Rutgers Cancer Institute and RWJBarnabas Health Leader on Top Ten of the ‘NJBIZ’ Health Care Power 50 List    
Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey Director Steven K. Libutti, MD, FACS, who is also senior vice president of oncology services at RWJBarnabas Health and vice chancellor for cancer programs for Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences, has been ranked number eight on the 2022 NJBIZ Health Care Power 50 list, which ranks the top influencers in health care in New Jersey. Along with Dr. Libutti, several other RWJBarnabas Health and RBHS leaders made the list including Chief Executive Officer of RWJBarnabas Health Barry Ostrowsky, Dean of Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and Interim Dean of Robert Wood Johnson Medical School Robert Johnson, RBHS Chancellor and Rutgers Executive Vice President for Health Affairs Brian Strom, and Rutgers School of Public Health Dean Perry N. Halkitis. Learn more
$3.5M Grant Supports Hodgkin Lymphoma Research by Rutgers Cancer Institute and Tufts Medical Center
Investigators from Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey and Tufts Medical Center were recently awarded a $3.5 million, five-year National Cancer Institute grant (R01CA262265) that is unifying global multi-source big data to enhance clinical decision support for improved acute and long-term outcomes for Hodgkin lymphoma patients. Investigators will leverage the global HoLISTIC (Hodgkin Lymphoma International Study for Individual Care) consortium – spearheaded by Andrew M. Evens, DO, MSc, FACP, associate director for clinical services at Rutgers Cancer Institute, system director of medical oncology, RWJBarnabas Health, and professor of medicine at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, for the project. Learn more
Exploring Skin Self Examination Among Skin Cancer Survivors
Sharon Manne, PhD, chief of Behavioral Science at Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey and Carolyn J. Heckman, PhD, co-leader of the Cancer Prevention and Control Program at Rutgers Cancer Institute, who are both faculty members at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, have been awarded a $3 million National Cancer Institute grant (R01CA2645-01), to enhance the effectiveness of a digital intervention that supports skin self-examination for survivors of melanoma. Survivors of the disease are at elevated risk for recurrence and new primary cancers. The five-year project will explore the utilization of internet-based intervention called mySmartSkin, designed to help to promote regular, thorough checks of the skin for survivors with high risk of recurrence of the disease. Learn more
Why is Minority Representation in Cancer Clinical Trials Important?
Racial and ethnic minorities are underrepresented in clinical research. According to the most recent drug trial data from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), only 11 percent of the near 5,000 participants in the clinical trials of 18 new cancer drugs approved in 2020 were Black or Hispanic. Sanjay Goel, MD, MS, director of the Phase I/Investigational Therapeutics Program at Rutgers Cancer Institute and professor of medicine at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, shares more information about the importance of minority representation in clinical trials, barriers that exist regarding minority participation in clinical trials and more on disparities in cancer care. Learn more
As New Jersey’s only NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey together with RWJBarnabas Health, provides patients access to the most advanced treatment options including complex surgical procedures, sophisticated radiation therapy techniques, innovative clinical trials, immunotherapy, and precision medicine.