DIRECTOR ’ S MESSAGE
IT HAS BEEN AN EXCITING YEAR for the University of Hawai ‘ i Cancer Center . Our ‘ ohana continues to grow with the addition of three talented faculty members to our Population Sciences in the Pacific Program . They will bring new approaches to studying the causes for disparities in cancer incidence in Hawai ‘ i and the Pacific , and they have already had a great positive impact on our Center . We were also successful in securing a grant from the National Institutes of Health to build a cutting edge Early Phase Clinical Research Center at the UH Cancer Center . This grant will match funding provided from the State of Hawai ‘ i in the last legislative session . With the creation of an early phase program , cancer patients in Hawai ‘ i will for the first time have access to novel phase I clinical trials without having to leave the islands .
The clinical trials activities continue to expand , supported by renewal of the National Community Oncology Research Program ( NCORP ) grant headed by Drs . Jeffrey Berenberg and Jared Acoba . Under this program , we were successful in establishing a new site for cancer clinical trials in Guam - by far the Western-most location in the entire national network ! Also , under the leadership of Dr . Jessica Rhee , and working closely with the Hawai ‘ i Medicaid / Med-QUEST leadership , we were able to facilitate issuance of a policy statement that ensures coverage of routine care costs for Medicaid / Med-QUEST patients enrolled on clinical trials .
Our education and career enhancement activities , led by Drs . Joe W . Ramos and Gertraud Maskarinec , continue to provide cancer research experiences to undergraduates , graduate students , post-doctoral fellows and junior faculty . These activities complement incredible community outreach and engagement efforts to ensure that the research done here has the greatest impact for the population we serve .
It ’ s truly an honor to work with the faculty and staff at the UH Cancer Center , and all of our community partners , to reduce the burden of cancer and move us One Step Closer to cure .
Mahalo !
Randall F . Holcombe , MD , MBA
DIRECTOR
Scientific discovery continues as a core activity to support our mission of reducing the burden of cancer , and we continue to have an incredible record of highly impactful research studies . These include population-based studies that explored the reasons for disparities across different racial and ethnic groups in the development of lung and pancreatic cancers , basic studies defining gene-environment interactions that contribute to the development of mesothelioma and other cancers , investigations into measuring body composition of astronauts with direct applications to cancer patients who may suffer from cancer cachexia , among others .
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