Orlando, FL - October 28, 2009 - Top cancer researchers and hundreds of physicians and clinicians from around the country converged on Lake Nona Medical City for the M. D. Anderson Cancer Center Orlando Research Symposium. This second annual M. D. Anderson - Orlando event, and the first conference of its kind at Medical City, focused on the work by cancer researchers here in Central Florida and nationally as well as collaborative projects taking place among Medical City partners. M. D. Anderson - Orlando's Cancer Research Institute recently opened its doors at Medical City and is housed in the University of Central Florida's (UCF) Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences building.
The symposium welcomed researchers from top cancer institutes. Presenters included experts from M. D. Anderson - Orlando, the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, The Burnham Institute for Medical Research, UCF College of Medicine, UCF Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, UCF Nanoscience Technology Center, and H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa.
"We are excited to bring this caliber of work to Medical City and to Central Florida," said Clarence Brown, MD, President and CEO of M.D. Anderson - Orlando. "This is a phenomenal opportunity for medical researchers in our area to showcase their accomplishments and to provide a location where cancer experts from around the country can converge to learn more about the latest developments to fight this disease."
Among the latest developments and advancements in cancer research discussed include novel targeted therapies and the study of a DNA repair protein identified in breast cancer that may be responsible for drug resistance and metastasis, a new clinical trial for pancreatic cancer that involves Tolfenamic Acid, and the use of nanoparticles as radioprotectants.
M. D. Anderson Cancer Center Orlando, part of Orlando Health, is affiliated with The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. U.S. News & World Report recently ranked M. D. Anderson Cancer Center as the top cancer treatment center in the U.S. and has ranked it as one of the top two cancer centers for the past 13 years. Orlando Health, a 1,780-bed community-owned, Florida not-for-profit organization established in 1918, annually serves nearly 2 million Central Florida residents and more than 4,500 international patients. More information is available at www.mdandersonorlando.org.