News: Departments

When Sonia Richard was diagnosed with stage 3c colorectal cancer at age 30, she felt lost. “I didn’t know anyone my age who had dealt with cancer,” Richard said. The Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center Young Adult Program is a new initiative to help people diagnosed in the prime of their lives. It’s designed for patients ages […]

Brian Rini, MD, Ingram Professor of Cancer Research and chief of Clinical Trials at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, is an internationally recognized leader in clinical drug development. Q Why should a cancer patient participate in a clinical trial? A Every drug that is FDA approved today has come through the clinical trials system, so we don’t […]

New strategy for reducing tumor growth Ann Richmond, PhD, and colleagues have discovered that blocking a certain signaling pathway boosts antitumor immunity and reduces tumor growth and metastasis in models of breast cancer and melanoma. The findings, reported Dec. 18, 2020, in the journal Cancer Immunology Research, add mechanistic insight and support for the therapeutic […]

A cancer diagnosis is startling for anyone at any age, but it’s particularly daunting for young adults. Whether they’ve already charted a life course or are still considering various paths, a cancer diagnosis can cast them adrift and leave them spinning, not knowing which direction to turn. The Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center Young Adult Program helps […]

People experienced with a cancer journey often become patient advocates. Their advocacy includes serving in organizations that promote research and education, increasing awareness through social media and providing guidance and support for newly diagnosed patients.   Diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2014 and successfully treated at Vanderbilt in 2015, Ira Baxter now volunteers as executive […]

The darkest hour came for me on Nov. 19, 2018. As I was chit-chatting with the radiology technician and giving advice for her daughter on navigating pre-medical requirements in college, she was taking X-rays of the cancer that I didn’t know was growing inside of me. “Tell her to major in something completely different from […]

As medical science advances upon the molecular drivers of different cancers, and as cancer treatment consequently becomes more targeted and precise, clinical testing for molecular alterations has come online over the past decade to help clinicians match patients to these newer treatments. “We have pills that allow us to target certain genomic alterations in tumors, […]

Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center has established new leadership positions as the network expands the reach of its clinical services. The new positions are executive medical director, senior medical director for VICC Cancer Care Network and Strategy and chief surgical officer.   Laura Goff, MD, MSCI, associate professor of Medicine, has been named the executive medical director […]

Ben Ho Park, MD, PhD, has a microscopic focus on solving the molecular mysteries of cancer and a panoramic approach to sharing that knowledge. He is committed to the democratization of precision oncology — helping more people gain access to the highly personalized medicines that are transforming cancer care. “It shouldn’t be that just the […]

Karen Winkfield was a senior in high school, skipping class and hanging out in the cafeteria, when she felt a tap on her shoulder. Mrs. Miller, a mild-mannered woman with dark curly hair who taught English, wanted to know why her star student had suddenly become a slacker. Winkfield confided that her parents would not […]