The Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of northwestern university at northwestern Memorial Hospital

Research
Among the Thoracic Oncology program’s goals
is to define the molecular signature of every tumor, 
bank all tumors for future study, correlate the 
observed biology with treatment response and 
patient outcome and use the information to design 
new, personalized therapies. Future research, says 
Dr. DeCamp, will focus on “our ability to unlock
the genetics of lung cancer, which is really not one 
disease, but a family of diseases. We need more 
information about what effects our treatments have 
at the cellular level.” 
In 2011, Minesh Mehta, MD, radiation oncologist
on the medical staff at Northwestern Memorial
and professor of Radiation Oncology at Feinberg 
investigated ways to treat patients with Stage 3 
disease with biologically targeted drugs, typically 
reserved for patients with metastatic lung cancer.
A patient can receive a targeted drug along with a 
combination of radiation and chemotherapy, then, 
after a few weeks of treatment, undergo a PET scan 
to examine the effects of the treatment. “You might 
see considerable individual variation from patient
to patient,” Dr. Mehta says. “The tumor or some 
portion of it will be not metabolically active in some 
patients and not in others. This allows us to change 
our radiation plan two-thirds of the way into 
treatment. We adapt the radiotherapy to the 
response of the tumor.”
QuALiTy of LifE AnD SuRvivoRShiP
Living with a diagnosis of lung cancer can have
a profound effect on a patient’s quality of life. We 
are a leader in addressing this issue both through 
the Lurie Cancer Center’s Supportive Oncology 
Program and research. The program offers 
psychological, rehabilitation, integrative medicine, 
palliative care and nutrition services to all patients 
undergoing cancer treatment, while research 
efforts include studies that measure quality of life 
during treatment.
The gathering and reporting of clinical trials data 
allows physicians and researchers both at 
Northwestern and beyond “to compare treatments 
to one another in terms of the impact on a patient’s 
symptoms and the ability to function well and carry 
on everyday activities,” says David Cella, PhD, 
professor and chair in the Department of Medical 
Social Sciences at Feinberg and an expert on the 
psychosocial aspects of cancer survivorship. 
Quality of life results are reported in scientific 
literature and become a part of cancer
treatment guidelines.
Developing better measures of symptoms during 
treatment, which may include fatigue, nausea, pain 
and anxiety, also is ongoing here. In one research 
project, Dr. Cella’s team regularly asks patients a
list of questions about their symptoms. 
“We can generate a report on symptoms,” says
Dr. Cella. “When the physician sees you at your 
next appointment, he can talk with you about the 
symptom data too.” The goal is to make the 
collection and reporting of symptoms a part of 
routine care for patients here.
“It will enable us to more effectively get this quality 
of life information into the dialogue about when
to treat a patient and how much to treat,” he says. 
“We’re factoring in the patient’s voice more than 
ever before.”
Jyoti D. Patel, MD (left)
David Cella, PhD
Minesh Mehta, MD (left)

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6
2 0 1 1 C A n C e R A n n u A l R e v i e w
Cancer Program Highlights – Fiscal Year 2011
•
Annually, the cancer program at 
Northwestern Memorial has more than 
5,000 inpatient admissions and provides 
comprehensive care in state-of-the-art 
facilities that include the following:
- 90 inpatient beds for hematology/
oncology patients with a dedicated
unit for stem cell transplantation in 
Northwestern Memorial Hospital’s 
Prentice Women’s Hospital.
- 30 dedicated inpatient surgical oncology 
beds in the Feinberg Pavilion and
18 dedicated inpatient surgical oncology 
beds in Prentice.
- Comprehensive radiation oncology 
facilities in the Galter Pavilion and Prentice 
include five linear accelerators, gamma 
knife Perfexion, brachytherapy, 
intraoperative radiation therapy, brain and 
body radiosurgery, image-guided radiation 
therapy (IGRT), intensity modulated 
radiation therapy (IMRT), 3-D treatment 
planning and hyperthermia capabilities. 
More than 26,000 treatments were 
delivered to more than 2,200 patients.
•
Comprehensive outpatient care services 
are provided in the Lurie Cancer Center’s 
two locations on the 21st floor of Galter
and the Maggie Daley Center for Women’s 
Cancer Care in Prentice, serving nearly 
10,000 new patients annually. Both 
locations provide a full range of cancer 
treatment services and a model program
of supportive oncology services including 
social work, psychology, psychiatry, 
nutritional support, health education, 
rehabilitation, integrative medicine and 
patient navigation services.
•
Regular multidisciplinary conferences 
provided prospective treatment planning
for patients in the following areas: 
- Breast cancer 
- Gynecologic oncology 
- Genitourinary cancers 
- Hematologic diseases 
- Head and neck cancers 
- Neurological oncology 
- Hematopoietic stem cell transplant 
-Sarcoma 
-Melanoma 
-Gastrointestinal oncology 
-Thoracic oncology 
-Palliative care 
-Radiosurgery
•
A wide range of education, support and 
outreach programs include the following:
- Professional education programs 
included the 12th annual Lynn Sage 
Breast Cancer Symposium, sixth annual 
Radiosurgery Symposium and the 13th 
annual Oncology Nursing Conference,
as well as annual programs in Basic 
Sciences, Pain and Palliative Care, 
Lymphoma and ASCO and ASH Reviews.
- A full complement of patient education
and support services was offered, 
including support groups, inpatient case 
management and comprehensive 
outpatient supportive oncology services. 
In addition, a monthly Cancer Connections 
program provided patients and families
the opportunity to learn about health and 
wellness services from local support 
organizations.
- Survivorship programs were offered, 
including a late effects clinic (STAR 
Program), providing specialty services
to adult survivors of pediatric cancer;
a program addressing the special 
survivorship needs of breast cancer 
patients (SUCCEED); and a new program 
focused on the adolescent and young 
adult survivor population.
- Community education and outreach 
programs were offered, including 
numerous disease-oriented presentations, 
the annual Breast Cancer Town Hall 
Meeting and cancer survivorship 
initiatives, including the 18th Annual 
Cancer Survivors’ Celebration and Walk
on the Chicago lakefront with nearly
4,000 participants.
- The Lurie Cancer Center also sponsored 
and helped coordinate community 
programs focused on cancer health 
disparities including a Regional 
Symposium on Minorities, the Medically 
Underserved and Cancer in conjunction 
with the Intercultural Cancer Council;
a State of the Cancer Union/Minority 
Report; and an ACS program on The 
Impact of Health Care Reform in the 
Latino Community.
•
Multiple new faculty recruitments to 
multidisciplinary care and research teams 
occurred. Key clinical faculty recruits 
included the following:
-