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Weekly Column Article
July 24, 2009
Statewide Effort Unites Cancer Doctors, Hospitals and Patients
From The Governor’s Desk: A weekly column by Gov. Joe Manchin
Contact: Matt Turner, 304-558-2000
Whether it is a loved one or a friend who has been diagnosed, all West Virginians have been affected by cancer, which according to the National Center for Health Statistics, causes nearly 23 percent of all deaths. However, in our state we are fortunate to have a dedicated medical community and teaching hospitals that have joined together to bring the most advanced cancer treatments to every part of the state.
The West Virginia Oncology Society was organized in 2008 and recently accepted as a full member by the American Society of Clinical Oncology. The group has already attracted more than 85 percent of the state’s cancer specialists. They elected Dr. John Azar of Fairmont as their first president and Dr. James Frame (CAMC) as vice president. Their goals include advocacy for cancer care, patient and professional education, and increased access to cancer clinical trials.
Cancer specialists say clinical trials are the gold standard treatment options for most primary cancers. Unfortunately, only about 3 percent of adult cancer patients across the country enroll in clinical trials. West Virginia has a low rate of participation in these trials. Hopefully, through this network, community oncologists in the state will be able to match cancer patients with the most promising new treatments.
WVU’s Mary Babb Randolph Cancer Center, Marshall’s Joan C. Edwards Comprehensive Cancer Center, United Hospital Center in Clarksburg, CAMC’s David Lee Cancer Center, WVU Hospitals-East in Martinsburg, and Wheeling Hospital’s Schiffler Cancer Center all offer clinical trials. The network’s goal is to allow oncologists everywhere in the state to form partnerships with the cancer researchers and if needed to partner with larger institutions and bring advanced clinical trials to their communities.
The effort benefits patients, doctors and the research community. Patients get earlier access to new cancer drugs and other treatments in their home communities. Doctors are better informed on the latest developments in cancer care and better able to offer their patients the most advanced treatments. Researchers can draw more patients into their cancer studies, making it more likely that West Virginia’s research efforts will continue to grow.
We’ve all lost friends, family members and co-workers to cancer, and that is why this is so important. This effort truly defines what a partnership means and how successful something can be when we come together. I thank those who work on a daily basis to bring vital medical treatment to those who need it the most.
Coordinating such a massive statewide effort isn’t easy. Dr. Jame Abraham, chief of hematology and oncology at WVU, got the ball rolling and encouraged his fellow cancer doctors to organize themselves. The Benedum Foundation and Susan G. Komen for the Cure provided funding to the network to support clinical trial nurses at several facilities across the state. The American Cancer Society is helping match patients with promising clinical trials. And the oncologists, hospitals, community clinics and other health care organizations around the state that have joined this effort have invested hundreds of hours of time and work.
We all will benefit from their dedication.
(For more information about the West Virginia Oncology Society, please see www.wvos.info.)
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