New campaign aims tobolster employee giving

by Steve Kirk

Although nurses recognize City of Hopeas a great place to work, the institution’snursing leadership team is committed tomaking it even better to keep attractingand retaining top nursing professionals,according to Larry Kidd, R.N., vicepresident of patient care services and chief nurse executive.

Among efforts under way to elevate itsstatus in the nursing field, City of Hope ispursuing accreditation with the AmericanNurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) as a“Magnet” nursing hospital. A small percent-age of the country’s health-care facilities holdthis prestigious designation, which recog-nizes the highest levels of excellence inpatient care through nursing services.

Of the nearly 6,000 hospitals in theUnited States, 205 hold Magnetdesignation. Only seven facilities inCalifornia are part of this elite group: Cedars-Sinai Medical Center; Children’s Hospital CentralCalifornia; El Camino Hospital;Hoag Memorial HospitalPresbyterian; Scripps MemorialHospital La Jolla; UCLA MedicalCenter; and the UC Irvine Medical Center.

“City of Hope is in the top tier ofmedical centers nationally, and

See ANCC page 3

by Shawn Le

R obert Figlin, M.D., will join City of Hope this fall as chair of theDivision of Medical Oncology &

Therapeutics Research, Figlin, the Arthur andRosalie Kaplan Professor of Medical Oncology,will serve as associate director for clinical research.

A national leader in genitourinary and thoraciconcology most recently at the University ofCalifornia, Los Angeles (UCLA), Figlin assumeshis post Sept. 1.

“Robert Figlin brings an exceptional breadth ofcancer research, treatment and educationexpertise to City of Hope. He is highly regardedby patients, colleagues and students as a giftedscientist, compassionate physician and anoutstanding educator,” said Theodore G.Krontiris, M.D., Ph.D., executive vice presidentfor medical and scientific affairs and director ofthe cancer center. “Dr. Figlin’s appointment

reflects City of Hope’scommitment to assembling thebrightest minds in cancerresearch and care for ourpatients. We look forward tohis leadership.”

Figlin is currently the HenryAlvin and Carrie L. MeinhardtChair in Urologic Oncologyand professor of medicine andurology in the departments ofMedicine and Urology,divisions of Hematology/Oncology and UrologicOncology at the David GeffenSchool of Medicine at UCLA.He also is co-principal investi-gator of the UCLA Lung Cancer SpecializedProgram of Research Excellence (SPORE) anddirects the SPORE’s clinical trials core. Hisresearch interests include cell, immune, genetic

and targeted therapies insolid tumor oncology, withemphasis in renal cellcarcinoma and thoraciconcology research.

“City of Hope has a well-deserved reputation forcombining exemplarypatient care and leading-edge research that advancesthe level of cancertreatment,” said Figlin. “Ilook forward to continuingto build upon City of Hope’sstrengths in translationalresearch and bringing ourresearch in cancer geneticsand immunology directly

into clinical practice to enhance our therapies.”

Figlin serves as chair of the UCLA Medical

City of Hope to pursue ANCCMagnet hospital accreditation

Robert Figlin joins City of Hope

Renowned physician to lead medical oncology division

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See Giving page 2

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by Lisa Lyons

A new City of Hope employee-giving campaign, themed“Hope Starts with Us,” will kick off on campus on July 26.Its goal is to inspire and enable employeesto commit their financial support tothe institution. Organizers hope toincrease the current participationlevel from 23 percent to 40 percent.

For many employees, working atCity of Hope goes beyond simplyearning a living. Helping fulfill the institu-tion’s mission to fight cancer provides them with a sense ofjob satisfaction not present at many other organizations.Employee giving allows those sharing this commitment toextend it even further.

Information about the campaign and enrollment forms willbe sent to employees during the week of July 24. Selectdepartmental representatives also will assist and encouragefellow employees to participate.

Mary Anderson, director of employee giving, is spearhead-ing the month-long campaign. “Not only do we want toencourage those employees not currently in the program tojoin, but we want to publicly acknowledge those who haveconsistently contributed over the years,” said Anderson.

Robert Figlin

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Magnet status will recognize the outstanding quality of City of Hope nurses.

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Physician investigator deduces anti-HIV drug might defeat fat cancerby Shawn Le

Warren Chow, M.D., associate professor of medicaloncology, is conducting a clinical trial that takes a unique andoriginal approach to treating cases of liposarcoma, a cancerthat develops in the fat cells. City of Hope treats close to 15 cases each year, and more than 1,500 people in the U.S.are diagnosed with liposarcoma annually.

Most cases of liposarcoma occur in the abdomen or thighs,and treatment commonly includes surgery, chemotherapyand radiation. Depending on the location of the tumor,though, surgery is not always possible. Chemotherapy hasbeen shown to be effective for only about 40 percent of

liposarcoma cases, and many patients suffer recurrencedespite therapy. Chow saw the benefits and limitations ofcurrent treatment options, then looked at treating liposar-coma from a different perspective.

“Patients with HIV infection taking HIV protease inhibitorsmay develop a condition known as lipodystrophy, in whichthe body’s fat is redistributed and can be lost, as a side effect,”said Chow. “I thought that effect might be useful againstliposarcoma, which is an abnormal growth of fat cells.”

Chow was the first to propose the use of HIV proteaseinhibitors on liposarcoma, and is the first to conduct a clinical

City of Hope patients get a second chance at radiotherapyby Alicia Di Rado

Once upon a time, cancer patients could onlyundergo one course of radiation treatment for theirdisease — and if the cancer returned, they were leftwith few other options.

Times have changed.

At City of Hope, patients already treatedwith radiotherapy for head and neck cancermay be eligible to receive radiotherapy again,through a clinical trial run by radiationoncologist Yi-Jen Chen, M.D., Ph.D.

“With the sharp-shooting we’re able toaccomplish today, we can make sure to targetonly areas that are able to tolerate additionalradiation doses,” said Chen.

Called re-irradiation, the technique dependson the body’s ability to renew and repaircertain tissues rapidly, Chen explained.

Scientists recognize that some tissues in the bodyrespond rapidly and effectively to radiation’s effectsand recover quickly. These so-called early respond-ing tissues include skin and mucous membranes.But other tissues, called late-responding tissues, feellasting effects from radiation and heal slowly. Theseinclude bone, nerve and certain soft-organ tissues.

“Every time we treat a patient with radiation, wehave to respect tissue tolerance,” Chen said. “Weknow that tissue can only absorb a certain amountsafely. We believe that in head and neck cancers, wehave early responding tissues that can tolerate anadditional dose.”

Chen first began exploring re-irradiation in the late1990s while at UC Irvine, where he reported on asmall series of cases using intensity modulatedradiation therapy, known as IMRT. This type oftherapy allows radiation oncologists to better control avarying radiation dose administered to the tumor site.

Results were good enough for physicians tocontinue studying re-irradiation in the head andneck, as well as selected other sites.

Today, City of Hope’s advanced TomoTherapysystems take IMRT a step further because theyenable physicians to sculpt radiation doses even

more precisely to tumors, allowing them tobetter avoid healthy-but-vulnerable structuressuch as the spine. That is especially criticalduring re-irradiation, because late-respondingtissues must avoid extra radiation exposure.

The technique is an important option becauseoncologists need more tools to fight head and neckcancers. Besides surgery, radiation is often the first-choice treatment for this cancer, and frequentlycures the disease when given as front-line therapy.

But sometimes the cancers come back. Thesetend to return in the same area as the original

tumor — and many are in structurally difficultlocations that make surgery impossible. “Onlyabout 10 percent of these patients are even suitablefor surgery,” Chen said. “And only 10 to 20 percentof patients respond to chemotherapy.”

It is no wonder that the median survival forsuch patients is only five to six months, he noted.

Oncologists may be able to use brachytherapy(radioactive “seeds” implanted at the site) forrecurrent cancer, but that is more invasive thanTomoTherapy, Chen said.

Patients in the phase I trial receive radiationtherapy once a day, five times a week for up tofive-and-a-half weeks. They also receive aninfusion of oxaliplatin, a type of chemotherapy,every two weeks to make the cancer moresensitive to radiation’s cell-killing effects. Thestudy includes head and neck cancer patients

(except those with nasopharyngeal cancer) withsquamous cell carcinoma not suitable for surgery.

Chen’s collaborating investigator on the study isStephen Shibata, M.D., associate professor ofmedical oncology and director of theGastrointestinal Cancer Program.

Warren Chow

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Yi-Jen Chen uses TomoTherapy to re-irradiate head and neck tumors.

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Current participants will receive a lapel pin intheir interoffice letter, while new members willreceive a pin after the campaign ends.

The campaign also will feature drawings for allparticipants, current and new, with prizes such aspreferred campus parking, unrestricted movietickets, gift certificates for retailers See’s Candyand Urban Retreat, as well as a variety of City of Hope-branded items.

A campaign kickoff barbecue will be held from11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on July 26 in Heritage Park.Free burgers, hot dogs, chips, cookies and drinkswill be provided, courtesy of sponsors Coca-Colaand First Class Foods. In addition, a pizza party willkick off the campaign at Development headquartersin Los Angeles on Aug. 2.

“It has been a few years since we reminded ouremployees about the importance of participating inemployee giving,” said Diana Keim, senior directorof annual giving. “This campaign gives us an oppor-tunity to express appreciation for the many ways thatemployees already contribute to City of Hope’ssuccess, and to explain how employee giving is a greatinvestment in our mission.”

Anderson and Keim feel that employees can havea major impact on the external outreach campaignto local and national businesses and the communityby demonstrating a commitment to City of Hope’smission in a significant way.

More details about the campaign and weekly progress reports will be available toemployees on the City of Hope intranet startingthe week of July 24.

Giving: Campaign allows employees to invest in COH missionContinued from page 1

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trial. The National Cancer Institute is simultane-ously conducting research into the use of HIVprotease inhibitors to treat a variety of canceroustumors, including lung and breast.

Laboratory tests showed the HIV proteaseinhibitor nelfinavir, made by Pfizer Inc. under thetrade name Viracept, had the most potent effect ontumor tissues. To advance his research and testwhether nelfinavir would be an effective treatmentfor liposarcoma, Chow submitted a proposal to theUnited States Food and Drug Administration(FDA), and was awarded a grant from the FDA’sOrphan Products Development Grants Programfor a three-year study.

City of Hope’s Office of Technology Licensingapproached Pfizer about the clinical trial usingnelfinavir to see if Pfizer was interested indonating drugs for the study.

“Our office has regular contact with pharmaceu-tical and biotech companies since many of City of Hope’s scientists and physicians areconducting research using experimental cancerdrugs,” said Brian Clark, Ph.D., director of theOffice of Technology Licensing, who led the

Survivors’ art to adorn Women’s Health Centerby Alicia Di Rado

Fear, pain, joy, hope.Sometimes words are too weak,too inadequate, to express theemotions of a patient’s journeythrough cancer — and only apaintbrush or pencil can testify tothe cancer survivor’s experience.

Members of City of Hope’sDepartment of NursingResearch & Education knowthat all too well.

The department last week offered its first course inthe Cancer SurvivorshipEducation for Quality CancerCare Program, a NationalCancer Institute-funded effortthat supports important services for surveil-lance and follow-up for cancer survivors. As

part of the course, held inPasadena, Calif., organizersexhibited giclée prints of 15pieces of art created bysurvivors, family membersand others immersed incancer care.

Starting July 17, five of thecompelling pieces will bedisplayed at the Rita CooperFinkel and J. William FinkelWomen’s Health Center onthe City of Hope campus.The public exhibit will lastat least two weeks.

It all started with a movingimage from the collectionthat recently appeared onthe cover of the American

Journal of Nursing. When Denice Economou,

negotiations with the drug company. “Pfizer recog-nized the merits of the study and generously donatednelfinavir for the trial.”

Chow is currently enrolling liposarcoma patientsin a phase I/II clinical trial of nelfinavir for liposar-coma. The phase I trial will examine dosage andsafety levels and, after results are analyzed, Chowexpects to move on to the phase II efficacy trial.“We’re looking at any hint, any positive signal, thatnelfinavir might have a benefit for patients withrecurrent liposarcoma,” he said.

Chow also is conducting correlative research onsurrogate markers in normal fat tissue. Patientsenrolled in the clinical trial will undergo a biopsy ofnormal fat tissue. The investigators will examinethe tissue to see how nelfinavir affects normal fatcells on the molecular level. Because serial biopsy oftumor tissues can be difficult, as they are often deepwithin the body, these molecular-marker studieswill serve as a surrogate for what Chow believes ishappening in the tumor. If a tumor is readily acces-sible, however, the researchers will try to rebiopsywhile the patient is taking nelfinavir. These studies“may help us determine who is most likely tobenefit from treatment with nelfinavir,” said Chow.

obtaining Magnet hospital status with the ANCClets both nursing professionals and the generalpublic know this,” said Virginia A. Opipare,executive vice president and chief operating officer.“This accreditation is a form of national recogni-tion that we deserve, and we are committed toreaching this goal.”

ANCC accreditation holds numerous advantages.“In addition to providing a statistically provenhigher quality of care, Magnet-designated health-care facilities typically have very lowvacancies for nurses and a turnover rate averagingless than 5 percent,” said Kidd. “Some even have awaiting list for potential hires.” City of Hope’sturnover rate for nurses now stands at around 6 percent, he said.

A departing nurse can cost a hospital nearly$45,000, so nurse retention can wield a significantbudgetary impact.

“Along with the reduced nursing labor costs,financial benefits add up in other areas,” Kidd said.“For example, one Veteran’s Administrationhospital that invested $500,000 in ANCC accredi-tation documented savings of $14 million.Reductions in complaints and fewer lawsuits as aresult of their improved patient outcomes were twoof the major areas cited.”

Accreditation offers other advantages, too, Kiddsaid. “It has been reported that health-care plans,insurance companies and regulatory agencies havehigh regard for ANCC designation, so a hospitalholding it may be viewed more favorably,” said Kidd.

In addition, accreditation generally elevates thequality of staff. “The best nurses seek out Magnethospitals that will embrace them by providing a

work environment that isboth supportive andexemplary,” Kidd said.Studies also show thathaving high-quality nurseson staff helps attract top-rated physicians. This haloeffect goes beyond thenursing services depart-ment and may permeate theentire health-care team.

Evidence of improved patient outcomes supportsthis conclusion, he said.

City of Hope is at the beginning stage of theANCC accreditation process, according to Kidd. Theprocess typically lasts about three years.

In coming weeks, members of nursing manage-ment and staff nurses will gather as a design team.Employees working in other health-care disciplineswill participate, as well. A Magnet coordinator,who prepares documentation, tracks progress andmaintains contact with the ANCC while theorganization prepares for the validation site visit, isthen chosen to lead the design team.

After the accreditation application is filed, thesubmission of documentation of evidence ofstandards begins, a phase that the institution has24 months to complete.

ANCC surveyors then visit the site for up tothree days. Once they complete their review,surveyors submit recommendations to theANCC Board of Directors, who determinewhether the institution will receive accreditation.

After accreditation, the facility submits annualreports documenting ongoing maintenance of thestandards. Redesignation visits then take placeevery four years.

To assist other California health-care organizationsin preparing for the process, staff members of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center will host a Magnet hospitalaccreditation conference on their campus in WestHollywood, Calif., on July 21. Several City of Hopeemployees are now scheduled to attend.

Further updates on efforts to attain ANCC accred-itation at City of Hope will appear in future issues ofHope News.

ANCC: Medical Center is seeking Magnet accreditation to recognize outstanding nursing programContinued from page 1

Fat: Nelfinavir could be effective against some liposarcomasContinued from page 2

See Survivors page 4

Prints in the show include watercolors likethis one, titled “Waking Up.”

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Larry Kidd

Monday, July 17Noon to 1 p.m.Platt 3 Conference RoomSeminar. Championing Health Equity:Building Community Capacity to AddressCancer Disparities, Kimlin Tam Ashing-Giwa, City of HopeInfo: Amy Schad, ext. 64559

Tuesday, July 186:30 to 8:30 p.m.Helford Hospital Main LobbyHands-on-Harps Concert and WorkshopInfo: Jeanne Lawrence, ext. 63971

Wednesday, July 193 to 4 p.m.Conference Room BSeminar. New Approaches for Tracking andElucidating Viral-host Protein Interactions,Ileana Cristea, The Rockefeller UniversityInfo: Markus Kalkum, ext. 60131

Thursday, July 27Noon to 1 p.m.Platt 3 Conference RoomSeminar. Intellectual Property at City of Hope: a User’s Guide, Brian R. Clark, City of HopeInfo: Chanel Parrish, ext. 65600

Monday, August 7Noon to 1 p.m.Needleman 1 Conference RoomSeminar. Src/Stat Inhibitors and OtherNovel Therapies in Melanoma, Adil Daud,H. Lee Moffitt Cancer CenterInfo: Saundra Hilton, ext. 62737

Calendar of Events

Michael A. Friedman, M.D., president and chief executive officer, appeared onthe cover of the July issue of Arroyo Monthly, a magazine dedicated to arts andphilanthropy in the San Gabriel Valley. The cover story highlighted City of Hope’s past, present and future and provided information on ways tosupport the institution.

Several news outlets carried the June 19 Los Angeles Times article featuring AlessioPigazzi, M.D., and City of Hope’s robotic and minimally invasive surgery program, including:the Oakland Tribune on July 3, the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette on July 3, the Rapid CityJournal on July 3 and The Commercial Appeal (Memphis, Tenn.) on July 10.

The summer 2006 issue of CURE magazine featured Smita Bhatia, M.D., in an article aboutsecond cancers in pediatric cancer survivors.

On July 6, an article on Jeffrey Katz of Orbitz in the San Francisco Chronicle mentioned hismembership on the City of Hope Board of Directors.

On July 1, the Orange Country Register ran an article about the 2006 Spirit of Life® campaignhonoring KB Home’s Bruce Karatz.

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To learn about more City of Hope events, visitwww.cityofhope.org/calendar.

Institutional Review Board and as a member of theUCLA Human Research Policy Board. He is board-certified in medical oncology and internal medicine,a fellow in the American College of Physicians and amember of many professional societies, includingthe American Urological Association and AmericanSociety of Clinical Oncology. An author ofnumerous studies published in journals such as the

Journal of the American Medical Association,

Journal of Clinical Oncology and Annals of InternalMedicine, Figlin also serves as editor for the peer-

reviewed Kidney Cancer Journal and BladderCancer Journal and is on the editorial board of

Cancer Therapeutics and Cancer Biotherapy andRadiopharmaceuticals, among others.

Figlin received his medical degree from the

Medical College of Pennsylvania, completed hisresidency in internal medicine at Cedars-SinaiMedical Center and did his fellowship in hematol-ogy/oncology at the Geffen School of Medicine. Hejoined the faculty of UCLA in 1982 as assistantprofessor of medicine in the Division ofHematology/Oncology and was appointed co-director of the Jonsson Comprehensive CancerCenter’s oncology program in 1993. He also heldthe post of medical director of the Thoracic andGenitourinary Oncology Program in theDepartments of Medicine, Surgery and Urology, andserved as program director of Solid TumorDevelopment Therapeutics within Jonsson.

Deadline for calendar submissions is noon on theTuesday preceding publication. Three weeks’ advancenotice is recommended. Timely submission does notguarantee items will be printed. Send calendar items toHopeNews@coh.org, or fax to Lorena Avila,Communications, at 626-930-5363. Submissions mustinclude day, date, time, title, speaker first and last namesand affiliation (if applicable), location and contact infor-mation (contact name, phone and/or e-mail).

Figlin: National expert will bring experience, help guide Cancer Center’s clinical research activitiesContinued from page 1

Survivors: Art on loan to COHContinued from page 3

R.N., M.S.N. — the course’s project director —learned that the art was part of an internationalcompetition sponsored by Eli Lilly and Company,she contacted competition organizers, hoping thatsome of the pieces might be on exhibit nearby. Toher surprise, Lilly offered to loan the prints for thesurvivorship course and related survivorshipeducation efforts.

Marcia Grant, R.N., D.N.Sc., director andresearch scientist with the Department of NursingResearch & Education and principal investigator ofthe program, believes the images provide unusualinsight into cancer survivorship. “This is a greatproject,” said Grant, whose co-investigatorsinclude Betty Ferrell, R.N., Ph.D., researchscientist in the Department of Nursing Research &Education, and Smita Bhatia, M.D., M.P.H.,professor of pediatrics and chair of the Division ofPopulation Sciences.

The exhibition is called “Lilly Oncology onCanvas: Expressions of a Woman’s Cancer Journey.”

For information about the art, go to www.lillyoncology.com and click on the Oncologyon Canvas link. For information about the exhibitat the Cooper Finkel Women’s Health Center,please call Cathy Cole, M.P.H., N.P., R.N.C.,clinical nurse manager at the Breast Center, at 626-256-HOPE, ext. 60020.

Hope News is written and produced by the CommunicationsGroup. Copies are distributed throughout the City of Hope campus.

Permission to reprint articles with attribution is freely given.

Phone: 626-256-4673, ext. 62356Fax: 626-301-8462

E-mail: HopeNews@coh.org

Darrin S. Joy, Steve Kirk

Co-editors

Brenda MaceoSenior Vice President, Communications

Paula MyersCreative Services

Contributors:Laurie Bellman, Alicia Di Rado,

Shawn Le, Lisa Lyons, Toni Pogue

Next Issue: July 31

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