Summer 2015
The Summer 2015 issue of Conquest features stories about preventive action being taken by women who’ve inherited elevated cancer risks, the importance of palliative care, the Moon Shots Program’s research platforms and much more.
Like most parents, Jenna Arnold is doing all she can to ensure that
she’ll live a long life to see her son, Jack, grow up and pursue his
dreams. Women such as Arnold, who carry BRCA gene mutations, are
participating in a first-in-the-nation MD Anderson clinical trial to
reduce their risk of cancer while leaving menopause for later.
MD Anderson researchers believe they may have found a way to detect
pancreatic cancer at an early stage, before it has spread to other
organs and becomes too difficult to treat.
To prevent skin cancer — the most common type of the disease — it’s
important to be informed about the sun’s harmful effects and diligent
about using sunscreen correctly.
For some time, cancer researchers have considered alpha-amanitin, the
toxin derived from “death cap” mushrooms, as a possible cancer treatment.
Doctors from MD Anderson and Houston Methodist Hospital have performed
what is believed to be the world’s first partial skull and scalp
transplant on a man whose treatment for a rare cancer of the scalp
muscle left him with a deep head wound that wouldn’t heal.
Palliative care and hospice care aren’t synonymous. Palliative care is a
branch of medicine that helps patients deal with the physical side
effects and emotional stress that come with cancer treatment and
diagnosis. Meet the team that improves quality of life for patients.
To better understand the Moon Shots Program, we offer a look at the 10
platforms that drive the research.
When they aren’t fighting cancer, these faculty and staff members are
expressing themselves
The MD Anderson Cancer Network® allows the institution to collaborate
with healthcare providers to provide MD Anderson’s model of
multidisciplinary care to patients in the communities where they live.
Ten years after San Antonio businessman Red McCombs and his wife,
Charline, made a transformative $30 million gift to MD Anderson, their
generosity is showing a big impact.
Mentors’ guidance is invaluable for young scientists and clinicians
Bree Sandlin’s inner strength and inner voice helped her conquer Stage
III triple-negative breast cancer and Mount Kilimanjaro.
The FDA-approved lenvatinib is helping thyroid cancer patients who don’t
respond to standard treatment