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UCI clinical trials leader named ‘Giant of Cancer Care’
Dr. Susan M. O’Brien, the UCI Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center’s associate director for clinical research, has been named a Giant of Cancer Care® for her sustained contributions in the field of leukemia.
New study points to better diagnostics for cancer
A new University of California, Irvine-led study finds a new method for identifying biomarkers may aid in early cancer diagnosis. The study focused on lung cancer, however the Cell Heterogeneity-Adjusted cLonal Methylation (CHALM) method has been tested on aging and Alzheimer’s diseases as well and is expected to be effective for studying other diseases.
Virtual town hall addresses COVID-19 vaccine concerns in O.C.’s Asian American community
The OC Asian Pacific Islander Taskforce, along with the healthcare agency and UCI Cancer Center, hosted the town hall to address concerns in the Asian American and Pacific Islander community about vaccine side effects and distribution plans.
Cancer treatment without side effects?
Charles Limoli, professor of radiation oncology at UCI, and Marie-Catherine Vozenin, associate professor of radiation oncology at CHUV/UNIL, used an ultra-high dose rate of radiation therapy to eliminate brain tumors in mice, bypassing key side effects usually caused by cranial irradiation. Their findings are published in Clinical Cancer Research.
UCI study points to how skin cells cooperate to thwart cancer
Melanoma is a life-threatening skin cancer that spreads quickly to other organs if not treated early. A new discovery by University of California, Irvine biologists shatters traditional beliefs about how melanomas develop, providing new insights into fighting the disease. The scientists’ research appears in eLife.
UCI researchers use deep learning to identify gene regulation at single-cell level
Deep learning, a family of machine-learning methods based on artificial neural networks, has revolutionized applications such as image interpretation, natural language processing and autonomous driving. In a study published recently in Science Advances, UCI researchers describe how the technique can also be successfully used to observe gene regulation at the cellular level. Until now, that process had been limited to tissue-level analysis.
Heart disease, cancer and COVID-19: Orange County’s leading causes of death in 2020
For all the ways life in Orange County changed last year, many deaths were morbidly predictable: Heart disease and cancer, like years past, were the first and second leading killer diseases in 2020.
Melanie Funes
Radioactive bone cement found to be safer in treating spinal tumors
Lead researcher Joyce Keyak, UCI professor of radiological sciences, presented the results at the 2021 annual meeting of the Orthopaedic Research Society, which was held virtually Feb. 12-16. Cancers that begin in the breast, prostate, lung, thyroid, kidney and other locations can spread to and erode bones, most commonly in the spine. Further complicating matters, normal radiation treatments for this problem can threaten the spinal cord and weaken the bones already compromised by the tumor’s erosion, increasing the risk of fracture.
UCI to build world-class hospital on Irvine campus
The hospital joins the previously approved UCI Health Center for Advanced Care to create the new UCI Medical Center Irvine-Newport, a full-service academic health complex that will bring a broad spectrum of the most advanced healthcare services to coastal and southern Orange County, including access to the hundreds of clinical trials underway at UCI Health. The medical center will connect with the UCI Health primary care network throughout Orange County, including its newest clinic in Newport Beach, creating the region’s only health system supported by one of the nation’s premier academic research institutions.
Chao Lectureship: Past Speakers
CHAO LECTURESHIP SERIES: PAST SPEAKERS
Find out how metabolomics-based approaches are revealing tumor microenvironment secrets
In this article, we speak with Dr. Chris Halbrook, assistant professor in the Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry at University of California, Irvine (UCI) and speaker at the SelectScience® Virtual Cancer and Immunology Research Summit in May 2021, about his work to identify mechanisms through LC/MS metabolomics-based approaches to help manage pancreatic cancer pathogenesis and ultimately improve patient welfare.
Protocol Review and Monitoring Committee
The CFCCC’s Protocol Review and Monitoring Committee (PRMC) is responsible for the scientific and feasibility review of cancer-related protocols and has the sole authority to authorize activation of clinical studies. All cancer-related clinical research studies must receive PRMC approval prior to activation. The PRMC consists of qualified UCI faculty and staff with the necessary level of expertise within each respective scientific research area.
Genomics Research and Technology Hub (GRTH)
The GRTH provides genome-wide analysis for clients interested in gene expression, regulation of gene expression, and genome sequence and variation. The primary forms of genome-wide analysis are the Affymetrix GeneChip, Illumina HiSeq 2500 next generation sequencing and PacBio RS real-time single molecule sequencing. Through campus shared resources, services for other technologies include NanoString and Ion Torrent PGM. The GRTH has expanded and currently provides services to numerous outside academic and non-profit institutions, as well as commercial biotech entities.
Melanie Oakes
Not all Asian Americans are being vaccinated at high rates. A Chinatown clinic shows why
When the vaccines became available, she and fellow community leaders — including Jack Cheng, director of operations of the Chinatown Service Center, which has medical clinics in Chinatown and San Gabriel, and Cevadne Lee, a director of community outreach and engagement at UC Irvine’s Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center who works on Asian American health equity efforts in L.A. and Orange counties — quickly realized there were efforts in place by the government to target Latino, Black and Native American communities.
Leadership
The Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center is led by a Director, a Deputy Director, and a team of Associate Directors representing all aspects of the center.
Kay Family Foundation gives $1.3 million to UCI Center for Healthspan Sciences
Elim Kay, president of the Kay Family Foundation, said: “Dr. Mahtab Jafari’s cutting-edge healthspan program is the ideal setting to collaborate on developing the unique health coaching program. We look forward to the outcome of this program so that patients – more specifically, patients with cancer – can benefit from it.”
UCI students employ photovoice technique to document reality in O.C.’s Asian American and Pacific Islander community during pandemic
The students recently showcased their work in a virtual exhibition titled “Through Our Eyes, Hear Our Stories.” The final product was the result of half a year of work and campuswide collaboration among the School of Humanities, the Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, UCI Libraries, the Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center and six local nonprofit organizations.
Metastatic breast cancer patient benefits from clinical trial research
Alberta Bustamante came to UCI Health in a wheelchair. The metastatic breast cancer patient is walking again thanks to an early-phase clinical trial funded by a National Cancer Institute (NCI) grant to boost enrollment of racial and ethnic minorities in such research.