The Zimmer Center hosts the Cancer Research Program, which offers eligible patients access to national studies of new treatments and therapies without having to travel outside of Southeastern North Carolina.

Affiliations with National Cancer Institute-sponsored cooperative research groups such as the Cancer and Leukemia Group B (CALGB) and the national surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project (NSABP) make it possible to offer investigational drugs and new strategies for preventing and treating cancer to patients and physicians in the region.

Doznes of cancer research studies are being conducted through the Cancer Research Program of Zimmer Cancer Center for breast, lung, gastrointestinal, lymphoma, prostate, and gynecological cancers.  Some of these studies were designed to test new cancer treatments and strategies to prevent cancer; others were designed to document the effects of cancer in specific populations and the increase our knowledge of the genetic and environmental factors related to cancer development.

Improving Cancer Outcomes for African-Americans

In October 2003, New Hanover Regional Medical Center and the Southeast Area Health Education Center were awarded a five year, $3.6 million grant from the National Cancer Institute to study racial barriers to cancer care.  Among other goals, it will aim to increase the numbers of African-American cancer patients who participate in federally funded radiation oncology clinical trials.

The Principal Investigator for the project is Dr. Patrick Maguire, a private physician with the New Hanover Radiation Oncology Center.  Joining Dr. Maguire in leading the project are Dr. Joel Tepper of UNC-Chapel Hill, Dr. Cyrus Kotwall, Medical Director of the Zimmer Cancer Center, Dr. Sue Hamann of SEAHEC, and Laurie Graham, RN, MSN, AOCN, of New Hanover Regional.

African-Americans in North Carolina have higher mortality rates than Caucasians for cancers of the cervix, lung, prostate, head and neck, breast, and colon.  This award allows researchers to study and try to change the factors that cause such racially unequal cancer burdens.

Central to the project is a collaborative partnership with the Department of Radiation Oncology at UNC-Chapel Hill, which will provide continuing education, consultation, and training to physicians, research nurses, and other staff affiliated with the Zimmer Cancer Center. The other institutional collaborators are SEAHEC and UNC-Wilmington.

Working with the Research Department at SEAHEC, Dr. Peri Bomar of the School of Nursing and Drs. James Johnson and Nora Noel of the Psychology Department at UNCW will conduct research on how relationships with health care providers, religious beliefs, and predicted quality of life influence the decisions of cancer patients to seek, begin, and complete treatment.

Another important goal of the project is to develop mechanisms to communicate with patients and providers in surrounding, rural areas to provide consultation and to facilitate appropriate referrals for radiation treatment. The grant includes funds to enhance the telecommunication and telemedicine capacity at the Zimmer Cancer Center.

For more information

Laurie Graham, RN, MSN, AOCN
Cancer Research Program Coordinator
910.343.7641

To learn more about clinical trials

Visit the National Cancer Institute's website's at www.cancer.gov/clinicaltrials .