Four Seasons Resort Hualālai ' s Gift
Each September a small band of Friends-supported UH Cancer Center volunteers travel to Kona to work with staff and other volunteers at the Four Seasons Resort at Hualālai ’ s Run for Hope weekend to raise funds for cancer . Proceeds awarded from the Run for Hope weekend activities , including the Taste of Hawai ‘ i Island Dinner and silent auction , golf and tennis tournaments , and run , netted a gift to the Friends of the UH Cancer Center totaling more than $ 22,000 to benefit the Cancer Center .
Champion of the Year : Jami Fukui , MD
Jami Fukui , MD , UH Cancer Center assistant researcher , was one of three individuals recognized as a “ Champion of the Year ” for her outstanding contribution to cancer clinical trials accrual in Hawai ‘ i . Fukui was awarded at the Hawai ‘ i Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting in November . The Champion of the Year Awards are sponsored by the Friends to recognize cancer healthcare professionals for their outstanding conduct and promotion of clinical trials . Two others who were honored were Kelly Watanabe , PharmD , The Queen ’ s Medical Center and Robyn Morse , CCRC , Hawai ‘ i Pacific Health . Congratulations to all !
UH Cancer Center volunteers at the 2019 Four Seasons Resort Hualālai Run for Hope , pose with cases of runners packets they completed .
Jami Fukui , MD , is flanked by UH Cancer Center Clinical Trials Office Assistant Manager Jenai Umetsu and Manager Kate Bryant-Greenwood after receiving her award .
UH CANCER CENTER SUMMER INTERN ALUM WINS SCIENCE AWARD
UH Cancer Center Summer Internship Program alumnus and student at St . Andrew ' s Schools , Kelly Masaki , received an award from the American Psychological Association ( APA ) at the Hawaiʻi Association of Independent Schools ' District Science Fair . Pallav Pokhrel , PhD , MPH , UH Cancer Center associate researcher , was Masaki ’ s mentor for the study , " Relationships Between Depressive Symptoms , Anxiety , Impulsivity and E-Cigarette and Cigarette Use Among Adults ".
“ In Hawaiʻi , 29 percent of youths report feeling depressed and almost one third of college students in our study used either cigarettes or e-cigarettes , so it is an important area of study ,” said Masaki .
Masaki ’ s project received an APA award for achievement in research in the psychological sciences . Her study found that mental health conditions , like anxiety and depression , were associated with increased odds of smoking . Higher impulsivity scores were also found to be associated with higher rates of smoking , and the association between mental health symptoms and smoking were found to be stronger among those with higher impulsivity scores . “ Findings from our study can be used to provide smoking prevention education for groups that need it most ,” said Masaki .
Masaki was selected in 2019 for a UH Cancer Center internship sponsored by the Friends . Stated Masaki , “ During my internship I really enjoyed getting to know the wonderful faculty and staff of the UH Cancer Center , as well as the other interns . I have always loved science , technology , engineering and mathematics ( STEM ) and the internship experience confirmed that I want to have a career in a STEM field . I love coding and computers and hope to continue in research during college . After the summer program , I took a college class in statistics to learn more about the theory of the programs that I used .”