Cancer | Minnesota Medical Foundationtag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2011-02-27:/mmf/news//109442013-06-18T14:16:08ZHelping people live healthier lives by advancing health-related research, education, and care at the University of Minnesota.Movable Type Enterprise 4.31-enA centerpiece for the Biomedical Discovery Districttag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3972292013-06-18T13:38:17Z2013-06-18T14:16:08ZThe University of Minnesota revealed another 280,000 square feet of state-of-the-art space on June 14 at a grand opening celebration for its Cancer and Cardiovascular Research Building.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/103809896900659830248/CCRBGrandOpening?authkey=Gv1sRgCLCdxcv47_XZ8wE#slideshow/"><img alt="View a slideshow of photos from the grand opening of the Cancer and Cardiovascular Research Building. (Photos: Scott Streble)" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/ccrb_slideshow.jpg" width="460" height="300" class="mt-image-center" style="text-align: center; display: block; margin: 0 auto 20px;" /></a></p>
<h2>New research building opens its doors to the public</h2>
<p>The University of Minnesota revealed another 280,000 square feet of state-of-the-art space on June 14 at a grand opening celebration for its Cancer and Cardiovascular Research Building.</p>
<p>The building is the fifth facility in the University’s Biomedical Discovery District (BDD), located behind TCF Bank Stadium on the East Bank, and the first research building on campus that’s open to the public. The BDD is the single largest expansion of the University campus since the West Bank was built 50 years ago.</p>
<p>The new Cancer and Cardiovascular Research Building will house research on the role of chemical carcinogens in causing cancer, new cancer treatment models, and various studies on the heart and cardiovascular system.</p>
<p>The grand opening attracted a crowd to this highly sophisticated complex for a peek into the labs that will someday be home to significant discoveries. </p>
<p>University President Eric Kaler, Ph.D., asserted his confidence that this leading-edge research space will boost the institution’s level of excellence in the health sciences, and he thanked the district’s many benefactors for making it possible.</p>
<p>“Philanthropy is what you need to go from good to great, and great is what we have here at the Biomedical Discovery District,” Kaler said at the event.</p>
<p>In addition to facilitating medical advances that lead to new cures and treatments, the BDD is expected to attract up to $40 million in new annual research funding.</p>
<p>Researchers from the Masonic Cancer Center and Lillehei Heart Institute will begin moving into the Cancer and Cardiovascular Research Building later this summer.</p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/2eVSJtF1wOw" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/a-centerpiece-for-the-biomedical-discovery-district.htmlA state-of-the-art place for collaborationtag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3966032013-06-10T18:11:54Z2013-06-10T20:03:50ZBy midsummer, University of Minnesota scientists engaged in cancer and cardiovascular research will be settling into their new building across from TCF Bank Stadium. Conceived as the gateway to the University's burgeoning Biomedical Discovery District (BDD), the Cancer and Cardiovascular Research Building will not only house researchers, it will also welcome passersby inside to see firsthand the impact of the research being done throughout the BDD.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img alt="(Photo: Brady Willette)" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/UMF_CancerCardioBldg_6March2013_005.jpg" width="460" height="300" class="mt-image-center" style="text-align: center; display: block; margin: 0 auto 20px;" /></p>
<p>By midsummer, University of Minnesota scientists engaged in cancer and cardiovascular research will be settling into their new building across from TCF Bank Stadium. </p>
<p>Conceived as the gateway to the University’s burgeoning <a href="http://www.med.umn.edu/medical-research/biomedical-discovery-district/">Biomedical Discovery District</a> (BDD), the Cancer and Cardiovascular Research Building will not only house researchers, it will also welcome passersby inside to see firsthand the impact of the research being done throughout the BDD.</p>
<p>“The new building allows us to expand the footprint for cardiovascular science and medicine,” says <a href="http://www.med.umn.edu/cardiology/faculty/garry/home.html">Daniel Garry, M.D., Ph.D.</a>, executive director of the <a href="http://www.med.umn.edu/lhi/">Lillehei Heart Institute</a>, which will be housed primarily in the facility. “It’s a terrific opportunity for investigators who share common goals and use similar technologies and equipment to come together under one roof.”</p>
<p>“This new, world-class facility will help us recruit top researchers working on heart disease, diabetes, and a range of other illnesses,” adds <a href="http://www.med.umn.edu/lhi/about_lhi/Faculty/JMetzger/home.html">Joseph Metzger, Ph.D.</a>, whose lab also will move into the building.</p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/ekF8dD4-p3w" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/heart/2013/a-state-of-the-art-place-for-collaboration.htmlGetting involvedtag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3963582013-06-04T16:06:00Z2013-06-03T19:06:13ZJoin us for one of these upcoming events.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img alt="Champions for Children Celebrity Golf Classic (Photo: Kristie Anderson)" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/KIDS_IMG_7123.jpg" width="460" height="300" class="mt-image-center" style="text-align: center; display: block; margin: 0 auto 20px;" /></p>
<h2>Calendar of events: Summer-Fall 2013</h2>
<p><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/events/champions/index.cfm"><h3>Champions for Children Celebrity Golf Classic</h3></a></p>
<p><strong>Monday, June 17</strong> <br />
<strong>Windsong Farm Golf Club, Independence, Minn.</strong></p>
<p>Minnesota Vikings center John Sullivan will host this fifth annual event, which supports an Adopt A Room at University of Minnesota Amplatz Children’s Hospital in the blood and marrow transplant unit. The event has raised more than $450,000 for University of Minnesota Amplatz Children’s Hospital since its inception.</p>
<p>Visit <a href="www.uofmhope.org">www.UofMhope.org</a> or contact Nicholas Engbloom at
612-626-8429 or engbloom@umn.edu.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/events/golfclassic/index.cfm"><h3>Golf Classic “fore” Diabetes Research</h3></a></p>
<p><strong>Monday, June 17</strong> <br />
<strong>Town and Country Club, St. Paul, Minn.</strong></p>
<p>This tournament benefits the cure-focused research under way at the University of Minnesota Schulze Diabetes Institute. It includes morning and afternoon rounds, a live auction, and lunch and dinner programs. Join in the fun while supporting a tournament that has raised nearly $5 million for diabetes research in its history. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/events/golfclassic/index.cfm">Register now.</a>
Contact Katie Mae Pritchard at 612-625-5682 or katiemae@umn.edu.</p>
<p><a href="www.childrenscancer.org/timetofly"><h3>Time to Fly</h3></a></p>
<p><strong>Saturday, June 22</strong> <br />
<strong>Harriet Island Regional Park, St. Paul, Minn.</strong></p>
<p>Children’s Cancer Research Fund’s athletic fundraising event includes chip-timed 10K and 5K runs, as well as a 5K walk and a kids’ fun run. High-energy music, activities, and contests provided by Radio Disney AM 1440 will keep kids and adults alike entertained throughout the day. Proceeds support University of Minnesota research into lifesaving therapies and cures for childhood cancer.</p>
<p>Visit <a href="www.childrenscancer.org/timetofly">www.childrenscancer.org/timetofly</a>.</p>
<p><a href="www.reininsarcoma.org"><h3>Rein in Sarcoma</h3></a></p>
<p><strong>Monday, July 22</strong> <br />
<strong>Cafesjian’s Carousel and Como Park Visitor Center, St. Paul, Minn.</strong></p>
<p>This annual event, hosted by the Karen Wyckoff Rein in Sarcoma Foundation, benefits sarcoma research at the Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota. Join us as we celebrate the 13th anniversary of this event with a magical evening of music, entertainment, and family fun.</p>
<p>Visit <a href="www.reininsarcoma.org">www.reininsarcoma.org</a>.</p>
<p><a href="www.give.umn.edu/alumni/reunions"><h3>University of Minnesota Medica l School Alumni Celebration</h3></a></p>
<p><strong>Thursday-Saturday, September 19-21</strong> <br />
<strong>McNamara Alumni Center</strong> <br />
<strong>University of Minnesota, Minneapolis</strong></p>
<p>All Medical School alumni, scholarship donors and recipients, and those celebrating class reunions (1948, 1953, 1958, 1963, 1973, 1983, 1988, 1993, and 2003 graduates) are invited to reunite with friends, learn about the latest in medical education, and see
what’s new at the Medical School. Invitations will be mailed in August.</p>
<p>Visit <a href="www.give.umn.edu/alumni/reunions">www.give.umn.edu/alumni/reunions</a> or contact Katrina Roth at roth0103@umn.edu or 612-625-0336.</p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/Tx_d4e3V8ao" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/givingmatters/2013/getting-involved-1.htmlNew research building takes shape for June grand openingtag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3935712013-04-29T19:38:29Z2013-04-30T19:18:07ZConstruction crews have been hard
at work this spring as they put the finishing
touches on the newest building in
the university of Minnesota’s burgeoning
Biomedical Discovery District.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img alt="The Cancer and Cardiovascular Research Building is the gateway to the University's Biomedical Discovery District. (Photo: Brady Willette)" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/011-Cancer-cardio-bldg_3-06-2013.jpg" width="460" height="300" class="mt-image-center" style="text-align: center; display: block; margin: 0 auto 20px;" /></p>
<p>Construction crews have been hard
at work this spring as they put the finishing
touches on the newest building in
the university of Minnesota’s burgeoning
Biomedical Discovery District.</p>
<p>The Cancer and Cardiovascular
Research Building encompasses
280,000 square feet of state-of-the-art
research space and will serve as the
gateway to the <a href="http://www.health.umn.edu/research/bdd/">Biomedical Discovery
District</a>, the result of a $292 million
funding program approved by the state
of Minnesota in 2008.</p>
<p><img alt="The new building features a large skylight in the lobby. (Photo: Brady Willette)" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/048-mmf_ccresearch-tour_2-25-2013.jpg" width="220" height="270" class="mt-image-right" style="float: right; margin: 0 0 20px 20px;" /></p>
<p>Together, the district’s five buildings
will bring together more than 1,000
investigators and personnel in 700,000
square feet of space — larger than
12 football fields — to discover
next-generation therapies for a number
of medical conditions. the district is
expected to attract up to $40 million in
new annual research funding.</p>
<p>The cancer researchers housed in the
new Cancer and Cardiovascular Research
Building will study chemical biology with
a focus on the role of chemical carcinogens
in causing cancer. Others will build
new models to find better cancer treatments.
Heart researchers housed there
will study cardiac regeneration and
development, muscular dystrophy, congenital
heart medicine, and genomics.</p>
<p>A ribbon-cutting ceremony at the
Cancer and Cardiovascular Research
Building is slated for June 14. Faculty
members whose labs are moving to the
new building will occupy the space
beginning in July.</p>
<h6>Web extras</h6>
<p><a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/103809896900659830248/MB_Spring2013_CancerCardio?authkey=Gv1sRgCL7835ruj-Xj3gE#slideshow/" target="_blank"><h3>Slideshow: The new Cancer and Cardiovascular Research Building <img alt="sm_photos.png" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/sm_photos.png" width="20" height="20" class="mt-image-none" style="" /></h3><img alt="" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/MB_S13_CancerCardioBldg_Titlecard.jpg" width="260" height="160" class="mt-image-center" style="text-align: center; display: block; margin: 0 auto 20px;" /></a></p>
<p><a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/103809896900659830248/MB_Spring2013_CancerCardio?authkey=Gv1sRgCL7835ruj-Xj3gE#slideshow/" target="_blank">See a slideshow</a> of how the newest Biomedical Discovery
District building took shape during different
stages of construction.</p>
<p></div>
<div class="highlight"></p>
<h6>Cancer and Cardiovascular Research Building</h6>
<p><img alt="Joseph Metzger, Ph.D., leads a tour group through the Cancer and Cardiovascular Research Building. (Photo: Brady Willette) " src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/017-mmf_ccresearch-tour_2-25-2013.jpg" width="260" height="160" class="mt-image-center" style="text-align: center; display: block; margin: 0 auto 20px;" />
<br>
<img alt="Visitor's plaza at the Cancer and Cardiovascular Research Building. (Photo: Brady Willette)" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/066-mmf_ccresearch-tour_2-25-2013.jpg" width="260" height="160" class="mt-image-center" style="text-align: center; display: block; margin: 0 auto 20px;" /></p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/1rr8WoVrTJo" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/bulletin/2013/new-research-building-takes-shape-for-june-grand-opening.htmlU team discovers enzyme behind breast cancer mutationstag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3935732013-04-29T19:37:56Z2013-04-26T20:10:45ZA Masonic Cancer Center, University of
Minnesota research team has uncovered
a human enzyme responsible for causing
DNA mutations found in most breast
cancers. The discovery of this enzyme —
called APOBEC3B — may change the way
breast cancer is diagnosed and treated.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img alt="Reuben Harris, Ph.D. (Photo: Scott Streble)" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/MSN-Harris_014.jpg" width="460" height="300" class="mt-image-center" style="text-align: center; display: block; margin: 0 auto 20px;" /></p>
<p>A <a href="http://www.cancer.umn.edu/">Masonic Cancer Center, University of
Minnesota</a> research team has uncovered
a human enzyme responsible for causing
DNA mutations found in most breast
cancers. The discovery of this enzyme —
called APOBEC3B — may change the way
breast cancer is diagnosed and treated.</p>
<p>“Hopefully, [the discovery] will allow
cancer researchers to develop new treatment
approaches that can prevent these
mutations before they become harmful,”
says lead researcher Reuben Harris, Ph.D.,
associate professor of biochemistry,
molecular biology, and biophysics and a
member of the Masonic Cancer Center.</p>
<p>Previous HIV research conducted
by Harris’s lab on APOBEC3 enzymes
eventually led to the discovery that
APOBEC3B is overexpressed in breast cancer cell lines
and tumors.</p>
<p>“DNA mutations are absolutely
essential for cancer
development,” says Harris.
“Our experiments showed the
APOBEC3B enzyme causes
mutations in the genome of breast
cancer cells. From this, we were able to
reasonably conclude that the APOBEC3B
is a key influencer in breast cancer.”</p>
<p>If further studies confirm that finding,
a simple blood test could result in early
detection, says Harris, who is also looking
for ways to block APOBEC3B from
causing mutations.</p>
<p>The findings were published in the
Feb. 6 online edition of <em>Nature</em>. </p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/mbCa4hIMAFU" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/bulletin/2013/u-team-discovers-enzyme-behind-breast-cancer-mutations.htmlMasonic Cancer Center researchers develop drug to destroy pancreatic cancer cellstag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3935772013-04-29T19:34:41Z2013-04-26T20:27:38ZA drug created by researchers at the Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota may hold the answer to defeating pancreatic cancer.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img alt="Research led by Ashok Saluja, Ph.D., shows the potential of the new drug Minnelide to treat pancreatic cancer. (Photo: Scott Streble)" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/MSN-Saluja_036.jpg" width="220" height="270" class="mt-image-right" style="float: right; margin: 0 0 20px 20px;" /></p>
<p>A drug created by researchers at
the <a href="http://www.cancer.umn.edu/">Masonic Cancer Center, University
of Minnesota</a> may hold the answer to
defeating pancreatic cancer, according
to a study published in <em><a href="http://stm.sciencemag.org/content/4/156/156ra139.full?sid=52ac7437-ac0d-4653-8ef5-c9db3c553d68">Science Translational
Medicine</a></em> in October.</p>
<p>The compound, dubbed “Minnelide,”
is a type of injectable chemotherapy
designed to target tumor cells. It works
by inhibiting the heat shock protein
(hSP) 70, which protects cells — even
tumor cells — from dying. By inhibiting
that protein, Minnelide disperses the
cells integral to tumor growth, and the
cancer disintegrates.</p>
<p>Historically, pancreatic cancer has
been extremely difficult to treat. More
than 44,000 Americans are diagnosed each year, and almost as many will die.
It’s hard to catch early, and there’s no
good therapy.</p>
<p>In preclinical tests at the University,
mice implanted with human pancreatic
cancer cells lived a median of 36 days,
but infected mice treated with Minnelide
lived a median of more than 390 days.</p>
<p>Lead researcher and Masonic Cancer
Center member <a href="http://www.surg.umn.edu/Faculty_Alpha/saluja_ashok_k/home.html">Ashok Saluja, Ph.D.</a>, and
his team hope these success rates will
be carried over to human patients. Clinical
trials are currently under review by
the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
but could begin later this year.</p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/NAc-D403ZEM" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/bulletin/2013/masonic-cancer-center-researchers-develop-drug-to-destroy-pancreatic-cancer-cells.htmlMasonic Cancer Center Newstag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2012:/mmf/news//10944.2984082013-03-26T20:15:33Z2013-03-26T16:32:19ZThe latest issue of Masonic Cancer Center News is now available in print and online.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<h2>Spring 2013</h2>
<div class="entry-listing">
<div id="entry-387901" class="entry-asset asset hentry">
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dc:title="Switching gears"
dc:identifier="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/switching-gears.html"
dc:subject="Cancer"
dc:description=""Mutant variants of human cells": the phrase conjures up images of a bad sci-fi movie. But Reuben Harris, Ph.D., has been studying cell mutations for more than 20 years, and his recent finding is more akin to an Oscar-winning blockbuster.
So remarkable is his work that the prestigious journal Nature in February published his discovery that a protein that occurs naturally in the body appears to be a driver for more than half of breast cancers he studied. This breakthrough could lead to new diagnostic tools and, potentially, new treatments for breast cancer."
dc:creator="lijew007"
dc:date="2013-03-25T11:55:59-06:00" />
</rdf:RDF>
-->
<div class="asset-header">
<h3 class="asset-name entry-title"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/switching-gears.html" rel="bookmark">
Switching gears
</a></h3>
<a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/switching-gears.html"><img src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/assets_c/2013/03/Harris_014-thumb-100x100-148775.jpg" alt="Reuben Harris, Ph.D., identified a protein that appears to be a driver for more than half of breast cancers. Now he's investigating the protein's rol in other types of cancer as well. (Photo: Scott Streble)" class="thumbnail" /></a><h4>Longtime HIV researcher makes a breakthrough cancer discovery</h4>
<p>
“Mutant variants of human cells”: the phrase conjures up images of a bad sci-fi movie. But Reuben Harris, Ph.D., has been studying cell mutations for more than 20 years, and his recent finding is more akin to an Oscar-winning blockbuster.</p>
<p>So remarkable is his work that the prestigious journal Nature in February published his discovery that a protein that occurs naturally in the body appears to be a driver for more than half of breast cancers he studied. This breakthrough could lead to new diagnostic tools and, potentially, new treatments for breast cancer.
</p>
</div>
<div class="asset-more-link">
<p class="credits"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/switching-gears.html" rel="bookmark">Read more »</a></p>
</div>
</div>
<div id="entry-387902" class="entry-asset asset hentry">
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<rdf:Description
rdf:about="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/study-examines-meditations-potential-to-improve-recovery-after-cancer-treatment.html"
trackback:ping="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/cgi-bin/mt-tb.cgi/209140"
dc:title="Study examines meditation's potential to improve recovery after cancer treatment"
dc:identifier="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/study-examines-meditations-potential-to-improve-recovery-after-cancer-treatment.html"
dc:subject="Cancer"
dc:description="Pat Rudolph had never pegged herself as the meditation type. Yet here she was in a weekly, two-hour mindfulness meditation course with a dozen strangers."
dc:creator="lijew007"
dc:date="2013-03-25T11:54:32-06:00" />
</rdf:RDF>
-->
<div class="asset-header">
<h3 class="asset-name entry-title"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/study-examines-meditations-potential-to-improve-recovery-after-cancer-treatment.html" rel="bookmark">
Study examines meditation’s potential to improve recovery after cancer treatment
</a></h3>
<a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/study-examines-meditations-potential-to-improve-recovery-after-cancer-treatment.html"><img src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/assets_c/2013/03/Blaes_Anne-thumb-100x100-148776.jpg" alt="Anne Blaes, M.D." class="thumbnail" /></a>
<p>
Pat Rudolph had never pegged herself as the meditation type. Yet here she was in a weekly, two-hour mindfulness meditation course with a dozen strangers.
</p>
</div>
<div class="asset-more-link">
<p class="credits"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/study-examines-meditations-potential-to-improve-recovery-after-cancer-treatment.html" rel="bookmark">Read more »</a></p>
</div>
</div>
<div id="entry-387904" class="entry-asset asset hentry">
<!--
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<rdf:Description
rdf:about="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/far-reaching-impact.html"
trackback:ping="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/cgi-bin/mt-tb.cgi/209142"
dc:title="Far-reaching impact"
dc:identifier="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/far-reaching-impact.html"
dc:subject="Cancer"
dc:description="Across the street, across the state, across the country, and across the world, members of the Masonic Cancer Center are helping people live healthier lives. Not only does the impact of our research stretch across borders and oceans, but some of our leaders are working directly with leaders in other countries to accomplish a myriad of goals — to share knowledge, to exchange ideas, and even to help meet basic needs."
dc:creator="lijew007"
dc:date="2013-03-25T11:53:57-06:00" />
</rdf:RDF>
-->
<div class="asset-header">
<h3 class="asset-name entry-title"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/far-reaching-impact.html" rel="bookmark">
Far-reaching impact
</a></h3>
<a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/far-reaching-impact.html"><img src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/assets_c/2013/03/Lund_Troy-thumb-100x100-148781.jpg" alt="Lund_Troy.jpg" class="thumbnail" /></a>
<p>
Across the street, across the state, across the country, and across the world, members of the Masonic Cancer Center are helping people live healthier lives. Not only does the impact of our research stretch across borders and oceans, but some of our leaders are working directly with leaders in other countries to accomplish a myriad of goals — to share knowledge, to exchange ideas, and even to help meet basic needs.
</p>
</div>
<div class="asset-more-link">
<p class="credits"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/far-reaching-impact.html" rel="bookmark">Read more »</a></p>
</div>
</div>
<div id="entry-389003" class="entry-asset asset hentry">
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<rdf:Description
rdf:about="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/remembering-a-leader.html"
trackback:ping="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/cgi-bin/mt-tb.cgi/209929"
dc:title="Remembering a leader"
dc:identifier="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/remembering-a-leader.html"
dc:subject="Cancer"
dc:description="The Masonic Cancer Center, University of
Minnesota lost one of its most prominent and
influential physician-scientists March 10 with
the sudden death of John Kersey, M.D. He was
74 years old."
dc:creator="lijew007"
dc:date="2013-03-25T11:49:53-06:00" />
</rdf:RDF>
-->
<div class="asset-header">
<h3 class="asset-name entry-title"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/remembering-a-leader.html" rel="bookmark">
Remembering a leader
</a></h3>
<a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/remembering-a-leader.html"><img src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/assets_c/2013/03/Kersey_John_(fromUMP)-thumb-100x100-148787.jpg" alt="John Kersey, M.D., will retire from his research position in June." class="thumbnail" /></a>
<p>
The Masonic Cancer Center, University of
Minnesota lost one of its most prominent and
influential physician-scientists March 10 with
the sudden death of John Kersey, M.D. He was
74 years old.
</p>
</div>
<div class="asset-more-link">
<p class="credits"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/remembering-a-leader.html" rel="bookmark">Read more »</a></p>
</div>
</div>
<div id="entry-387912" class="entry-asset asset hentry">
<!--
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xmlns:trackback="http://madskills.com/public/xml/rss/module/trackback/"
xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/">
<rdf:Description
rdf:about="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/with-philanthropy-research-team-targets-a-biological-drug-for-treating-leukemia.html"
trackback:ping="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/cgi-bin/mt-tb.cgi/209150"
dc:title="With philanthropy, research team targets a biological drug for treating leukemia"
dc:identifier="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/with-philanthropy-research-team-targets-a-biological-drug-for-treating-leukemia.html"
dc:subject="Cancer"
dc:description="Michael Verneris, M.D., senses an urgent need every time he looks into the faces of his young patients who have acute lymphoblastic leukemia at the Journey Clinic at University of Minnesota Amplatz Children's Hospital.
"The need to develop new treatments, less toxic and more effective than chemotherapy, is huge," he says, "and I feel that sense of urgency every week when I sit next to a patient and have to explain that the options are slim.""
dc:creator="lijew007"
dc:date="2013-03-25T11:49:20-06:00" />
</rdf:RDF>
-->
<div class="asset-header">
<h3 class="asset-name entry-title"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/with-philanthropy-research-team-targets-a-biological-drug-for-treating-leukemia.html" rel="bookmark">
With philanthropy, research team targets a biological drug for treating leukemia
</a></h3>
<a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/with-philanthropy-research-team-targets-a-biological-drug-for-treating-leukemia.html"><img src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/assets_c/2013/03/Verneris_GGV_6427-thumb-100x100-148784.jpg" alt="Michael Verneris, M.D." class="thumbnail" /></a>
<p>
Michael Verneris, M.D., senses an urgent need every time he looks into the faces of his young patients who have acute lymphoblastic leukemia at the Journey Clinic at University of Minnesota Amplatz Children’s Hospital.
“The need to develop new treatments, less toxic and more effective than chemotherapy, is huge,” he says, “and I feel that sense of urgency every week when I sit next to a patient and have to explain that the options are slim.”
</p>
</div>
<div class="asset-more-link">
<p class="credits"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/with-philanthropy-research-team-targets-a-biological-drug-for-treating-leukemia.html" rel="bookmark">Read more »</a></p>
</div>
</div>
<div id="entry-387914" class="entry-asset asset hentry">
<!--
<rdf:RDF xmlns:rdf="http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns#"
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xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/">
<rdf:Description
rdf:about="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/masonic-cancer-center-mourns-loss-of-pioneering-scientist.html"
trackback:ping="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/cgi-bin/mt-tb.cgi/209151"
dc:title="Masonic Cancer Center mourns loss of pioneering scientist"
dc:identifier="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/masonic-cancer-center-mourns-loss-of-pioneering-scientist.html"
dc:subject="Cancer"
dc:description="Groundbreaking cancer researcher John Ohlfest, Ph.D., died on January 21 of malignant melanoma. He was 35 years old."
dc:creator="lijew007"
dc:date="2013-03-25T11:48:34-06:00" />
</rdf:RDF>
-->
<div class="asset-header">
<h3 class="asset-name entry-title"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/masonic-cancer-center-mourns-loss-of-pioneering-scientist.html" rel="bookmark">
Masonic Cancer Center mourns loss of pioneering scientist
</a></h3>
<a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/masonic-cancer-center-mourns-loss-of-pioneering-scientist.html"><img src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/assets_c/2013/03/Ohlfest_John_(from-LU)_F06-thumb-100x100-148785.jpg" alt="John Ohlfest, Ph.D." class="thumbnail" /></a>
<p>
Groundbreaking cancer researcher John Ohlfest, Ph.D., died on January 21 of malignant melanoma. He was 35 years old.
</p>
</div>
<div class="asset-more-link">
<p class="credits"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/masonic-cancer-center-mourns-loss-of-pioneering-scientist.html" rel="bookmark">Read more »</a></p>
</div>
</div>
<div id="entry-387915" class="entry-asset asset hentry">
<!--
<rdf:RDF xmlns:rdf="http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns#"
xmlns:trackback="http://madskills.com/public/xml/rss/module/trackback/"
xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/">
<rdf:Description
rdf:about="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/university-team-and-leading-edge-technologies-help-minnetrista-woman-beat-cancertwice.html"
trackback:ping="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/cgi-bin/mt-tb.cgi/209152"
dc:title="University team and leading-edge technologies help Minnetrista woman beat cancer—twice"
dc:identifier="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/university-team-and-leading-edge-technologies-help-minnetrista-woman-beat-cancertwice.html"
dc:subject="Cancer"
dc:description="When a new scanning technology revealed a second tiny new breast cancer—so small it could not be detected by a mammogram—Kathy Heins, a mother of two young children, felt an even stronger resolve to overcome breast cancer. Again. "
dc:creator="lijew007"
dc:date="2013-03-25T11:47:06-06:00" />
</rdf:RDF>
-->
<div class="asset-header">
<h3 class="asset-name entry-title"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/university-team-and-leading-edge-technologies-help-minnetrista-woman-beat-cancertwice.html" rel="bookmark">
University team and leading-edge technologies help Minnetrista woman beat cancer—twice
</a></h3>
<a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/university-team-and-leading-edge-technologies-help-minnetrista-woman-beat-cancertwice.html"><img src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/assets_c/2013/03/Kathy_Heins_IMAG0636-thumb-100x100-148786.jpg" alt="Kathy Heins relishes time with her kids, Megan (12) and Jacob (9)." class="thumbnail" /></a>
<p>
When a new scanning technology revealed a second tiny new breast cancer—so small it could not be detected by a mammogram—Kathy Heins, a mother of two young children, felt an even stronger resolve to overcome breast cancer. Again.
</p>
</div>
<div class="asset-more-link">
<p class="credits"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/university-team-and-leading-edge-technologies-help-minnetrista-woman-beat-cancertwice.html" rel="bookmark">Read more »</a></p>
</div>
</div>
<div id="entry-387812" class="entry-asset asset hentry">
<!--
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xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/">
<rdf:Description
rdf:about="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/ira-charitable-giving-opportunity-extended-for-2013.html"
trackback:ping="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/cgi-bin/mt-tb.cgi/209080"
dc:title="IRA charitable giving opportunity extended for 2013"
dc:identifier="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/ira-charitable-giving-opportunity-extended-for-2013.html"
dc:subject="Cancer"
dc:description="Thanks to recent legislation, you can again benefit
from a popular tax-advantaged giving option."
dc:creator="lijew007"
dc:date="2013-03-07T09:38:41-06:00" />
</rdf:RDF>
-->
<div class="asset-header">
<h3 class="asset-name entry-title"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/ira-charitable-giving-opportunity-extended-for-2013.html" rel="bookmark">
IRA charitable giving opportunity extended for 2013
</a></h3>
<a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/ira-charitable-giving-opportunity-extended-for-2013.html"><img src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/assets_c/2012/05/tax_thumbnail-thumb-100x100-121847.jpg" alt="tax_thumbnail.jpg" class="thumbnail" /></a>
<p>
Thanks to recent legislation, you can again benefit
from a popular tax-advantaged giving option.
</p>
</div>
<div class="asset-more-link">
<p class="credits"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/ira-charitable-giving-opportunity-extended-for-2013.html" rel="bookmark">Read more »</a></p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<h6>About <em>Masonic Cancer Center News</em></h6>
<p><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/_/docs/publications/2013/mccn_sp13.pdf">
<img alt="A publication for those who support cancer research, education, and care at the University of Minnesota." src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/mccn_sp13_cover_blog.jpg" width="240" height="314" class="mt-image-center" style="text-align: center; display: block; margin: 0 auto 20px;" /></a></p>
<p><em>Masonic Cancer Center News</em> is published by the University of Minnesota Foundation. Reader comments and suggestions are welcome. Contact the editor directly at 612-626-1941 or <a href="mailto:nendres@umn.edu">nendres@umn.edu</a>.</p>
<h3>Archives</h3>
<p><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?blog_id=10944&tag=Masonic%20Cancer%20Center%20News&limit=10">Browse all <em>Masonic Cancer Center News</em> articles</a>, or download PDFs of print editions:</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/_/docs/publications/2013/mccn_sp13.pdf">Spring 2013</a> </li>
<li><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/_/docs/publications/2012/MCCNews_F12_FNL.pdf">Fall 2012</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/_/docs/publications/2012/MCCNews_S12_vFINAL.pdf">Spring 2012</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/_/docs/publications/2011/MCCNews_F11_vFINAL.pdf">Fall 2011</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/_/docs/publications/2011/MMF_MCCNews_Spg2011_FNL.pdf">Spring 2011</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/_/docs/publications/2010/MCCNews_F10_vFINAL.pdf">Fall 2010</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/_/docs/publications/2010/MCCNews_Spg10.pdf">Spring 2010</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/_/docs/publications/2009/MMF_MCCNews_Fall09.pdf">Fall 2009</a></li>
</ul>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/YMG7vxtGqTU" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/masonic-cancer-center-news.htmlSwitching gearstag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3879012013-03-25T16:55:59Z2013-05-03T16:14:18Z"Mutant variants of human cells": the phrase conjures up images of a bad sci-fi movie. But Reuben Harris, Ph.D., has been studying cell mutations for more than 20 years, and his recent finding is more akin to an Oscar-winning blockbuster.
So remarkable is his work that the prestigious journal Nature in February published his discovery that a protein that occurs naturally in the body appears to be a driver for more than half of breast cancers he studied. This breakthrough could lead to new diagnostic tools and, potentially, new treatments for breast cancer.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 20px; DISPLAY: block" class="mt-image-center" alt="Masonic Cancer Center researcher Reuben Harris, Ph.D., identified a protein that appears to be a driver for more than half of breast cancers. Now he's investigating the protein's role in other types of cancer as well. (Photo: Scott Streble)" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/Harris_014.jpg" height="300" width="460" /></p>
<h2>Longtime HIV researcher makes a breakthrough cancer discovery</h2>
<p>“Mutant variants of human cells”: the phrase conjures up images of a bad sci-fi movie. But Reuben Harris, Ph.D., a member of the Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota, has been studying cell mutations for more than 20 years, and his recent finding is more akin to an Oscar-winning blockbuster.</p>
<p>So remarkable is his work that the prestigious journal <em>Nature</em>—widely considered <em>the</em> journal of note for scientists—in February published his discovery that a protein that occurs naturally in the body appears to be a driver for more than half of breast cancers he studied. This breakthrough could lead to new diagnostic tools and, potentially, new treatments for breast cancer.</p>
<p>Harris’s finding has its roots in HIV research. His team has been exploring the role that seven proteins known as APOBEC3s play in the body’s fight against HIV infection.</p>
<p>“My lab studies mechanisms of mutation,” explains Harris. “Specifically, we’ve been looking at mechanisms that impact the evolution of HIV, which is like a chameleon hiding in the genomes of our bodies, mutating rapidly to resist treatment.”</p>
<p>In the course of that work, Harris—also an associate professor of biochemistry, molecular biology, and biophysics at the University—had an epiphany. What, he wondered, were those seven proteins up to in “normal” cells not infected with HIV? And what part might they play in diseases like cancer?</p>
<p>In research supported by the National Institutes of Health, students in his lab invented highly sensitive tests that allowed them to measure the expression levels of each one of these genes specifically.</p>
<p>“That was really key because these seven proteins are closely related to one another,” Harris says, “and they were very difficult to detect and measure.”</p>
<p>With this new measuring ability in hand, and with seed grant support from the University’s Clinical and Translational Science Institute, the team compared the APOBEC3 proteins in both breast cancer cells and healthy cells from the same person and found an anomaly: one of the seven—APOBEC3B—was turned on in many of the breast cancers studied, yet it was virtually undetectable in normal breast tissue.</p>
<p>“Additional experiments showed that this protein was mutating the genome of the cancer cells,” Harris says. “And without mutation, there is no cancer. So this protein, we postulate, may be a key driver of cancer.”</p>
<p>In other words, what Harris’s team discovered is a new source of mutation.</p>
<p>“We know sun causes mutation,” Harris says. “We know certain chemicals cause mutations. But for the first time, we’ve identified an enzyme in our own bodies that causes a large number of mutations. How do we protect against an in-built source of mutation? You can’t slather on sunscreen to protect against this.”</p>
<p>Harris’s discovery, made in collaboration with Masonic Cancer Center director Douglas Yee, M.D., and colleague Natalia Tretyakova, Ph.D., could have a profound impact on physicians’ ability to diagnose some breast cancers: Take a tissue sample, and if this protein is overexpressed in the sample, there’s a strong likelihood that it’s cancerous.</p>
<p>“A next step would be to find the APOBEC3B ‘sunscreen,’” says Harris. “Find out what slows down or stops this enzyme.”</p>
<p>Researchers already know that it can be done. Harris’s lab has identified compounds that can slow down the activity of related APOBEC3 enzymes, and he speculates that this can also be done for APOBEC3B.</p>
<p>But can it be done in a human body with an active metabolism? That, he says, is yet to be determined.</p>
<p>Harris isn’t taking time to bask in the glow of his <em>Nature</em> publication. He and his colleagues have more work to do.</p>
<p>“Once something like this comes out, hundreds of other researchers will take notice, which helps move things along a lot faster,” Harris says. “And for everybody out there with APOBEC3B-positive breast cancer, a community effort will be crucial for translating this discovery into real clinical benefits.”</p>
<p><em>For more information about this or other breast cancer research at the Masonic Cancer Center, contact Kathy Beenen at 612-625-6495 or <a href="mailto:kbeenen@umn.edu">kbeenen@umn.edu</a>.</em></p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/VpicVrsVZ0E" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/switching-gears.htmlStudy examines meditation's potential to improve recovery after cancer treatmenttag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3879022013-03-25T16:54:32Z2013-03-25T18:35:07ZPat Rudolph had never pegged herself as the meditation type. Yet here she was in a weekly, two-hour mindfulness meditation course with a dozen strangers.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img alt="Anne Blaes, M.D." src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/Blaes_Anne.jpg" width="220" height="270" class="mt-image-right" style="float: right; margin: 0 0 20px 20px;" /></p>
<p>Pat Rudolph had never pegged herself as the
meditation type. Yet here she was in a weekly,
two-hour mindfulness meditation course with
a dozen strangers.</p>
<p>“I’ve never laid still for 20 minutes in my life,”
Rudolph thought when she enrolled in a Masonic
Cancer Center study looking at the potential
of mindfulness-based therapy to ease stress
and anxiety in cancer survivors. “And I’m usually
uncomfortable in a group. I was the biggest
skeptic in the class.”</p>
<p>The study, led by oncologist and Masonic
Cancer Center member Anne Blaes, M.D., aims
to determine whether mindfulness meditation,
combined with reflection and peer support, can
quantifiably improve health for patients in the
first few months after treatment.</p>
<p>“Patients who’ve gone through cancer treatment
have more chronic conditions, more depression
and anxiety, more general medical problems,”
explains Blaes, an Eastern Star Scholar and
Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in
Women’s Health Scholar. “Finishing chemo and
radiation, they go through this whole new phase.
We tell them, ‘Congratulations, you’re done!
Come back in three months!’ And there’s a real
letdown in terms of anxiety, depression, fear of
the unknown.”</p>
<p>For many patients, it’s the first time the diagnosis
is truly sinking in, Blaes adds—just as the support
network is evaporating.</p>
<p>The anxiety and depression patients face can be
intense, even crippling, and often the last thing they
want is more medicine, she says. “They come in and
ask, ‘What can I do? I don’t want another pill.’”</p>
<p>So Blaes is measuring whether, and to what
extent, mindfulness meditation techniques affect
depression, anxiety, sleep quality, sexual function,
and immune response. It’s part of her ongoing
effort to explore the promise of complementary medicine to enhance the healing process for
cancer survivors.</p>
<p>The study is supported largely by the Hourglass
Fund, founded by cancer survivor and motivational
speaker Ruth Bachman to advance
research in integrative cancer care.</p>
<p>Study participants attend eight weekly, twohour
classes in which they learn mindfulness
meditation techniques, practice at home daily,
and complete reading and reflection assignments.
The course also includes a full-day retreat.</p>
<p>Not long into the course, Rudolph, a breast cancer
survivor, began feeling noticeably more relaxed.</p>
<p>“I could sleep better at night,” she says. “This
calms you enough to get the rest you really need;
you rest more deeply.”</p>
<p>Moreover, the peer support proved invaluable,
Rudolph says, and the group still meets regularly.
The exercises Rudolph learned also have been
“hugely effective” for helping to treat her lymphedema,
a common after-effect of breast cancer
surgery that causes fluid buildup in the body.</p>
<p>And Rudolph, the skeptic, continues to use
the meditation techniques. That’s the intent
behind the course, and if the study bears fruit,
Blaes hopes to advocate for more widespread,
accessible use of mindfulness meditation
courses for cancer survivors.</p>
<p>“Survivors know the limitations of Western
medicine. I [often] send patients to health
psychologists, but I’m not there—and the
psychologist isn’t there—when
they wake up at 2 in the
morning. They need tools
they can use at home.”</p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/HolzleKFkJc" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/study-examines-meditations-potential-to-improve-recovery-after-cancer-treatment.htmlFar-reaching impacttag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3879042013-03-25T16:53:57Z2013-03-26T15:58:56ZAcross the street, across the state, across the country, and across the world, members of the Masonic Cancer Center are helping people live healthier lives. Not only does the impact of our research stretch across borders and oceans, but some of our leaders are working directly with leaders in other countries to accomplish a myriad of goals — to share knowledge, to exchange ideas, and even to help meet basic needs.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 20px; DISPLAY: block" class="mt-image-center" alt="" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/farreachingimpact.jpg" width="460" height="300" /></p>
<p>Across the street, across the state, across the country, and across the world, members of the Masonic Cancer Center are helping people live healthier lives. Not only does the impact of our research stretch across borders and oceans, but some of our leaders are working directly with leaders in other countries to accomplish a myriad of goals—to share knowledge, to exchange ideas, and even to help meet basic needs. Here are three examples of this work.</p>
<h3>A match made in India</h3>
<p><img style="MARGIN: 0px 20px 20px 0px; FLOAT: left" class="mt-image-left" alt="" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/Belani%26Weisdorf_27Feb_2012_23.jpg" width="220" height="143" /></p>
<p>Anesthesiologist and Bangalore, India, native Kumar Belani, M.D., has become a matchmaker, cultivating relationships between scientists at the University of Minnesota and in India. </p>
<p>Partnering with University hematologist-oncologist Daniel Weisdorf, M.D., Belani helped to initiate a flourishing research and clinical care partnership between the University’s world-renowned blood and marrow transplantation program, which Weisdorf directs, and Manipal Hospital in Bangalore. <a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/a-match-made-in-india-1.html">Read more</a>.</p>
<p> </p>
<h3>Different paths to good outcomes</h3>
<p><img style="MARGIN: 0px 20px 20px 0px; FLOAT: left" class="mt-image-left" alt="" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/Israel.jpg" width="220" height="143" /></p>
<p>The first time Linda Carson, M.D., visited Baruch Padeh Medical Center in Poriya, Israel, she found a “very barebones” setup.</p>
<p>The hospital environment was a reflection of the region in general, says Carson, who is head of the University’s Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Women’s Health. “People live much more simply,” she says.</p>
<p>And that simplicity crosses over to care delivery, too. <a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/different-paths-to-good-outcomes.html">Read more</a>.</p>
<p> </p>
<h3>Putting basic health care supplies within reach</h3>
<p><img style="MARGIN: 0px 20px 20px 0px; FLOAT: left" class="mt-image-left" alt="" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/Lund_Troy.jpg" width="220" height="270" /></p>
<p>The first time pediatric blood and marrow transplant physician Troy Lund, M.D., Ph.D., visited Uganda, he discovered a surprising number of well-funded labs and research initiatives dedicated to infectious diseases like HIV, AIDS, and malaria. But he also saw a severe lack of resources for some of the most significant causes of childhood mortality there: pneumonia, diarrhea, and dehydration.</p>
<p>So Lund created the Medicine for Sick Children Foundation, an independent program that provides medical education, clinical care, and advocacy for suffering children. <a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/putting-basic-health-care-supplies-within-reach.html">Read more</a>.</p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/6z_Dc3x-1RI" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/far-reaching-impact.htmlA match made in Indiatag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3879072013-03-25T16:52:57Z2013-03-25T18:40:46ZAnesthesiologist and Bangalore, India,
native Kumar Belani, M.D., has become
a matchmaker, cultivating relationships
between scientists at the University of
Minnesota and in India.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img alt="Daniel Weisdorf, M.D., and Kumar Belani, M.D., lead a thriving blood and marrow transplant program partnership with Manipal Hospital in India. (Photo: Jim Bovin)" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/Belani%26Weisdorf_27Feb_2012_23.jpg" width="460" height="300" class="mt-image-center" style="text-align: center; display: block; margin: 0 auto 20px;" /></p>
<p>Anesthesiologist and Bangalore, India,
native Kumar Belani, M.D., has become
a matchmaker, cultivating relationships
between scientists at the University of
Minnesota and in India.</p>
<p>Partnering with University
hematologist-oncologist Daniel
Weisdorf, M.D., Belani helped to
initiate a flourishing research and clinical
care partnership between the University’s world-renowned
blood and marrow transplantation
(BMT) program, which Weisdorf directs, and
Manipal Hospital in Bangalore. When the project
began in 2006, it focused on educational and
training opportunities but has since evolved to
also include scientific collaborations aimed at
improving tissue matching for BMT patients of
Indian descent.</p>
<p>The collaboration started when Belani arranged
for a group of University physicians to visit
Manipal Hospital.</p>
<p>“It’s one of the flagship hospitals in India,” he says.
“They had one weakness—they didn’t do bone
marrow transplants.”</p>
<p>Following that visit, physicians and nurses from
Manipal Hospital came to the University to observe
its acclaimed BMT practice firsthand. These
exchanges, along with regular teleconferences
with Weisdorf, helped Manipal Hospital develop
its own transplant protocols. Today the hospital
has completed more than 75 transplants using the
University’s program as a model.</p>
<p>Through working with his Indian colleagues,
Weisdorf discovered that there are limited data
about HLA haplotype tissue, which is central
to finding the right tissue-type match for BMTs,
for people of South Asian descent. The lack of
information makes it difficult to find a non-family
marrow donor match.</p>
<p>So today Weisdorf is studying tissue matching
with 12 medical centers in India and the U.S.
National Bone Marrow Donor Program in hopes
of using the research findings to develop a model
for a BMT donor registry in India.</p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/ZsEr9x-7DIg" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/a-match-made-in-india-1.htmlDifferent paths to good outcomestag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3879082013-03-25T16:51:30Z2013-03-25T18:43:27ZThe first time Linda Carson, M.D., visited Baruch
Padeh Medical Center in Poriya, Israel, she found
a “very barebones” setup.
The hospital environment was a reflection of
the region in general, says Carson, who is head
of the University’s Department of Obstetrics,
Gynecology, and Women’s Health. “People live
much more simply,” she says.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img alt="The University's Alexander Truskinovsky, M.D., Peter Argenta, M.D., and Linda Carson, M.D., have found a great collaborator in Ilan Atlas, M.D. (in scrubs), at the Baruch Padeh Medical Center in Poriya, Isreal." src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/Israel.jpg" width="460" height="300" class="mt-image-center" style="text-align: center; display: block; margin: 0 auto 20px;" /></p>
<p>The first time Linda Carson, M.D., visited Baruch
Padeh Medical Center in Poriya, Israel, she found
a “very barebones” setup.</p>
<p>The hospital environment was a reflection of
the region in general, says Carson, who is head
of the University’s Department of Obstetrics,
Gynecology, and Women’s Health. “People live
much more simply,” she says.</p>
<p>And that simplicity crosses over to care
delivery, too. While many clinics and hospitals
in the United States invest heavily in providing
comfortable surroundings for patients, the
Poriya hospital didn’t. It didn’t even have air-conditioning,
Carson notes.</p>
<p>But she found that her colleagues in Israel still
produced good outcomes for patients. “When
you’re providing good care, the setting doesn’t
matter so much,” she says.</p>
<p>On their first trip to Poriya in 2005, Carson and
a few other Minnesota faculty members helped their new colleagues set up an outpatient
chemotherapy infusion clinic and trained its
doctors and nurses. The clinic is still the only
one of its kind in the region, she says.</p>
<p>The Minnesota contingent also found a
great collaborator in Ilan Atlas, M.D., a
gynecologic oncologist at Baruch Padeh
Medical Center. Every six weeks the
Minnesota and Poriya groups present
cases to each other via teleconference.
Atlas also talks to University medical
students and residents about what
it’s like to struggle with the high costs
of medical care, stressing “the importance
of getting real value out of what we’re doing,”
Carson says.</p>
<p>And Atlas, who plays guitar for patients getting
chemotherapy at his hospital, also has taught his
new colleagues about the stress-reducing effects
music during treatment—an idea that Carson
thinks is worth pursuing back at the University.</p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/e7IeTcaSiLY" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/different-paths-to-good-outcomes.htmlPutting basic health care supplies within reachtag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3879092013-03-25T16:50:45Z2013-03-25T18:44:31ZThe first time pediatric blood and marrow
transplant physician Troy Lund, M.D., Ph.D.,
visited Uganda, he discovered a surprising
number of well-funded labs and research
initiatives dedicated to infectious diseases like
HIV, AIDS, and malaria. But he also saw a severe
lack of resources for some of the most significant
causes of childhood mortality there: pneumonia,
diarrhea, and dehydration.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img alt="Medicine cabinet kits provide basic first aid supplies to orphanages throughout Uganda, thanks to an organization created by Troy Lund, M.D., Ph.D." src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/Lund_Troy.jpg" width="220" height="270" class="mt-image-right" style="float: right; margin: 0 0 20px 20px;" /></p>
<p>The first time pediatric blood and marrow
transplant physician Troy Lund, M.D., Ph.D.,
visited Uganda, he discovered a surprising
number of well-funded labs and research
initiatives dedicated to infectious diseases like
HIV, AIDS, and malaria. But he also saw a severe
lack of resources for some of the most significant
causes of childhood mortality there: pneumonia,
diarrhea, and dehydration.</p>
<p>So Lund created the Medicine for Sick Children
Foundation, an independent program that
provides medical education, clinical care, and
advocacy for suffering children. Since the
organization’s inception, Lund and others have
supplied antibiotics, first aid supplies, and
pharmaceutical therapies for kids in Uganda
through a “medicine cabinet kit” program.</p>
<p>These kits provide first aid supplies like those
one would find in medicine cabinets in American
homes, and they are delivered or shipped
to orphanages across Uganda. Partners in Africa teach the
orphanage mothers
how to properly use
the supplies and
follow up on and
systematically track
the orphans’ health
conditions.</p>
<p>Today Lund’s efforts
are yielding results: About 250
children aged 6 months to 16 years
regularly benefit from his kits.</p>
<p>“There are too many foundations that leave
‘stuff’ in Africa and have no follow-up to what
they have done,” Lund says. “If our efforts aren’t
making a measurable impact in preventing
childhood mortality, we’ll shift our focus to ensure
the foundation does indeed serve its intended
purpose—that is to reduce childhood morbidity
in the developing world.”</p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/X8tEWNKZyXQ" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/putting-basic-health-care-supplies-within-reach.htmlRemembering a leadertag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3890032013-03-25T16:49:53Z2013-03-25T20:44:55ZThe Masonic Cancer Center, University of
Minnesota lost one of its most prominent and
influential physician-scientists March 10 with
the sudden death of John Kersey, M.D. He was
74 years old.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img alt="John Kersey, M.D." src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/Kersey_John_%28fromUMP%29.jpg" width="220" height="270" class="mt-image-right" style="float: right; margin: 0 0 20px 20px;" /></p>
<p>The Masonic Cancer Center, University of
Minnesota lost one of its most prominent and
influential physician-scientists March 10 with
the sudden death of John Kersey, M.D. He was
74 years old.</p>
<p>A native Minnesotan and a graduate of the
University of Minnesota Medical School, Kersey
dedicated his life to developing new treatments
for childhood cancer. He founded both the
University’s blood and marrow transplant
program and what’s now known as the Masonic
Cancer Center, which became a National
Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive
Cancer Center under his watch in 1998.</p>
<p>Kersey also led the team that performed the
world’s first successful bone marrow transplant
for malignant lymphoma in 1975. That patient is
alive and well today.</p>
<p>“John was the driving force that helped the
University of Minnesota become internationally recognized for excellence in cancer treatment
and research,” says Aaron Friedman, M.D., dean
of the Medical School and the University’s vice
president of health sciences. “His enthusiasm
for his work was contagious, and his passion
for bringing people together to solve problems
changed the way cancer research is conducted.”</p>
<p>And while his research successes were plentiful,
colleagues say that Kersey’s generosity as a
friend and collaborator set him apart.</p>
<p>“The world has been positively changed by
John’s scientific, educational, and clinical
contributions,” says Douglas Yee, M.D., who
succeeded Kersey as director of the Masonic
Cancer Center in 2007. “John provided
mentorship and guidance to researchers around
the world who will now carry on his legacy.”</p>
<p><em>To make a gift to the John H. Kersey Chair
in Cancer Research in his memory, visit
<a href="http://www.give.umn.edu/giveto/kerseychair">www.give.umn.edu/giveto/kerseychair.</a></em></p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/ATTblIdxItw" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/remembering-a-leader.htmlWith philanthropy, research team targets a biological drug for treating leukemiatag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3879122013-03-25T16:49:20Z2013-03-25T18:49:40ZMichael Verneris, M.D., senses an urgent need every time he looks into the faces of his young patients who have acute lymphoblastic leukemia at the Journey Clinic at University of Minnesota Amplatz Children's Hospital.
"The need to develop new treatments, less toxic and more effective than chemotherapy, is huge," he says, "and I feel that sense of urgency every week when I sit next to a patient and have to explain that the options are slim."Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 20px 20px; FLOAT: right" class="mt-image-right" alt="Michael Verneris, M.D." src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/Verneris_GGV_6427.jpg" width="220" height="270" /></p>
<p>Michael Verneris, M.D., senses an urgent need every time he looks into the faces of his young patients who have acute lymphoblastic leukemia at the Journey Clinic at University of Minnesota Amplatz Children’s Hospital.</p>
<p>“The need to develop new treatments, less toxic and more effective than chemotherapy, is huge,” he says, “and I feel that sense of urgency every week when I sit next to a patient and have to explain that the options are slim.”</p>
<p><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 20px 20px; FLOAT: right" class="mt-image-right" alt="Daniel Vallera, Ph.D." src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/Vallera_0007.jpg" width="220" height="270" /></p>
<p>Fortunately, the flip side of Verneris’s work in the clinic is laboratory research, and he’s currently elbow-deep in a project that could one day lead to just the sort of new treatment he and his patients yearn for. The innovative research, led in tandem by Masonic Cancer Center members Verneris and Daniel Vallera, Ph.D., focuses on a bioengineered molecule that has the ability to hitch two of the body’s cells together: one, the cancer cell, and the other, a natural killer (NK) cell.</p>
<p>“Basically, we’re developing a biological drug that uses the body’s immune system to recruit NK cells to kill the leukemia cells,” explains Vallera, who has been at the forefront of this type of research since 2001, when he retooled his lab to genetically engineer targeted biological drugs, or drugs that are created from human genes.</p>
<p>Vallera’s lab has concentrated on making the drug, which is a vehicle for introducing that molecule into the body, while Verneris’s team does the testing. So far, the results are promising.</p>
<p>“It looks great in the test tube,” says Verneris. Now supported by a $100,000 grant from St. Baldrick’s Foundation, Vallera and Verneris will move next to testing the drug in mice and then, if all goes well, in humans.</p>
<p>“Private donations have become more and more important,” Vallera says, “because it’s difficult to get government funding for work like ours that focuses on drug development.”</p>
<p>What the research team has achieved so far with relatively small amounts of money is significant—and that, Verneris believes, is a testament to the Masonic Cancer Center and its intended purpose.</p>
<p>“What we’re able to do here is sit in a room with a bunch of really smart people and say, ‘what if?’ or ‘how can we?’” Verneris says. “That’s how this research began, with one of those discussions. There’s amazing synergy between the scientists here, and that’s the great strength of this Masonic Cancer Center.”</p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/11A88uunG94" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/with-philanthropy-research-team-targets-a-biological-drug-for-treating-leukemia.htmlMasonic Cancer Center mourns loss of pioneering scientisttag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3879142013-03-25T16:48:34Z2013-03-25T18:50:40ZGroundbreaking cancer researcher John Ohlfest, Ph.D., died on January 21 of malignant melanoma. He was 35 years old.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img alt="John Ohlfest, Ph.D." src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/Ohlfest_John_%28from-LU%29_F06.jpg" width="460" height="300" class="mt-image-center" style="text-align: center; display: block; margin: 0 auto 20px;" /></p>
<p>Groundbreaking cancer researcher John Ohlfest, Ph.D., died on
January 21 of malignant melanoma. He was 35 years old.</p>
<p>Ohlfest, the first recipient of the Hedberg Family/Children’s Cancer
Research Fund Endowed Chair in Brain Tumor Research, gained
renown for using both gene therapy and novel immunotherapies to
coax a patient’s own immune system into attacking cancer cells. His
work with brain tumors in dogs also gained national prominence.</p>
<p>“In the field of medicine, John was a star,” says his supervisor
John Wagner, M.D., scientific director of clinical research in the
University’s Stem Cell Institute. “He had only one goal in mind—total cure. What John could have
accomplished over a long career we will never know—but even now, he continues to inspire us to
continue our quest of finding cures for previously incurable diseases.”</p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/xsEV1yiUJyU" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/masonic-cancer-center-mourns-loss-of-pioneering-scientist.htmlUniversity team and leading-edge technologies help Minnetrista woman beat cancer—twicetag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3879152013-03-25T16:47:06Z2013-03-25T18:53:41ZWhen a new scanning technology revealed a second tiny new breast cancer—so small it could not be detected by a mammogram—Kathy Heins, a mother of two young children, felt an even stronger resolve to overcome breast cancer. Again. Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 20px 20px; FLOAT: right" class="mt-image-right" alt="Kathy Heins relishes time with her kids, Megan (12) and Jacob (9)." src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/Kathy_Heins_IMAG0636.jpg" width="220" height="270" /></p>
<p>When Kathy Heins was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 32, she chose to stay positive. “Hey, I’m not going to die from this,” she told her friends and family.</p>
<p>After she was treated at the Masonic Cancer Clinic at the University of Minnesota, the disease gradually faded into the background of her life.</p>
<p>Eight years later, Heins returned to the University for a routine visit with her new doctor, Douglas Yee, M.D., director of the Masonic Cancer Center. Yee recommended a new magnetic resonance imaging technology to screen Heins for any signs of a new cancer. The scan revealed another tiny new breast cancer—so small it could not be detected by a mammogram.</p>
<p>As a mother of two young children, Heins felt an even stronger resolve to overcome breast cancer this time. Now cancer-free, she appreciates Yee’s close attention and her chance to benefit from the latest research advances through the Masonic Cancer Center. Improved therapy, early detection, and swift action saved her life—twice.</p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/OL2DNQ6Up1Q" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/university-team-and-leading-edge-technologies-help-minnetrista-woman-beat-cancertwice.htmlGiving from the hearttag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3875402013-03-24T17:25:36Z2013-03-25T20:45:36ZWhen he gives, Brian Pietsch strives to maximize the impact of his money and accomplish the greatest amount of good possible. And as head of state government relations and community relations for a major corporation, he understands the tremendous power philanthropy has for advancing causes that need funding.
So when Pietsch wanted to personally support ovarian cancer research, the physicians and philanthropic leaders he consulted kept pointing him in the same direction: to the University of Minnesota—or as he says, "right in my own backyard."Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 20px 20px; FLOAT: right" class="mt-image-right" alt="Brian Pietsch" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/pietsch_blog.jpg" height="270" width="220" /></p>
<h2>Mother’s experience inspires donor’s dedication to the early detection of ovarian cancer</h2>
<p>When he gives, Brian Pietsch strives to maximize the impact of his money and accomplish the greatest amount of good possible. And as head of state government relations and community relations for a major corporation, he understands the tremendous power philanthropy has for advancing causes that need funding. </p>
<p>So when Pietsch wanted to personally support ovarian cancer research, the physicians and philanthropic leaders he consulted kept pointing him in the same direction: to the University of Minnesota—or as he says, “right in my own backyard.” </p>
<p>Betty Pietsch, Brian’s mom, learned of her cancer late—like the vast majority of women who have ovarian cancer. In fact, there is no early detection test for the aggressive cancer, and a definitive diagnosis generally requires surgery.</p>
<p>Once diagnosed, Betty Pietsch pursued aggressive treatment and spent some time in remission. But when the cancer returned, the family exhausted all treatment options. Five years after she began treatment, she passed away. </p>
<p>In the wake of this tragic loss, ovarian cancer research—and in particular early detection research—became a passion for Pietsch and his partner, John Walsh. At the University, they connected with Levi S. Downs Jr., M.D., M.S., coleader of the Women’s Cancer Research Program at the Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota.</p>
<p>“We’re researching a new process for identifying proteins in the blood that may be connected to cancer at very low concentrations,” Downs says of a project led by colleagues Amy Skubitz, Ph.D., and Jianping Wang, Ph.D. </p>
<p>It sounded like a great fit with Pietsch’s philanthropic intentions. Intrigued, he approached the subject with physicians he knew elsewhere.</p>
<p>“I was trying to validate whether the project made sense,” he says. “The doctors got very excited about it and talked about the impact it would have on their practices and their patients.”</p>
<p>That’s when he knew he was making the right giving decision.</p>
<p>The state-of-the-art technology used in the Masonic Cancer Center project relies on a robotic “spotter” that deposits microscopic protein spots onto a highly sensitive monitoring device. Unlike current clinical laboratory tests, this new device uses incredibly small magnetic nanoparticles that are coated with the proteins of interest. Researchers are using this nanotechnology to determine whether a patient’s blood contains proteins specific to ovarian cancer.</p>
<p>This research could lead to improvements both in early detection of ovarian cancer and identification of recurrent cancer.</p>
<p>Downs says Pietsch’s gift was “instrumental” in initiating the project and in buying some of the equipment required for it. “At the U, our approach is multidisciplinary in improving the lives of women,” Downs says. “The project Brian is supporting can potentially cure women and decrease late diagnoses.”</p>
<p>Pietsch notes that the project’s success is years away but that the methodology is bearing fruit. He hopes that his gift will help make the diagnostic results affordable and usable even in remote locations.</p>
<p>“Cancer is a familiar enemy to too many people,” says Pietsch, adding that two of his aunts also have suffered from the disease. “Investing in this type of innovative research is an invaluable first step in finding a breakthrough remedy that protects other families from the grief caused by cancer. The pain of losing my mother will always be felt, but I’m so pleased to be able to support this effort in her memory.”</p>
<p><em>To learn how your gift to ovarian cancer research can make a difference, please contact Kathy Beenen of the University of Minnesota Foundation at 612-625-6495 or <a href="mailto:kbeenen@umn.edu">kbeenen@umn.edu</a>.</em></p>
<p><em>By Karin Miller</em></p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/H4urpRCPv24" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/giving-from-the-heart.htmlIRA charitable giving opportunity extended for 2013tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/mmf/news//10944.3878122013-03-07T15:38:41Z2013-05-07T16:10:17ZThanks to recent legislation, you can again benefit
from a popular tax-advantaged giving option.Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p>Thanks to recent legislation, you can again benefit
from a popular tax-advantaged giving option.</p>
<p>Make a gift of up to $100,000 directly from your
IRA to the University of Minnesota Foundation
(UMF) to support medicine and health research before December 31,
2013, and you can avoid paying federal income
tax on the amount of your gift.</p>
<p>These rules apply to IRA charitable rollovers in 2013:</p>
<ul>
<li>Only IRAs are eligible (other types of
retirement accounts are not).</li>
<li>You must be age 701/2 or older at the time you
make your gift.</li>
<li>Your gift must come directly from the IRA
custodian to UMF.</li>
<li>You can give up to $100,000 from your IRA to
one or more qualified charities in 2013 (and if
your spouse has a separate IRA, you can each
give up to $100,000).</li>
<li>Your gift must be outright; it cannot be used
to fund a charitable gift annuity or charitable
remainder trust.</li>
</ul>
<p>While you will not be able to claim a charitable
deduction for your IRA rollover gift, you also won’t
owe federal income tax on any amount up to
$100,000 that you distribute to a qualified charity.</p>
<p>To learn more about
supporting University of Minnesota
research, education, and care through
the IRA charitable
rollover option or
through another
type of planned gift,
contact our gift planning team <a href="mailto:plgiving@umn.edu">via email</a> or at 612-624-3333 or 800-775-2187.</p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/qGGMIUDa27c" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/cancer/2013/ira-charitable-giving-opportunity-extended-for-2013.html<![CDATA[Dr. Jakub Tolar named director of the University of Minnesota’s Stem Cell Institute]]>tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2012:/mmf/news//10944.3776752012-11-28T16:02:06Z2012-11-29T19:04:28ZPediatric blood and marrow transplant physician Jakub Tolar, M.D., Ph.D., has been named director of the University of Minnesota’s Stem Cell Institute. Minnesota Medical Foundationmmf@umn.edu
<p><img alt="Jakub Tolar, M.D., Ph.D. (Photo: Scott Streble)" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/Tolar_048_blog3.jpg" width="460" height="300" class="mt-image-center" style="text-align: center; display: block; margin: 0 auto 20px;" /></p>
<p>Pediatric blood and marrow transplant physician Jakub Tolar, M.D., Ph.D., has been named director of the University of Minnesota’s Stem Cell Institute. He will assume the role on January 1, 2013, when the institute’s current director, Jonathan Slack, Ph.D., steps down to return to his native England.</p>
<p>Tolar is currently an associate professor in the University of Minnesota Medical School’s Department of Pediatrics, where he holds the Albert D. and Eva J. Corniea Chair. He is an expert in the field of pediatric blood and marrow transplantation and director of stem cell/gene therapies in the Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota. </p>
<p>“Jakub is going to be a superb leader for the Stem Cell Institute. He has a breadth of knowledge and experience that spans the continuum of stem cell science, from fundamental developmental biology to design and conduct of clinical trials,” says Tucker LeBien, Ph.D., the Medical School’s vice dean for research. “The University has been a leader in unlocking the potential of stem cell research, and Jakub will have the opportunity to lead a cohort of talented faculty and students from across the University to harness the potential of stem cell science in research and patient care.”</p>
<p>In his new role, Tolar will oversee the world’s first interdisciplinary institutes dedicated to stem cell research. The Stem Cell Institute draws University faculty from 17 departments and centers participating in stem cell research. These faculty members have secured more than $43 million in funding since 1999 to support research targeting five primary diseases: cancer, diabetes, heart disease, neurologic disorders, and congenital conditions. Many of these accomplishments would not have been possible without the leadership of the institute’s outgoing director, Jonathan Slack.</p>
<p>“One of Jonathan’s initial contributions to the institute was to establish a facility for creating induced pluripotent stem cells that could be used by investigators throughout the institution … to advance stem cell treatments, technology, and clinical approaches,” says LeBien. “He also had his eye on the educational mission of the institute and led the development of a highly successful M.S. degree in stem cell biology.”</p>
<p>Since joining the University of Minnesota from his native Czech Republic in 2005, Tolar has been active in both research and clinical education. His research focuses primarily on cellular therapies, specifically on improving the safety of existing therapies and investigational mechanisms by which stem cell transplantation is effective in repairing damaged tissue.</p>
<p>Tolar maintains a clinical practice through the University of Minnesota Amplatz Children’s Hospital and is focused on protocols using hematopoietic stem cell transplant as a treatment for a number of genetic conditions. In 2011, he was named one of the Best Doctors in America.</p>
<p><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/givingmatters/2012/meeting-the-challenge.html">Learn more about Dr. Tolar’s groundbreaking epidermolysis bullosa (EB) work and double your gift to support EB research.</a></p>
<h6>Dr. Tolar’s fight against EB</h6>
<p><a href="http://youtu.be/2G1JrS016Sg"><img alt="" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/tolar_news_blog.jpg" width="260" height="160" class="mt-image-center" style="text-align: center; display: block; margin: 0 auto 20px;" /></a></p>
<p><a href="http://youtu.be/2G1JrS016Sg">Watch a video</a> featuring a Sun Prairie, Wis. boy suffering from epidermolysis bullosa (EB) who is undergoing breakthrough treatment from Dr. Tolar at University of Minnesota Amplatz Children’s Hospital. </p>
<p><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/givingmatters/2012/meeting-the-challenge.html">Learn more about Dr. Tolar’s fight against EB and <strong>how you can help.</strong></a></p>
<h3><a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer">You can make a difference</a></h3>
<p>Help the University of Minnesota save lives, inspire hope, and prepare the world’s future health care leaders. <a href="http://www.mmf.umn.edu/giveto/blog/cancer"><strong>Make a gift today</a>.</strong></p><p><strong>Because with your support, anything is possible.</strong></p>
<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MMF-Cancer/~4/dJcLi3e_obA" height="1" width="1"/>http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mmf/news/initiatives/2012/dr-jakub-tolar-named-director-of-the-university-of-minnesotas-stem-cellinstitute.html