Yale Cancer Center (YCC) is one of only 56 National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer centers in the nation and the only such center in Connecticut. Cancer treatment for patients is available at Smilow Cancer Hospital through 13 multidisciplinary teams and at 15 Smilow Cancer Hospital Care Centers in Connecticut and Rhode Island. Comprehensive cancer centers play a vital role in the advancement of the NCI’s goal of reducing morbidity and mortality from cancer through scientific research, cancer prevention, and innovative cancer treatment.
Gift to Speed Discoveries to Patients
Inspired by the long tradition of innovation at Yale University, particularly in the life sciences, The Blavatnik Family Foundation has donated $10 million to Yale University to promote and to accelerate the development, application, and commercialization of breakthrough research in the life sciences.
Going Viral: Using a Deadly Disease to Kill Ovarian Cancer
In some cases, the Lassa virus starts with a fever and general weakness, moving toward headache, muscle pain, possible facial swelling, deafness, and worse. About 15 percent of patients hospitalized with severe cases die.
Early Tests Show Nivolumab Triples Life Expectancy in Patients With Lung Cancer
An early round of clinical testing shows that users of nivolumab (Opdivo), a drug sanctioned for treatment of small-cell lung cancer, more than tripled their five-year survival rate beyond the statistical average.
Dr. Petrylak on FDA Approval of Pembrolizumab in Bladder Cancer
May 18th 2017Daniel P. Petrylak, MD, professor of Medicine (Medical Oncology) and Urology, co-director, Signal Transduction Research Program, Yale Cancer Center, discusses the FDA approval of pembrolizumab (Keytruda) for the treatment of patients with bladder cancer.
Dr. Yu on Trials of Moderate Hypofractionation in Prostate Cancer
April 12th 2017James B. Yu, MD, associate professor, therapeutic oncology, director, Prostate and Genitourinary Cancer Radiotherapy Program, Yale Cancer Center, discusses current data in support of using moderate hypofractionation in prostate cancer.
Dr. Petrylak on Trial of Atezolizumab in Urothelial Carcinoma
February 24th 2017Daniel P. Petrylak, MD, professor of Medicine (Medical Oncology) and Urology, co-director, Signal Transduction Research Program, Yale School of Medicine, discusses the updates of a study of atezolizumab in patients with metastatic urothelial carcinoma (mUC).
Dr. Harold Tara Appointed Medical Director of Smilow Care Centers in Trumbull & Fairfield
Harold H. Tara, Jr., MD, has been appointed Medical Director of the Smilow Cancer Hospital Care Centers in Trumbull and Fairfield, Connecticut. Dr. Tara has been a member of the Yale community for 20 years and his leadership will ensure that the centers continue to offer patients the best care available, along with the latest treatment options through clinical trials.
Dr. Petrylak on FDA Approval of Nivolumab in Bladder Cancer
February 3rd 2017Daniel P. Petrylak, MD, professor of Medicine (Medical Oncology) and Urology, co-director, Signal Transduction Research Program, Yale Cancer Center, discusses the FDA approval of nivolumab (Opdivo) as a treatment for patients with locally advanced unresectable or metastatic urothelial carcinoma following progression on a platinum-containing therapy, based on findings from the phase II CheckMate-275 study.
Dr. Petrylak on Ongoing Investigations of Checkpoint Inhibition in Bladder Cancer
January 31st 2017Daniel P. Petrylak, MD, professor of Medicine and Urology, Yale Cancer Center, discusses immune checkpoint inhibitors that are currently being evaluated for the treatment of patients with bladder cancer.
Researchers at Yale Cancer Center and Yale Medicine have identified the critical target of new immune-checkpoint therapies: subsets of immune cells called tissue resident memory (TRM) T cells. In the same research, scientists also found that individual metastatic cancer lesions contain unique sets of TRM cells.
Unexpected Role for Epigenetic Enzymes in Cancer
To better understand how cancer initiates and spreads, Yale associate professor of pathology Qin Yan turned to the field of epigenetics, which examines changes in the expression of genes and proteins that do not affect the underlying genetic codes.
Dr. Herbst on Combination Therapies for Lung Cancer
January 20th 2017Roy S. Herbst, MD, PhD, ensign professor of Medicine, professor of Pharmacology, chief of Medical Oncology, associate director for Translational Research, Yale Cancer Center and Smilow Cancer Hospital, discusses combination therapies for patients with lung cancer.