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Nationally Recognized Cancer Experts Join Levine Cancer Institute
“A CANCER INSTITUTE WITHOUT WALLS.” THIS IS THE PLEDGE OF CAROLINAS HealthCare System’s (CHS) Levine Cancer Institute to the community—to bring world-class cancer care closer to home.

“The Institute is working to define the future of cancer care—where innovations in research and treatment are brought closer to home for patients to improve outcomes and quality of life,” says the Institute’s President, Derek Raghavan, MD, PhD.

While there are many integral components to building a leading cancer program, one of the key pieces is being able to offer patients access to the latest research and treatment options. To help fulfill this mission, the Institute has brought on board several nationally recognized cancer experts.

Edward S. Kim, MD

Joining the Institute from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is Edward S. Kim, MD, who will serve as chair of the Department of Solid Tumor Oncology and Investigational Therapeutics. Dr. Kim is recognized as a national leader in molecular prognostication for lung cancer and specializes in thoracic oncology and head and neck cancers. In his previous role as professor and oncologist at MD Anderson, he also served as the center’s principal investigator for Southwest Oncology Group, one of the largest of the National Cancer Institute-supported cancer clinical trials cooperative groups. Named a top physician by U.S. News & World Report, Dr. Kim received his medical degree from Northwestern University through the Honors Program in Medical Education. He completed his residency at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX, and a medical oncology fellowship at MD Anderson.

Donate Today as Team Draft’s leads a National Campaign to Changing the Face of Lung Cancer

Edward Kim, MD, Levine Cancer Institute in Charlotte, North Carolina from TEAM DRAFT on Vimeo.

Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC) will provide lung cancer risk assessments for veterans and military beneficiaries beginning today during a Lung Cancer Screening and Awareness Day.
All military beneficiaries and District of Columba Veterans Affairs (VA) veterans may participate in the screening at WRNMMC today from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Internal Medicine clinic located in the America Building, first floor, according to Lt. Cmdr. Corey A. Carter, of Hematology-Oncology at Walter Reed Bethesda.
“The event is just the kick-off,” Carter added. “Screening will be performed every day, just like mammograms are performed every day.”
“This important new lung cancer screening program for military and veterans at high risk has the potential to save lives and decrease death from lung cancer,” said Army Col. (Dr.) Craig Shriver, chief of General Surgery Service and interim director of the U. S. Military Cancer Institute at WRNMMC. “The Cancer Center at Walter Reed Bethesda is proud to be the first military medical center to offer this unique program to our beneficiaries.”
The screening is being held in conjunction with Lung Cancer Awareness Month, observed annually during November. The observance began as Lung Cancer Awareness Day in 1995, and expanded to a month-long observance in order to draw greater attention to the leading cause of cancer deaths in men and women in the U.S., according to the American Lung Association.
Annually, approximately 200,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with lung cancer, and more than 150,000 people die from this disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Deaths from lung cancer represent about one out of every six deaths from cancer in the U.S., according to the CDC. The CDC cites smoking causes 80 to 90 percent of cases of lung cancer.
Carter explained the purpose for the lung cancer screening is for a 20 percent reduction in lung cancer death. Veterans may be among those with the highest risk for lung cancer, he added. “Smoking is the biggest risk factor. Added to this, many of our veterans were exposed to Agent Orange, [in addition to] occupational exposure to jet and diesel fuel,” Carter said.
At Walter Reed Bethesda, the lung cancer screening will include an evaluation to verify a patient is at high risk for the disease, Carter explained. Those at risk will be enrolled into a screening program that will conduct annual low dose chest CT scans, he added.
Carter said the five-year survival rate for a person diagnosed with lung cancer is 15 percent. “We are hoping to diagnose lung cancer earlier, at a curable stage.”
He added it’s important people understand their risk factors for lung cancer. According to the CDC, lung cancer risk factors include:
- Smoking
- Secondhand smoke from other people’s cigarettes
- Radon gas in the home
- Things around the home or work that, include asbestos, ionizing radiation, and other cancer-causing substances
- Medical radiation exposure to the chest
- Chronic lung disease such as emphysema or chronic bronchitis
- Increased age
Carter went on to note people should understand the risk factors, and get screened. “We will offer an appointment with a medical home team member to screen all of our beneficiaries for risk factors and determine if they would benefit from screening.
“Walter Reed Bethesda is leading the nation by forming a multidisciplinary screening program and will offer it to our high risk patients,” Carter added.
According to the CDC, not everyone has the same symptoms for lung cancer.”Some people don’t have any symptoms at all when first diagnosed with lung cancer. Lung cancer symptoms may include:
- Shortness of breath
- Coughing that doesn’t go away
- Wheezing
- Coughing up blood
- Chest pain
- Repeated respiratory infections such as bronchitis or pneumonia
These symptoms can happen with other illnesses, which is why Carter encourages veterans and beneficiaries to participate in the screening beginning Nov. 8.
The CDC also states people can reduce their risk of developing lung cancer in several ways, including the following:
- Don’t smoke. If you do smoke, quit now
- Avoid secondhand smoke
- Have your home tested for radon and take corrective actions if high levels are found
- Be aware of your exposure to radiation from medical imaging. Ask your doctor about the need for medical tests that involve images of the chest.
- Follow health and safety guidelines in the workplace when working with toxic materials.- Avoid diesel exhaust and other harmful air pollutants.

Lt. Commander Corey A. Carter, Walter Reed National Military Hospital from TEAM DRAFT on Vimeo.

W. Larry Gluck, MD

Medical Director – Cancer Center, Greenville Hospital System University Medical Center

Specialty: Medical Oncology/Hematology

Dr. Gluck earned his medical degree at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine in Pennsylvania. He completed his internship and residency at the University Health Center in Pittsburgh and his fellowship in Hematology and Oncology at the Duke University Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina. Dr. Gluck subsequently joined the faculty of Duke University Medical Center Division of Hematology and Medical Oncology engaging in both laboratory and clinical cancer research. His publications range from the exploration of mechanisms of cellular mediated tumor cell killing to innovative clinical investigation of leukemia, lymphoma and solid tumors. He currently holds dual academic appointments at the GHS University Medical Center and the USC School of Medicine. Current research interests include the investigation of molecular and cellular events of cancer fatigue and deconditioning, the application of novel agents in the treatment of acute leukemia, and targeted agents in the treatment of breast and lung cancer.
Dr. Gluck has been the Medical Director for the Greenville Hospital System’s Apheresis Program since 1992, and became the Medical Director for the Greenville Hospital System’s Cancer Center in 2002. Having joined in 1986 he remains a partner of Cancer Centers of the Carolinas, a private physician practice.
He is an active member of the South Carolina Cancer Alliance (SCCA), a statewide non-profit organization dedicated to reducing the impact of cancer on all people in South Carolina, is involved in multiple cancer support programs for patients and families in the Upstate region of South Carolina. He is Board Certified in Internal Medicine, Hematology and Oncology.

W. Larry Gluck, MD — Institute for Translational Oncology Research in Greenville, SC from TEAM DRAFT on Vimeo.

Phoebe Cancer Center in Albany, Georgia
A Leading Southeast Cancer Treatment Center Located in Southwest Georgia

More than 73,000 square feet of state-of-the-art treatment rooms and technology is dedicated to the prevention, early detection and treatment of cancer.
The Cancer Center has a multi-disciplinary team of expert medical oncologists, oncology nurses, pharmacists, and laboratory and social services professionals provides a wide range of hematology/oncology treatment for cancer patients and their families in Southwest Georgia.

Cutting-Edge Cancer Therapies at Phoebe’s Cancer Pavilion in Southwest Georgia
Phoebe Cancer Center provides streamlined treatment process, state-of-the-art technology and services, as well as patient convenience and accessibility to treatment areas. Special design features promote a pleasant, tranquil, healing environment for patients and visitors.

Phoebe Cancer Center in Albany, GA from TEAM DRAFT on Vimeo.

Dr. Silvestri is a Professor of Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina. Dr. Silvestri completed his undergraduate education at Fairleigh Dickinson University, his medical degree at St. Georges University, a residency in internal medicine at the hospital of St. Raphaels/Yale University School of medicine and fellowship training at Dartmouth. He has an advanced degree in health services research, also from Dartmouth. He is a lung cancer and interventional pulmonologist. He is involved in every aspect of lung cancer care including screening, diagnosis, staging, treatment and palliation. Dr. Silvestri is a writer and editor of the ACCP lung cancer guidelines. He is the immediate past chair of the Thoracic Oncology network of the ACCP and the president of the American Association of Bronchology. Dr. Silvestri has authored over 100 scientific articles, book chapters and editorials. He has served on study sections at both the National Institute of Health and NCI pertaining to lung cancer and is on the data safety monitoring board of the national screening trial for Prostate, Lung, Colon and Ovarian Cancer (PLCO). He is associate editor of the journal Thorax. Dr. Silvestri is a grant funded researcher with a program project grant in screening for lung cancer with a program project grant in screening for lung cancer.

Gerard Silvestri, MD, MS —

Presbyterian Cancer Center is participating in an international research trial focused on whether preventive lung cancer screening can aid early detection.

The collaborative trial, called the International Early Lung Cancer Action Program, will screen participants with low-dose CT scans. The study includes 48 institutions in nine countries.

It aims to determine whether that type of screening could be used for populations at a high risk of developing lung cancer, says Dr. James O’Brien of Mecklenburg Radiology Associates.

That radiology practice is Presbyterian’s imaging partner for medical testing. O’Brien will be the principal investigator for the study in Charlotte.

The initiative builds upon findings from the National Lung Screening Trial, released last year. That study found that CT screening reduces lung cancer mortality by 20% when compared with a chest X-ray.

“We’re definitely on the forefront of doing this,” O’Brien says.

The cancer center, part of Charlotte-based Presbyterian Healthcare, is the only site in a three-state radius participating in the trial.

The center has an annual enrollment goal of 500 patients. That will continue until the trial goals are met or a decision is made on CT screening for high-risk patients.

O’Brien estimates each CT scan will cost at least $150.

The cancer center will receive financial support to defray those costs from the LungStrong 15K/5K walk-run, a Charlotte-based charity race that supports lung-cancer research. “We’re going to try and give as much as we can,” says Eddie David, LungStrong founder.

The charity race began in 2007, following the death of David’s father from lung cancer. The event has raised about $500,000 over the past five years.

Early screening will help reduce deaths related to lung cancer, David says. “It’s something we’ve needed for a long time. The No. 1 cancer killer in the country is lung cancer.”

Most of Presbyterian’s participants will be referred by doctors, but some may choose to participate on their own if they have an extensive history of smoking, a family history of cancer or significant exposure to second-hand smoke.

“You’re looking to find the appropriate population that has this disease in a high enough frequency that you can screen for it adequately,” O’Brien says.

The National Cancer Institute estimated more than 220,000 people would be diagnosed with lung cancer in 2011. Less than 15% of patients survive five years after being diagnosed with the illness. Experts cite limited opportunities for early detection of the disease.

But O’Brien notes that 80% of patients diagnosed with Stage 1 lung cancer will survive. They face surgery to remove the cancer and follow up CT scans.

Courtesy of : Jennifer ThomasStaff Writer- Charlotte Business Journal