Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center earns NCI Merit Award
Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC) has earned a Merit Extension Award from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in recognition of more than a decade of sustained exceptional progress.
Chronic complications from immunotherapies more prevalent and persistent than previously shown among melanoma survivors
A subset of side effects continued to improve over time,” said the study’s senior author, Douglas Johnson, MD, MSCI, clinical director of melanoma at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center and holder of the Susan and Luke Simons Directorship.
Study finds hallmarks of T cell exhaustion within hours of tumor exposure
"Surprising findings have implications for cancer immunotherapies that aim to harness the tumor-killing power of T cells, and they challenge existing ideas about how T cells become exhausted", said Mary Philip, MD, PhD, assistant professor of Medicine in the Division of Hematology and Oncology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
Grand rounds event highlights Advanced Practice Nursing at Vanderbilt
Advanced practice nurses, physician assistants and Medical Center leaders gathered in Light Hall on Jan. 17 for the kickoff of the 2023 series of Advanced Practice Grand Rounds, a monthly educational series organized by the Vanderbilt University Medical Center Office of Advanced Practice.
Trial seeks to expand therapies for biliary cancers
A Vanderbilt physician is leading a clinical trial that aims to unleash the full potential of immunotherapies against biliary tract cancers (BTC), which include cholangiocarcinoma and gallbladder cancer. Treatment options have been limited for BTC, which have low survival rates similar to pancreatic cancer. However, after a decade, there has been a paradigm shift in treating patients with BTC who are not eligible to have their cancer surgically removed.
Targeted therapy for neuroendocrine tumors
Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) can develop in many organs, with the pancreas a frequent location. These tumors are often cancerous and potentially fatal, and some NETs produce hormones causing a variety of symptoms.
Berlin named director of Division of Hematology and Oncology
Jordan Berlin, MD, Ingram Professor of Cancer Research, has been named director of Vanderbilt’s Division of Hematology and Oncology.
Researchers clarify role of blood cell mutations in disease
More than 10% of older adults develop somatic (non-inherited) mutations in blood stem cells that can trigger explosive, clonal expansions of abnormal cells, increasing the risk for blood cancer and cardiovascular disease. Multiple DNA sequencing methods have been used to identify what is called “clonal hematopoiesis of indeterminate potential,” or CHIP, but it has been difficult to distinguish true mutations from artifacts.
New treatment helps mitigate hair loss for chemotherapy patients
Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center has started offering scalp cooling, which mitigates hair loss for patients receiving certain chemotherapy regimens.
The DigniCap Scalp Cooling System was launched this month at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center Belle Meade. It is available for patients with solid tumors from breast cancer, prostate cancer, ovarian cancer, uterine cancer and lung cancer.
VUMC researcher selected for Global Scholars Program
Vanderbilt researcher P. Brent Ferrell, MD, is leading one of five projects selected by the 2022 NIBR (Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research) Global Scholars Program.