Research

Many kidney cancer patients and caregivers are concerned about the risk of getting and/or becoming very ill if infected by the novel coronavirus COVID-19. In discussions on Facebook, online support networks, and other social media platforms, risk is a major theme. Dr. Brian Rini, Chief of Clinical Trials at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center in Nashville, Tennessee and a member of the…

As the award cycle for the 2020 Young Investigator Awards (YIAs) and Advanced Discovery Awards (ADAs) opens, we're reflecting on the 2019 grant recipients. These innovative researchers are helping to advance our understanding of kidney cancer and improve patients’ lives.  Dr. Scott Haake is a medical oncologist and a PhD candidate in cancer biology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Dr. Haake received…

*This content should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please consult your healthcare provider about any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. The CDC has guidelines for those who are sick with COVID-19 or those who suspect they are infected with the virus that causes COVID-19. Coronaviruses area a family of…

Dr. Brian Rini is an internationally recognized leader in kidney cancer and clinical drug development and a member of the Kidney Cancer Association’s Medical Steering Committee. He recently began a new role as the inaugural Chief of Clinical Trials at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC) in Nashville, Tennessee and will continue to see patients and conduct kidney cancer research. We spoke with…

The 20th Annual Meeting of the Society of Urologic Oncology took place in Washington, D.C. from December 4-6. Here are a few highlights from the program. Dr. Suzanne Merrill’s presentation interrogated how long and intensely patients need to be followed up after kidney cancer treatment. Merrill, a urologic oncologist at Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, noted current guidelines from the…

The KCA’s International Kidney Cancer Symposium took place on November 15-16 in Miami, Florida. Here are a few of the highlights from the program. Think Tank: Coalition for a Cure The KCA convened it’s very first think tank prior to IKCS on November 14. Twenty-five of the top minds in kidney cancer from around the world covering five different specialties – medical…

Dr. W. Kimryn Rathmell received the Eugene P. Schonfeld Award last week at the Kidney Cancer Association’s 18th International Kidney Cancer Symposium (IKCS) in Miami, Florida. Rathmell, a professor and director of the Division of Hematology and Oncology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC), was the first woman to receive the honor, which is granted by the IKCS Scientific Program Committee to recognize respected health…

Updated results of an early-phase trial showing positive outcomes for melanoma patients treated with an investigational anti-cancer drug plus the checkpoint inhibitor nivolumab could be promising for kidney cancer patients too. People diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) are at increased risk for developing melanoma, and vice versa. The cancers share some genetic characteristics and respond to many of the…

A research duo from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas – Dr. Eric Jonasch, an oncologist and professor in the department of Genitourinary Medical Oncolgy, and Dr. Guang Peng, an associate professor of Clinical Cancer Prevention – received a 2019 Advanced Discovery Award. The team plans to investigate how the novel tumor suppressor gene NPRL2 functions…

Research on altered von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) genes proved to be critical in revealing the mechanism by which cells sense and adapt to changing levels of oxygen – a fundamental cellular process that is particularly important in some kidney cancers. Dr. William Kaelin at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, Massachusetts, Dr. Gregg Semenza at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland,…