SIGNIFICANT CANCER RESEARCH DISCOVERIES AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS
DISCOVERIES 05
EVERY YEAR AN AVERAGE OF 7,000 PEOPLE IN HAWAI ‘ I ARE DIAGNOSED WITH INVASIVE CANCERS AND AN AVERAGE OF 2,350 WILL DIE FROM CANCER .
The mission of the UH Cancer Center is to reduce the burden of cancer through research , education , patient care , and community outreach with an emphasis on the unique ethnic , cultural , and environmental characteristics of Hawai ‘ i and the Pacific .
UH Cancer Center researchers work together with community clinicians , local medical centers , and other partners to :
• Identify the mix of genes , behaviors , and environmental exposures that put people at greater risk for developing cancer ;
• Educate people about our findings and about the latest breakthroughs in cancer research and lifestyle changes that help prevent cancer ;
• Study natural resources of the Pacific that may lead to development of new drugs and therapies to prevent or cure cancer ; and
• Bring the most effective cutting-edge therapies to the islands in the form of clinical trials .
We have a 50-year history of research discoveries and accomplishments in fulfilling our mission . Because of our strong relationship with our community partners , these accomplishments have been possible , and the people of Hawai ‘ i have benefited from these advances .
UHCC HISTORIC TIMELINE |
1939 |
Cancer identified as leading cause of death in Hawai ‘ i . |
1960 |
Hawai ‘ i Tumor Registry ( HTR ) established & jointly operated by HI State Dept . of Health , HI Medical Association with funding from American Cancer Society ( ACS ).
1963
LATE 1960s
Hawai ‘ i ’ s unique potential as epidemiologic resource for cancer studies recognized by NCI ; UH School of Public Health awarded grant to study shifts in cancer risk among Japanese migrants to U . S . This became start of demographic ( population ) studies & forerunner of cancer research center ’ s epidemiology studies .
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HI Cancer Research Laboratory dedicated within Dept . of Biochemistry & Biophysics with funding from local businessman Maurice Sullivan .
1969
Frederick C . Greenwood , DSc , director of Pacific Biomedical Research Center ( PBRC ) & Lawrence H . Piette , PhD , UH biophysicist , proposed expanding the research laboratory into a cancer research center .
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