The vision at the University of Cincinnati is to build a unique cancer research program that capitalizes on and expands upon existing strengths. And UC's strength lies squarely with its genetic research.
"We have to begin to take advantage of the human genome project and analyze individual tumors in individual patients," says Cecilia Fenoglio-Preiser, director of the University of Cincinnati Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. "It isn't enough to analyze 500 patients with breast cancer. You have to figure out what is different in each patient.
"The first step in creating any cancer cure is to understand what is abnormal about the cells. You have to develop a genomics approach to cancer."
Genetic predisposition accounts for only about 15 percent of common cancers, she says. "There has to be something else that accounts for people developing cancer. It is our hypothesis that what is at play here is a gene-environment interaction. We have to begin to understand how the environmental exposures we have relate to how we develop cancer."
Much of the area's high cancer mortality rate can be pinned to two health risks. Cincinnati is among the highest in the United States for both tobacco use and obesity. But according to Fenoglio-Preiser, there are many other factors to consider.
"This is a fairly industrialized area," she contends. "We have a substantial river running through us with large amounts of traffic. We drink that water. We are a major transportation pathway with one of the busiest north/south interstates in the United States (I-75). We get all the exhaust fumes and spills. And we also have very heavy train traffic.
"Basically, this is a major traffic corridor that can bring things into the area that maybe weren't here in the first place. We need to begin to figure out what those things are and how they interact with folks."
Before that can happen, UC will need to recruit prominent clinicians and international leaders in cancer research to help attract appropriate funding. Administrators are also recommending a new Department of Cancer Biology, a partnership between the College of Medicine and the College of Pharmacy to focus on drug discovery.
All of these things will pave the way for UC to become a National Cancer Institute. A nod from the NCI is like a Good Housekeeping seal of approval, Fenoglio-Preiser says.
"It says you have had peer review and you have outstanding programs. You have research. You have cancer control and prevention. You've got the clinical activity and are basically state of the art. It is a statement of excellence."
Most important, however, it will mean Cincinnatians will stay home for care.
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