FOX CHASE
Forward
BROADENING THE CONVERSATION ABOUT CANCER
Spring 2024
FORWARD THINKING
A TIME FOR RENEWAL
With renewal, so often comes hope. For all of us at Fox Chase Cancer Center, this year signifies a time for renewal in many ways.
We are celebrating our 50th anniversary as an institution, reflecting on our past, and planning for our future. We are looking forward to showcasing the compelling work of our faculty and staff when we host a site visit by the National Cancer Institute this spring.
We are preparing to open brand new clinical spaces in various locations as we expand services. We are investing in exciting capital projects. And we are building on fruitful collaborations to deepen our ability to discover and deliver the latest advances in cancer care.
In this issue of Forward, we explore one example of this, new developments in screening and treatment for lung cancer, which is often stigmatized due to its popular association with smoking. Rapid progress is bringing about hope for patients, with more options than ever before and improving survival rates. But there are challenges facing both patients and providers: utilization of available screening, the genetic makeup of the cancer, sophistication of targeted therapies, and equity in available resources. Our team stands out for its specialization and experience in the field, evident in the extensive tumor board we have convened and advances made by our phase I clinical trials program.
In addition, we address a pervasive part of our social activities and the effects on our health — specifically, alcohol consumption and cancer risk. It’s an association that many of us do not make, but how do our drinking habits affect our chances of developing cancer? What is a safe amount to drink? Or is there a safe amount? Our physicians weigh in on how alcohol affects the body, its link to certain types of cancers, and how to maintain perspective around drinking.
Finally, we discuss the harmonious power of music and how it is easing the cancer experience for our patients and caregivers. A universal language, music is thought to have healing properties that can be felt by surrendering to its melodies and sounds. Our Music Wellness Program, a collaboration with the Boyer College of Music and Dance at Temple University, is offering new ways for participants to process their emotions and to create community.
Renewal involves change. It takes strength. It brings about growth, and it offers us insights into ourselves and our purpose. It means evolving into something more, and we are hopeful that this process enables us to help more people live longer and more fully in spite of cancer.
Jonathan Chernoff, MD, PhD
CANCER CENTER DIRECTOR
Robert Uzzo, MD, MBA, FACS
PRESIDENT AND CEO
Departments
CLOSE-UP PATIENT PERSPECTIVE
Principal Gets Schooled on Male Breast Cancer
Lanny Blair is one of the less than 1% of men who are diagnosed with breast cancer. Having a disease most commonly associated with women, he felt lost.
CLOSE-UP FACULTY PERSPECTIVE
Seeing the Patient Behind the Disease
Life experiences has taught Marcin Chwistek, Director of the Supportive Oncology and Palliative Care Program, to see the delivery of cancer care from the point of view of a caregiver, not a clinician.
MAKING A DIFFERENCE
A True Champion of Cancer Research
Long-time Fox Chase supporter Concetta “Chet” Greenberg continued her philanthropy even after her death in 2021 with a gift of $7.2 million, bringing her total giving to nearly $20 million.
FOCUS
Around Campus
Campus Upgrades
FOCUS
Science
Genetic Changes in Therapy-Induced Leukemia | New Therapy for Lung Injury
REVIEW
News of Note
Special Events | Honors & Awards | Notable Accomplishments
REWIND
JACK SCHULTZ: A Pioneering Geneticist and Influential Colleague
A celebrated geneticist and nucleic acids researcher, Jack Schultz also helped create the foundation of innovative research and collaboration that Fox Chase Cancer Center is known for.
Fox Chase Forward, Spring 2024
Patrick McGee Editor
Marian Auriemma Staff Writer
Sarah Hughes Editorial Coordinator
B&G Design Studios Design
Brilliant Graphics Printing
Contributors Jill Horne
Inquiries editor@fccc.edu
LEADERSHIP
Jonathan Chernoff Cancer Center Director
Robert Uzzo President and CEO of Fox Chase Cancer Center
Joel Helmke Chief Operating Officer
Charles Soltoff Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, Temple University Health System Jeremy Moore Associate VP, Communications
Patrick McGee Publications Manager
Inquiries: editor@fccc.edu
EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD
Andrew Becker Director of Donor Relations; George Beschen Senior Director of Individual Giving; Margie L. Clapper, PhD Cancer Prevention & Control; Martin J. Edelman, MD Hematology/Oncology; Erica A. Golemis, PhD Deputy Chief Science Officer; Joel Helmke, MSHP, FACHE Chief Operating Officer; Shawn Kleitz Chief Development Officer; Joshua E. Meyer, MD Radiation Oncology; Andrea S. Porpiglia, MD, MSc Surgical Oncology; Amanda Purdy, PhD Director, Academic Affairs; Camille Ragin, PhD, MPH Associate Director, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; Glenn F. Rall, PhD Chief Academic Officer; Jennifer Barsky Reese, PhD Cancer Prevention and Control; Anna Liza Rodriguez, MSN, MHA, RN, OCN, NEA-BC Chief Nursing Officer; Rosalia Viterbo, MD Urology; David Wiest, PhD Scientific Director of the Research Institute of Fox Chase Cancer Center
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Joseph W. Marshall III, Chair; William J. Federici; Edward A. Glickman; Amy J. Goldberg, MD; Lewis F. Gould Jr.; Sandra Harmon-Weiss, MD; Thomas W. Hofmann; Solomon C. Luo, MD; David G. Marshall; Christopher W. McNichol; Donald E. Morel Jr., PhD; Leon O. Moulder Jr.; Tina M. Pidgeon; Carl A. Sottosanti; Michael A. Young
FOUNDATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Donald E. Morel Jr., PhD, Chair; Louis E. Della Penna Sr., Vice Chair; Jonathan Chernoff, MD, PhD; Elaine Daniels; William J. Federici; Edward A. Glickman; Lewis F. Gould Jr.; Thomas W. Hofmann; Barbara Ilsen; Peter Kreindler; Philip E. Lippincott; Solomon C. Luo, MD; David G. Marshall; Barbara O’Donnell; Anna Marie Ahn Petersen; Tina Pidgeon; Kenneth Shropshire; Michael Smolenski; Thomas R. Tritton, PhD; Robert Uzzo, MD, MBA
FORWARD magazine is published twice a year for friends of Fox Chase Cancer Center by the communications department of Fox Chase. One of the leading cancer research and treatment centers in the United States, Fox Chase was founded in 1904 as one of the nation’s first cancer hospitals, and was among the first institutions to be designated a National Cancer Institute Comprehensive Cancer Center in 1974. Fox Chase joined Temple University Health System in 2012.
Temple Health refers to the health, education and research activities carried out by the affiliates of Temple University Health System (TUHS) and by The Lewis Katz School Temple University School of Medicine. TUHS neither provides nor controls the provision of health care. All health care is provided by its member organizations or independent health care providers affiliated with TUHS member organizations. Each TUHS member organization is owned and operated pursuant to its governing documents.
Built with Shorthand