Stephanie Schmit, PhD, MPH, Genomic Medicine Institute, has been awarded a five-year, $3.4 million grant from the National Cancer Institute (part of the National Institutes of Health) to investigate how differences in immunological factors drive disparities in colorectal cancer (CRC) outcomes among racially and ethnically diverse patient populations.

Among certain racial/ethnic minority populations, CRC can be less responsive to therapy and have poorer prognosis than in other populations, even after adjusting for sociodemographic factors. Research suggests that these observed disparities may be explained in part by variations in the tumor immune microenvironment (the non-cancer, immune-related cell components of a tumor). The tumor immune microenvironment includes several cell types, including tumor-infiltrating T lymphocytes, which are a type of white blood cell that penetrates the tumor and attacks cancer cells. However, the extent of this variability and the factors contributing to these variations remain largely unknown. The role of genetic ancestry has yet to be fully explored.

Cleveland Clinic has established a center focused on the diagnosis, care, and research of young-onset colorectal cancer.

According to the National Cancer Institute, cases of colorectal cancer in patients under age 50 have grown by more than 50% since the 1990s.

Colorectal cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths and the third most common cancer diagnosed in both men and women in the United States, according to the American Cancer Society. It is also one of the most preventable cancers. As colorectal cancer rates have fallen overall, researchers are trying to understand why they are rising in younger adults.

Evidence has shown that obesity and a sedentary lifestyle are associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer. However, it is likely that other factors are also contributing to the increase in cases of young-onset colorectal cancer. A diagnosis of colorectal cancer before the age of 50 is considered young-onset.

“More research is needed to better understand what is causing the rise of colorectal cancer cases in young adults,” said David Liska, MD colorectal surgeon and director of the Center for Young-Onset Colorectal Cancer. “We now have a center dedicated to early-onset colorectal cancer, with a specific focus on treatment, care, and research.”

The Cancer Center Seminar Series will continue today, October 1 on Zoom. This interdisciplinary seminar series addresses cutting-edge clinical, translational, and basic research topics in cancer and is a focal point of the educational and inter-programmatic activities of the Cancer Center. CME credit is available for those who attend seminars. 

Seminar will not be available for viewing at a later date.

Associate Professor of Neurology, and by courtesy, Neurosurgery, Pathology, Psychiatry and Pediatrics, Stanford Medicine Faculty Scholar

Stanford University

Michelle Monje, MD, PhD, is an associate professor of Neurology and Neurological Sciences at Stanford University. She received her MD and PhD in Neuroscience from Stanford and completed her residency training in neurology at the Massachusetts General Hospital/Brigham and Women's Hospital/Harvard Medical School Partners program, and then returned to Stanford for a clinical fellowship in pediatric neuro-oncology and postdoctoral fellowship in developmental and cancer biology. Monje is recognized as an international leader in the pathophysiology of glioma, especially diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG)/H3K27M-mutated diffuse midline gliomas and a pioneer in the emerging field of Cancer Neuroscience. Her clinical focus is on childhood glial malignancies and cognitive impairment after childhood cancer therapy. Her laboratory studies neuron-glial interactions in health and disease, with a particular focus on mechanisms and consequences of neuron-glial interactions in health, glial dysfunction in cancer therapy-related cognitive impairment and neuron-glial interactions in malignant glioma. Together with these basic studies, her research program has advanced preclinical studies of novel therapeutics for pediatric high-grade gliomas and cancer therapy-related cognitive impairment in order to translate new therapies to the clinic. She has led several of her discoveries from basic molecular work to clinical trials for children and young adults with brain tumors.

Professor of Population Health (Epidemiology), NYU Grossman School of Medicine

Associate Director for Population Science, NYU Perlmutter Cancer Center

Presented by the Population and Cancer Prevention Program

Medical Director, Molecular Diagnostics Lab, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center

Professor, Department of Pathology; Member, Immune Oncology Program, Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine

Join us October 25-26, 2021 for the Great Lakes Breast Cancer Symposium, hosted virtually by the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center. This annual symposium highlights ongoing basic, translational, clinical and population studies addressing the biological mechanisms, management and prevention of breast cancer. Researchers from participating institutions will share their exciting work with the goal of developing cross-institutional collaborations. This event is an excellent opportunity to connect with other breast cancer experts.

Special thanks to our Sponsors and Exhibitors: AstraZeneca, Seagen, Pfizer Oncology, Lilly Oncology, Genentech and Puma Biotechnology.

Junior faculty members and established faculty wishing to refocus are invited to submit proposals for career development projects of up to $40,000 to be funded by the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center (Case CCC) - Tazania - Uganda HIV-associated Lung Cancer Collaborative. This training program is funded by the NCI U54 mechanism and is a collaboration between Case Western Reserve University (CWRU), the Case CCC, University Hospitals (UH), Makerere University, the Joint Clinical Research Center (JCRC), Uganda Cancer Institute, National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR) Tanzania, Muhimbili National Hospital, and the Ocean Road Cancer Institute (ORCI). Full-time faculty at or above instructor-level at any of the aforementioned institutions are eligible.

Program Goal: Speeding the development and application of Mirati Therapeutics’ investigational drug candidate, adagrasib, for the benefit of patients with advanced solid tumors with the KRASG12C mutation.

Program Goal: Speeding the development and application of compounds within the Jazz Pharmaceuticals portfolio of medicines for the benefit of pediatric and adult patients. The collaboration with Jazz Pharmaceuticals will enable SU2C Catalyst grants for clinical projects with Zepzelca® (lurbinectedin) as well as non-clinical projects with JZP-815 (Pan-RAF inhibitor).

Learn more at StandUpToCancer.org/JazzCatalystGrant.

Program Goal: Addressing the issue of low participation by racial and ethnic minority populations in lung cancer research and unequal access to lung cancer care despite the disproportionate burden of disease in those groups. This Lung Cancer Health Equity SU2C Catalyst Program will focus on developing solutions that address provider-level barriers by leveraging remote and virtual care technologies augmented with Artificial Intelligence (AI) in an innovative care delivery model.

Northeast Ohio’s premier food and wine event - Five Star Sensation, presented by Huntington - again proved a five-star success, raising more than $975,000 for cancer research and services while supporting Northeast Ohio restauranteurs affected by the novel coronavirus pandemic, according to a news release. “This year’s events were inspired by Five Star’s mission to support leading-edge cancer care,” said Honorary Chair Dr. Theodoros Teknos, president and scientific director of UH Seidman Cancer Center.

September is Blood Cancer Awareness Month and Dr. Sudipto Mukherjee of Taussig Cancer Institute and Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, relates the story of WEWS reporter Olivia Fecteau’s journey after being diagnosed with T-cell acute lymphoblastic lymphoma/leukemia in October 2020.