Released from the Spartanburg Regional Healthcare Center.
$14 million extends Upstate cancer fightThree healthcare systems create Upstate Carolina NCORPBy Jessica Pickens and Cyndie Rhodes
Three Upstate healthcare powerhouses are joining forces to fight a common enemy — cancer.Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System — Gibbs Cancer Center, Bon Secours St. Francis Health Systemand AnMed Health have been awarded a $14,402,940 grant to create the Upstate Carolina NationalCancer Institute Community Oncology Research Program (NCORP).
“It is the mission of Upstate Carolina NCORP to support cancer prevention and treatment trials that willimprove patient outcomes,” said Kamara Mertz-Rivera, MA, CCRC, Director of Clinical Research for GibbsCancer Center & Research Institute at Spartanburg Regional. “I am honored and humbled to be theadministrator for the grant award and am committed to the success of the program. I look forward tothe next six years and witnessing the positive impact this award will have on our community members.”Upstate Carolina NCORP connects cancer patients in the Upstate to the most up-to-date clinical trials ina local setting so they can stay in their own communities for treatment. Because of clinical trials, newerand more advanced treatments are being approved by the FDA. People are living longer lives as a directresult of clinical trial research.
“We at the Bon Secours St. Francis Cancer Center are thrilled to be part of this consortium and to havebeen awarded this grant from the National Cancer Institute,” said Robert Siegel, MD, AffiliateResponsible Investigator for Bon Secours St. Francis Health System. “This funding acknowledges thepower of collaboration between AnMed, Spartanburg Regional and our own program in optimizingcancer therapy for our Upstate community and beyond. Together we can provide more efficient andinnovative approaches to malignancy than can be provided by any of us individually.”
Clinical trials help scientists and physicians not only find new methods to treat cancer but also ways toprevent and detect cancer sooner. Additionally, quality of life for people during and after treatment isimproved through cancer care and cancer delivery research.
The trials often compare the most accepted cancer treatment with a new treatment doctors hope willwork better.
The Upstate Carolina NCORP will engage community physicians to participate in NCI-supported, cancercare delivery research, treatment, prevention and cancer control trials.
“Clinical trials are essential in the fight against cancer. Without the participation of patients, clinicians,nurses, and support staff in clinical trials, many of the breakthroughs that we celebrate today would notbe possible,” said Leander Cannick, III, MD, Affiliate Responsible Investigator for AnMed Health. “TheUpstate Carolina NCORP’s goal is to support practice-changing cancer prevention, treatment, and cancercontrol research to improve patient outcomes and quality of life. Together we will continue to changethe landscape of cancer care.”
One primary goal of the Upstate Carolina NCORP is to reach rural, minority and underserved cancerpatients in our community. Upstate Carolina NCORP is committed to increasing cancer clinical trialaccess and participation among this population in order to reduce cancer disparities, and the burden ofcancer, for everyone.
“The desire to stay home for treatment is very important to patients, and this research grant allows ourpatients to have access to the best clinical trials and drugs available, so there is no reason to travelanywhere else for treatment,” said James D. Bearden, III, MD, Principal Investigator for UC-NCORP. “Athome, patients have the spiritual, family and community support of their hometown.”
Upstate Carolina NCORP has 48 experienced community investigators comprised of medical oncologists,radiation oncologists and surgical oncologists and is led by three highly qualified principal investigators— Drs. James Bearden, III; Amy Curtis; and Jeremy Kilburn. The three affiliate research programs arelocated within community hospitals serving Upstate South Carolina, as well as adjacent areas in NorthCarolina and Georgia.
“Clinical trials allow us to take the lessons and best treatments of the past and improve on them withmeasured steps forward,” Dr. Bearden said.
If you or someone you know is fighting cancer, consider asking your doctor about enrolling in a study.Trials are available for all types and stages of cancer. Learn more about Upstate CarolinaNCORP and clinical trials available in your area.
Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes ofHealth under Award Number UG1CA239762. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does notnecessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.