Statewide Research Summit to Focus on Cancer Prevention, Detection, Treatment, Care Delivery and Quality of Life

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PITTSBURGH, Nov. 10 – Top leaders and cancer researchers from across the state will meet from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 16 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Harrisburg to highlight new research into cancer prevention, detection, treatment and quality of life, and to share collective progress made to-date that addresses the burden of cancer. The experts, who represent more than 250 public, private, academic and volunteer organizations, are members of the Pennsylvania Cancer Control Consortium (PAC3) - an initiative formed in 2001 to reduce the human and economic burden of cancer by creating the first-ever Pennsylvania Comprehensive Cancer Control Plan.

According to the American Cancer Society, cancer recently has surpassed heart disease as the leading cause of health-related death in Americans younger than 85. Cancer continues to cause approximately 30,000 deaths in Pennsylvania every year.

“Cancer causes pain and suffering for thousands of Pennsylvanians and their families each year,” Pennsylvania Department of Health Secretary Dr. Calvin B. Johnson said. “The Pennsylvania Department of Health is proud to sponsor this research summit that is bringing together Pennsylvania's leaders in cancer control to discuss the best approaches to take regarding the burden of cancer in the Commonwealth.”

“The PAC3 Summit is based on the premise that only by working together can we develop an effective plan for cancer control,” said Ronald Herberman, MD, chair of the PAC3 board of directors and director of the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute. “This type of approach is necessary in order to make real progress in cancer care and to bring renewed hope to cancer patients across our state.”

Summit participants will present key research findings in cancer prevention and healthy lifestyles, early detection and screening, treatment and care delivery and quality of life and survivorship.

Sessions and speakers include:

• Researchers from Penn State University will discuss the status of research to identify biomarkers for particular cancers that may enable oncologists to diagnose cancer early and determine more appropriate therapeutic targets.
• Researchers from the University of Scranton and University of Pennsylvania will address factors associated with smoking in Northeast Pennsylvania and the success of smoking cessation programs tailored specifically to smoker characteristics.
• Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute will share results of a study where primary care practices engaged in an effort to improve colorectal cancer screening.
• Researchers from Fox Chase Cancer Center will report on their efforts to improve clinical trial recruitment at community hospitals by assessing barriers that impede recruitment.
• David J. Casarett, MD, palliative care expert at the University of Pennsylvania, will highlight the challenges to maintaining quality of life for cancer patients receiving end of life care and the progress that has been made to address these challenges. As patients live longer with cancer, decision-making about future care becomes more complex and presents difficulties for patients and families alike.

With leadership from the Pennsylvania Department of Health and the American Cancer Society, PAC3 is comprised of more than 600 individuals and 250 organizations who are key cancer stakeholders across the state - academic and community cancer centers, health care providers, researchers, survivors and advocates, community based-organizations, insurers, foundations, pharmaceutical companies and industry.

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UPMC News Bureau