Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

How can I reduce my colorectal cancer risk? Kimmie Ng, MD, MPH, medical oncologist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, helps us highlight the strong link between diet, lifestyle, and colorectal cancer. http://ms.spr.ly/6044YNMga

Peter Obersheimer, Associate General Counsel at Dana-Farber, has been named to the list of Top 10 30-Somethings by the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC). The ACC's Top 10 30-Somethings awards recognize in-house counsel between the ages of 30 and 39 for their innovation, approach to challenges, well-rounded perspectives, contributions to the in-house community, and pro bono and community service work. From the ACC: “His style … reflects his understanding of what makes people tick, and his personal mantra is to use it to develop the best possible working relationships. His easygoing way is one of the reasons, along with a myriad of other accomplishments, that he’s being honored in his role as associate general counsel and Head of Litigation at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.” Read more here: http://ms.spr.ly/6046lBqAk

When Brianne Brennan was 6, she spent a lot of time at doctor’s appointments with her older brother, Travis. Although she did not fully understand what Travis was going through, she knew he was sick and that he needed someone to help keep him in good spirits. Those days surrounded by caring nurses would prove impactful for Brennan, who is now a clinical assistant at Dana-Farber. “You could tell his nurses truly cared,” she says.  As they grew up in Connecticut, Brennan came to a better understanding of her brother’s illness. Travis was being treated for brain cancer. He sometimes struggled with nausea and the tumor made him blind in his left eye, but he continued to pursue his passion: baseball. No matter how sick he was, he lived his life to the fullest. “That was so inspiring,” Brennan says. “It was unbelievable what he went through and how he still always had a smile on his face.” Brennan, who was six years younger than her brother, was inspired to start playing softball. “I wanted to be him,” she laughs. Any time she joined a new team she tried to secure his number. And Travis was supportive and practiced with Brennan, preparing her for tryouts. While having a baby sister hanging around might annoy many teenage boys, Travis loved it. After basketball games, he took her out with his friends to get pizza. When they had free time, the two tossed a football around, hit balls at the driving range, got ice cream, and went to the movies. Soundtracking their life was the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Travis’ favorite band. When he was diagnosed in 2002, Travis was connected with the Make-a-Wish foundation and asked if he could visit all 30 North American baseball stadiums. In the years following, they made it to 17 in total. Every stadium helped create a special moment for Travis. Along the way, they collected memorabilia. Today, the family home is filled with signed jerseys, baseballs, and gloves. Those were good years when Travis was in remission. He studied at the University of Connecticut and worked as a clubhouse manager at Dodd Stadium. But when he was 23, his girlfriend found him unconscious in his dorm room. In the hospital, doctors found that his brain was bleeding and that the tumor had spread to his brain stem. Travis died in May 2013, and Brennan struggled with the loss. The following years were not easy, but with support from her mom, Brennan began therapy. She focused on holding on to positive memories of Travis. Slowly, things got better, and Travis continued to guide her. Watching him go through treatment inspired Brennan to pursue a career in health care. In 2022, she came to Dana-Farber - Chestnut Hill to work as a clinical assistant. Almost two years later, Brennan says she’s found the perfect field and hopes to become a nurse. Travis’ memory is alive in the care she provides. For Brennan’s patients, not every day is a good day. But she makes it a mission to find the positive, just as Travis would have.

Congratulations to Katie Greenzang, MD, EdM, who is the 2024 recipient of the American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Childhood Cancer Survivorship Award for Excellence. This award is given to professionals who focus on survivorship and have chosen to devote considerable effort to helping pediatric cancer survivors live full and healthy lives. Greenzang was recognized for her contributions to the pediatric hematology/oncology field. Greenzang is the associate Program Director, Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Fellowship Program at Dana-Farber/Boston Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders Center. Read more: http://ms.spr.ly/6043YCnyN

Personalized neoantigen cancer vaccines are gaining traction and being tested in clinical trials for several cancers. But what, exactly, is a neoantigen? A neoantigen is a new antigen, an antigen that the immune system sees as unfamiliar. In cancer, neoantigens form from genetic mutations related to the cancer. A mutated gene creates mutant proteins with portions that differ from the normal protein. When proteins are degraded, fragments are presented on the cell surface for the immune system to inspect. A normal protein will present a familiar antigen that the immune system will ignore. But a mutant protein will produce a new, unfamiliar antigen -- a neoantigen (the orange figure in the graphic below). Cancer vaccines help T cells target and destroy cells presenting neoantigens. Learn about the development of personalized neoantigen cancer vaccines at Dana-Farber http://ms.spr.ly/6042Yhjlk

Dana-Farber’s Momentum of Discovery featuring Pasi A. Jänne, MD, PhD. Identifying the EGFR mutation led to the first broad application of precision medicine in lung cancer – which paved the way for other active targeted lung cancer therapies.

Corey Cutler, MD, MPH, discusses treatment advances for chronic graft-vs.-host disease and current studies focused on GVHD prevention. http://ms.spr.ly/6044Y0jvm

Congratulations to Dana-Farber’s Rebecca L. Zon, MD (Becky Zon), one of four recipients of the 2024 Physician-Scientist Training Award from the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation. Working in the lab of Benjamin L. Ebert, MD, PhD, Zon is comprehensively evaluating what factors promote blood clots in patients with multiple myeloma, with the goal of developing more targeted medications to prevent blood clots and improve treatment outcomes in blood cancer patients. Read more here: http://ms.spr.ly/6045YhTKf

Congratulations to Dana-Farber’s Michael Reney, EVP and chief finance and business strategy officer, who has been named to Becker's Healthcare Hospital Review’s list of “CFOs to Know” for 2024. Reney joined Dana-Farber in 2015, and is responsible for treasury, accounting, business planning, revenue cycle, payer contracting, decision support, and population management. The Becker’s list features leaders who are instrumental to the strategic financial planning, expansions, and joint ventures of their organizations. Read more here: http://ms.spr.ly/6043YCV9J

Researchers at Dana-Farber are exploring the possibility that exercise could be specifically prescribed as medicine for cancer patients. Christina Dieli-Conwright, PhD, MPH, an exercise oncologist who runs the inaugural exercise oncology research laboratory at Dana-Farber, is investigating several exercise interventions that could help reduce side effects and improve outcomes for patients. “There’s a lot of excitement right now around the question of whether exercise can actually alter treatment-related endpoints,” says Dieli-Conwright. “Are those who exercise more likely to respond better to treatment?” http://ms.spr.ly/6040YNzJE