cancer diagnosis, treatment and research. With a multi-team approach to caring for patients battling breast cancer, the UAB Breast Health Center provides state-of-the-art treatment options and follow-up care. The Breast Health Center has a team of physicians with a strong passion for breast cancer and the patients it touches. Because our physicians are nationally recognized breast cancer specialists in oncology, hematology, surgical oncology, and radiation oncology, you can rest assured you’re receiving the best care available. We work with specialists in other areas of care when necessary to give you a comprehensive approach to treatment.

Why Choose UAB?
The Breast Health Center at UAB is unique in that we offer comprehensive breast health services that include screening, risk assessment, prevention strategies, diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation, and research. The UAB Breast Health Center has earned full accreditation by the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBC), a group of professional organizations from around the country dedicated to improving the quality of care and the monitoring of outcomes for patients with diseases of the breast. You can reach the UAB Breast Health Center at 205.801.8266.

Visit our website for more information, your support is greatly appreciated. Donations are accepted here. 

Why Give Wednesday: Gynecologic Oncology

Who is affected by gynecologic oncology?

All women are at risk for gynecologic cancers, and risk increases with age. Gynecologic malignancies are the fourth most common cancers among American women. Every year 80,000 women in the United States are diagnosed with gynecologic cancer. The five main types are cervical cancer, ovarian cancer, uterine cancer, vaginal cancer, and vulvar cancer.

Why UAB?

        Each year, the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center treats more than 2,500 women battling these cancer diagnoses. The UAB Division of Gynecologic Oncology is a multidisciplinary team of specialty physicians, nurses, and consultants providing comprehensive, compassionate care in treating women’s cancers.

        “One of the many reasons why women should consider coming to UAB is that taking care of women with cancer is more than just being a good surgeon. We very much recognize that it is a team approach and that’s exactly the philosophy that UAB has,” Professor Warner Huh, M.D., a UAB gynecologic oncologist says. “We take care of our patients from the moment they are diagnosed, to doing their surgery, to even the administration of their chemo after surgery as well.” 

        UAB is nationally renowned for its care of patients with women’s cancers and is recognized as one of the leading gynecologic oncology research divisions in the world. UAB was one of just five institutions to be awarded a Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE) in ovarian cancer by the National Cancer Institute and currently is partnered with Johns Hopkins in a cervical cancer SPORE. Researchers at UAB were also instrumentally involved in the development and approval of Gardasil, the world’s first HPV vaccine.

         "UAB is one of the biggest biomedical institutions in the world. We have clinical trials that no one else has; not only in the state of Alabama, but within the region as well as the entire U.S. The aggregative care the patients receive at UAB is truly unique and truly focused on finding the best possible care for the individual woman,” Dr. Huh says.

 What is your next move?

• Get Screened- When gynecologic cancers are found early treatment works best. Screening and self-examinations conducted regularly can result in the detection of certain types of gynecologic cancers in their earlier stages, when treatment is more likely to be successful and a complete cure is a possibility.

• Change Your Lifestyle - Diet, exercise and lifestyle choices play a significant role in the prevention of cancer. 

• Do Your Research- Additionally, knowledge of family history can increase the chance of prevention or early diagnosis by determining if someone may have a gene which makes them susceptible to cancer.

• Make a Donation - We utilize state-of-the-art technology to screen for and treat all types of gynecologic cancers, and our research team is dedicated to improving treatments, and, ultimately, finding a cure for these cancers. Your specific donation toward the gynecologic cancer of your choice will help make breakthrough discoveries and help our physicians provide personalized, passionate care to the women affected by this disease.

All donations are welcome and can be given through our website.

SPORE grants set UAB apart

The UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center is one of few institutions to have been awarded three or more SPORE (Specialized Program of Research Excellence) grants from the National Cancer Institute. Currently the center holds SPORES in pancreatic and breast cancer and is partnered with John Hopkins University on a cervical cancer SPORE. Additionally, the Cancer Center was the only institution nationwide to receive a SPORE grant in pancreatic cancer in 2010. Why is this grant such a big deal?

It supports projects that will lead to the early detection, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of human cancers. Each SPORE is focused on a specific organ site, such as breast or pancreatic cancer. "SPOREs are designed to enable the rapid and efficient movement of basic scientific findings into clinical settings, as well as to determine the biological basis for observations made in individuals with cancer or in populations at risk for cancer," according to the National Cancer Institute.

Principal investigator Donald J. Buchsbaum, Ph.D., director of radiation biology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, leads the SPORE program in pancreatic cancer. Support from the NCI was granted because of the Cancer Center's expertise in tumor biology, virology/gene therapy, immunobiology and targeted immunotherapy. Current research projects stem from previously established efforts that showed the most promise.

Kirby I. Bland, M.D., chair of the department of surgery at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, is the principal investigator of the SPORE program in breast cancer. In order to best accomplish the goal of prevention, detection, prognosis and therapy development, this project assembled many basic and clinical scientists, including molecular/cell biologists, pathologists, medical/surgical oncologists, experts in the development of new technologies, and biostatisticians.

There are currently 62 grants across 23 states in the country. UAB claims Alabama's only SPORE grants. Just another example of what sets the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center apart.

-Ed Partridge, M.D.

A World of Limitless Possibilities

Last night, the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center hosted "Progress & Promise," its annual address to the community. This is a chance for the general public to hear about the advancements made at the Cancer Center during the past year, as well as future plans for 2012 and beyond.

This year's program highlighted two important aspects of the Cancer Center. The first being that 2011 marked the center's 40th anniversary. While the seeds of UAB's cancer program were first planted in 1968 with the death of Governor Lurleen B. Wallace from cancer, the Cancer Center really took shape in 1971 when President Richard Nixon declared war on cancer by signing the National Cancer Act. This piece of legislation established "comprehensive" cancer centers that would be at the forefront of cancer research, treatment and education. UAB was designated one of the first of these centers, and it has maintained that prestigious status ever since.

A Rare Visionary

Like many people, I was saddened to hear the news of Steve Jobs passing away last week after a lengthy battle with pancreatic cancer.

Pancreatic cancer is truly a rare cancer - a person has only about a one in 76 chance of developing it in his or her lifetime. But though its incidence is uncommon, it is one of the most deadly types of cancer. With a 95 percent mortality rate, pancreatic cancer is the fourth-leading cause of cancer death in the United States.

These survival rates are so poor because the disease is often not diagnosed until its later stages, as the few symptoms it exhibits don't usually appear early. Only five percent of pancreatic cancer patients survive five years after diagnosis.

But there is some hope, and we are making strides in understanding this disease. The UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center is one of the few institutions in the nation to hold a SPORE (Specialized Program of Research Excellence) in pancreatic cancer from the National Cancer Institute. Through this prestigious grant, we are examining new and innovative treatments developed here in our laboratories and developing them for use in our patient clinics. Our SPORE gives us a tremendous opportunity to make real progress in the diagnosis and treatment of pancreatic cancer.

That Mr. Jobs was able to fight this particular cancer as long as he did puts him in rare company. He was a visionary whose groundbreaking ideas changed the world we live in. I hope that the research we do at the Cancer Center will do the same - by eliminating cancer as a public health problem.

-Ed Partridge, M.D.