Yale Cancer Center
Yale Cancer Center (YCC) was founded in 1974 as a result of an act of Congress in 1971, which declared the nation's "war on cancer." It is one of a select network of 41 NCI-designated Cancer Centers throughout the country, designated by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), and the only one in southern New England. Directed by Thomas J. Lynch, Jr., MD, the Cancer Center brings together the resources of the Yale School of Medicine (YSM), Yale-New Haven Hospital (YNHH), the Yale School of Public Health (YSPH), and Yale University.
Overview and History
Over sixty years ago, the faculty at Yale School of Medicine pioneered the modern concepts of chemotherapy by administering the very first anticancer agent, nitrogen mustard, to a patient with cancer[citation needed]. Today, scientists and clinicians at Yale Cancer Center are collaborating to design and develop the latest cancer treatments and combination therapy to patients in Phase I, II, and III clinical trials.
Since the passage of the National Cancer Act in 1972, the NCI has mandated that comprehensive cancer centers, like Yale, develop fundamental basic science that translates into innovative therapies for cancer patients.
Cancer patients at Yale are able to directly access the most innovative therapies in the detection, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer. The focus of the Center is to provide the highest quality clinical care by translating promising research discoveries from the laboratories into cutting-edge cancer treatments. This approach provides patients with early access to novel treatments that are not yet available in the community or at other cancer centers.
Clinical Care
At Yale Cancer Center, science and medicine converge as the latest research is applied directly to patient care. Led by Roy S. Herbst, MD, Chief of Medical Oncology and Associate Director for Translational Research, Yale medical oncologists care for patients in Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale-New Haven. To organize patient care, Yale Cancer Center and Smilow Cancer Hospital have developed 12 multidisciplinary programs to provide physicians and specialists at Yale Cancer Center with the opportunity to focus their expertise on specific types of cancers.
Clinical trials and research studies are available for appropriate patients with early or late-stage diseases who are under the care of the Center's oncology staff. Yale Cancer Center currently has 64 clinical trials available for patients in over 15 different disease areas.
Research
Yale School of Medicine was home to the country’s first university-based Medical Oncology Section, and its faculty has since pioneered many breakthrough cancer treatments.
Basic research in cancer is a hallmark of Yale Cancer Center, which draws approximately $140 million in cancer research funding to Yale every year[citation needed]. Yale is home to some of the world’s leading investigators in cancer, who have provided a steady stream of advances in a number of disciplines, contributing to the basic understanding of cancer and to the development of new therapeutic and diagnostic approaches.
The Developmental Therapeutics Research Program at Yale Cancer Center has been successful in discovering a wide range of novel agents, many of which are now undergoing pre-clinical and clinical testing. The newest initiative of the Developmental Therapeutics Program, a Phase I research team, specifically focuses on the application of promising laboratory discoveries in the design and conduct of clinical trials at Yale Cancer Center.