Sir Murray F. Brennan Knighted by his native New Zealand and more…

Posted on January 7, 2015 by Dina

On December 31, Sir Murray Brennan, an international leader in cancer research who chaired the Dept. of Surgery at MSKCC for over twenty years, was bestowed the honor of Knight Grand Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, one of his native New Zealand’s highest honors, for his services to medicine.
On January 5, the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) announced that MSKCC will be awarded a $3.2 million grant, one of five awards (totalling $28.3M) made to researchers trying to understand how genes get turned on and off.
In a January 6 article in PMLive entitled “Organs-in-a-dish aid drug discovery”, the work of MSKCC researcher Dr. Yu Chen, whose team created prostate cancer organoids, was highlighted as an achievement that could someday aid drug discovery.
Recognized in a December 31 Daily News article were the best ways that Taylor Swift gave back to her fans in 2014, including dropping in on fan and cancer patient, Shelby Huff, who was shocked by Swift’s surprise visit to MSKCC last March.

MSK Partners with IBM to Introduce New Skin Cancer Detection System and more…

MSK has partnered with IBM to introduce a new Skin Cancer Detection System. The system can categorize images of skin lesions into those that are melanoma, atypical and benign groups. Tests found the system 95% accurate in detecting cancerous lesions as compared to the accuracy of doctors which is 75 – 84%.
A study carried out at MSK in which the drug AG-221 was given to patients with acute myeloid leukemia achieved an overall response rate of 56%. 15 patients reached complete remission and 10 reached partial remission and the response is ongoing. The study’s lead investigator, Dr. Eytan M. Stein, stated that the medication “has the potential to transform treatment of leukemia.”
A review co-authored by MSK’s Dr. Babak J. Mehrara, a plastic surgeon, found that less than 40% of U.S. women who have mastectomies opt for immediate reconstruction. Some of the reasons include fear of complications and fear that immediate reconstruction will postpone the initiation of chemotherapy. Another concern is that reconstruction can heighten the risk of recurrence. In reality, reconstruction can improve the quality of life for some women.

A recent study has shown that male smokers have a greater number of cell mutations resulting in the loss of Y chromosomes in their blood cells. This is not experienced by men who do not smoke. MSK’s Dr. Robert Benezra has said, “This is an important study,” but that more research needs to take place. Identification of loss of Y chromosomes can bring about more rigorous screening of smokers at early points in their disease trajectory.
MSK’s Dr. Nadeem Abu-Rustum, Chief of the Gynecology Service, reported at the International Gynecologic Cancer Society meeting that sentinel lymph node mapping significantly assists in the staging of early endometrial cancer. It decreases side effects, makes possible the selection of lymph nodes with a higher probability of containing disease and reduces the number of lymph nodes removed, thus diminishing the possibility of the development of lymphedema.
Preliminary results of an MSK phase 1B clinical trial indicated that the PD-1 inhibitor, pembrolizumab used to treat pre-treated patients with Hodgkin lymphoma, brought about a response in 66% of participants in the study. The results were reported by MSK’s Dr. Craig H. Moskowitz, the lead investigator, who is clinical director in the Division of Hematologic Oncology.