The Holy Cross Hospital was recently awarded a $50,000 grant to provide cancer treatment through genetic profiles.
Holy Cross Hospital has received $50,000 from Community Foundation of Broward for its “Cancel Cancer – Cancer Research & Support” program at the Holy Cross Cancer Research Institute. This will enable Holy Cross Hospital to transform the way cancer patients are treated based on their genetic makeup or the genetic profile of an individual’s tumor. The Cancel Cancer grant makes it possible to bring these new personalized medicine cancer therapies to 50-100 Broward patients who have not previously had access to genetic screening. Personalized medicine is an innovative approach that takes into account individual differences in people’s genes, environments and lifestyles. Each person is unique, and so is his or her cancer.
“We are proud to be a partner with Community Foundation of Broward as we focus on people-centered health care and give foremost consideration of the patient across all levels of our health ministry,” said Patrick A. Taylor, MD, MBA, Holy Cross Hospital president and chief executive officer.
Holy Cross is partnering with Massachusetts General Hospital, an affiliate of Harvard University’s Partners HealthCare® and the oldest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School, to offer SNaPShot molecular testing to ensure that all options, including new tissue and blood biopsy clinical research trials, are identified for patients. SNaPShot molecular testing performs a broad screening of genetic aberrations on tumor samples, instead of just a single test, thus increasing the chance of finding a treatment therapy that the patient will respond to, and potentially improving survival rates. The grant provides clinical trials screening for each patient and discusses the role of clinical research trials in comprehensive cancer care.
“This grant will further Holy Cross Hospital’s goal to ensure that patients in our community have equal access to the most advanced care and clinical research options,” said Paul Papagni, JD, Executive Director of Research at Holy Cross Hospital. “We know that there are people within this population that we serve who suffer higher cancer mortality rates, and this grant provides resources to deliver a personalized approach to their disease, allowing access to the most innovative treatment and research opportunities available anywhere.”
Medical oncologist, Dr. David Drew and complex general surgical oncologist, Dr. Omar Rashid will serve as the project’s Co-Medical Directors.
This generous grant is made possible by support from the following Community Foundation of Broward Funds: Mary N. Porter Cancer Research Fund, Harold D. Franks Cancer Fund, and Wil and Susan Greaton Fund.
This article originally posted on Holy–Cross.com
