Thomas Jefferson University Hospital

November 2005

First-Hand Accounts of Response to Spain, London and Oklahoma City Bombings, Florida and Louisiana Hurricanes, Columbine School Shooting and D.C. Anthrax Attacks to be Heard at Jefferson’s International Conference on Terrorism
(Published 11-1-2005) First-Hand Accounts of Response to Spain, London and Oklahoma City Bombings, Florida and Louisiana Hurricanes, Columbine School Shooting and D.C. Anthrax Attacks to be Heard at Jefferson’s International Conference on Terrorism

Thomas Jefferson University Choir and Orchestra Perform Free Holiday Concert
(Published 11-2-2005) The Thomas Jefferson University Choir and Orchestra will celebrate their 36th Annual Holiday Concert on Friday, December 9, at 8 p.m., with a presentation of Haydn’s “Schoepfung Messe.” Also included on the program is music of the season. The concert will be held at The Church of St. Luke and the Epiphany, 330 South 13th Street, between Pine and Spruce Streets.

Noted Georgetown Physician-Scientist Richard G. Pestell, M.D., Ph.D., Named Director of the Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson
(Published 11-3-2005) Richard G. Pestell, M.D., Ph.D., an internationally renowned expert in oncology and endocrinology, has been named director of the Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson in Philadelphia. The announcement was made today by Thomas Jefferson University President Robert L. Barchi, M.D., Ph.D.

Physicians at Jefferson’s Children’s Health Center Offer Asthma Education Day
(Published 11-3-2005) A fun-filled educational day for children with asthma to teach them about this all-too-common condition and how to manage it. A special highlight will be a live rap performance by No Puff Daddy, a youth health educator and inspirational rap artist, tentatively scheduled for 1 p.m.

John Ogunkeye Appointed Chief Operating Officer of Jefferson Medical College
(Published 11-3-2005) Currently he serves as executive director and vice president for business affairs of Jefferson University Physicians (JUP) and will continue in these roles. A nonprofit supporting organization of Thomas Jefferson University, JUP is a multi-specialty physician practice consisting of the full time faculty of Jefferson Medical College.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Awards Jefferson Family Medicine $2 Million to Establish Geriatric Education Center in Eastern Pennsylvania and Delaware
(Published 11-5-2005) The Bureau of Health Professions in the Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has awarded a four-year $2 million grant to the Department of Family and Community Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, to establish the Eastern Pennsylvania-Delaware Geriatric Education Center.

Media Availability Following Consumer Health Care Session
(Published 11-7-2005) Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University, along with the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, will host media availability for reporters Tuesday, November 8, from 5:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Robotic Surgery Latest Treatment Option for Prostate Cancer Offered by Jefferson’s Multidisciplinary Urologic Cancer Team
(Published 11-7-2005) Newer technological advances now make it possible for the internationally recognized urologic specialists at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital to offer another advance in less invasive laparoscopic prostatectomy. The latest tool in their hands is a futuristic, state-of-the art robotic technology, called the daVinci ® System, that allows them to perform a less invasive, laparoscopic radical prostatectomy, by using a small, thin tube with a scope on the tip to see inside the body and remove prostate tissue.

New Cardiac Electrophysiology Lab Opens at Jefferson University Hospital
(Published 11-8-2005) To accommodate the ever-growing demand from referring physicians and their patients, the Cardiac Electrophysiology Lab at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital has moved into a new, much larger, dedicated suite. In this new space you will see a heart care facility filled with the aura of professional medical care. It is stocked with new devices, new equipment and technology—all geared toward the treatment of patients with heart rhythm disorders including fast and slow heart rhythms.

Jefferson Biologist Coaxing Human Embryonic Stem Cells to Make Dopamine with Simpler, Faster Method
(Published 11-13-2005) For all of the promise embryonic stem cells hold for therapies for neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease, they are notoriously difficult to use. One problem is in coaxing them into becoming brain cells that make dopamine, which is in short supply in the brains of individuals with Parkinson’s. Such cells might be used for transplantation in these patients, but current methods involve extremely complex growth media and potentially contaminating animal products.

Jefferson Scientists Show Protein Plays Critical Role in Heart Failure in Both the Heart and Adrenal Gland
(Published 11-14-2005) A protein that plays an important regulatory role in heart failure in the heart also exerts powerful effects on the adrenal gland, Jefferson Medical College researchers have found. The protein, GRK2, is a potential drug target for heart failure.

Jefferson Scientists Uncover More Evidence For Protein’s Role in Artery Blockage
(Published 11-15-2005) Researchers at Jefferson Medical College have begun to clarify the role of a protein – and potential drug target – in the process by which arteries re-clog after treatment.

A New Class of Radioprotective Drugs? Jefferson Researchers Find Nanoparticle Shows Promise in Reducing Radiation Side Effects
(Published 11-15-2005) Using transparent zebrafish embryos, researchers at Jefferson Medical College have shown that a microscopic nanoparticle can help fend off damage to normal tissue from radiation. The nanoparticle, a soccer ball-shaped, hollow, carbon-based structure known as a fullerene, acts like an “oxygen sink,” binding to dangerous oxygen radicals produced by radiation.

Jefferson Researchers Find that the Lack of a Protein Often Found in Obese People can be a Risk Factor for Kidney and Heart Disease
(Published 11-15-2005) Nephrologists at Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, led by Kumar Sharma, M.D., director of Jefferson’s Center for Diabetic Kidney Disease, reported on the results during Renal Week in November 2005 at the American Society of Nephrology in Philadelphia.

First-Hand Accounts to be Heard at Jefferson’s International Conference on Terrorism
(Published 11-15-2005) Terrorism, security and medical specialists who dealt first-with highly publicized terrorist attacks and major disasters, such as the Madrid train and London subway bombings, will share notes with more than 600 of their U.S. counterparts on how to best respond to such incidents at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital’s seventh annual International Conference on Terrorism and Disaster Preparedness.

Jefferson Researchers Find Drug May Give Some Cardiac Protection 24 Hours After Heart Attack
(Published 11-16-2005) A drug has been shown to provide some protection to the heart from injury even if given as much as 24 hours after a heart attack, Jefferson Medical College researchers report.

Philadelphia Breathes Easier with New Asthma Grant
(Published 11-16-2005) The Philadelphia Allies Against Asthma coalition (PAAA) was awarded a four-year, $2 million grant to combat pediatric asthma by the Merck Company Foundation’s new Merck Childhood Asthma Network (MCAN) initiative. The grant, announced in Washington, D.C. today, will support services provided by the coalition’s lead partners, the Health Promotion Council of Southeastern Pennsylvania (HPC), the Community Asthma Prevention Program (CAPP) at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and Thomas Jefferson University. Philadelphia is one of five cities nationwide to receive this grant.

Jefferson and Delaware Researchers Combine Tiny Nanotubes and Antibodies to Detect Cancer
(Published 11-17-2005) By coating the surfaces of tiny carbon nanotubes with monoclonal antibodies, biochemists and engineers at Jefferson Medical College and the University of Delaware have teamed up to detect cancer cells in a tiny drop of water. The work is aimed at developing nanotube-based biosensors that can spot cancer cells circulating in the blood from a treated tumor that has returned or from a new cancer.

NIH-Funded Jefferson Study to Improve Vision Function in Age-Related Macular Degeneration
(Published 11-22-2005) A randomized, controlled study is being conducted by researchers at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital and Wills Eye Hospital to determine if Problem-Solving Treatment (PST) can improve the day-to-day functioning of patients with vision loss due to age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Jefferson Family Medicine Specialist Richard Wender, M.D., Voted President-Elect of American Cancer Society
(Published 11-22-2005) Richard C. Wender, M.D., Alumni Professor and chair, Department of Family and Community Medicine at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University and Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, was voted president-elect of the American Cancer Society at its recent national meeting.

Jefferson Center for Applied Research on Aging and Health Awarded $2.2 Million for Collaborative Partnership to Study Mental Health of Older African American Adults
(Published 11-22-2005) Research from the past 15 years has consistently shown health disparities between Whites and minorities in the United States. African Americans in particular are at higher risk than Caucasians for serious health conditions such as stroke, diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disease and mild cognitive impairment. These chronic conditions typically contribute to depression in elders as a whole group, but for African American elders the rates of depression are much lower than their White counterparts.

Live Webcast Will Give Close-up View of Robotic Surgery for Prostate Cancer Offered by Jefferson’s Multidisciplinary Urologic Cancer Team
(Published 11-23-2005) Two forms of high technology will join together this January to allow the public and physicians to view a less invasive surgery for prostate cancer from the comfort of their home or office. Thomas Jefferson University Hospital will host a live webcast of a radical laparoscopic prostatectomy, on Thursday, January 19, 2006, at 4:30 p.m., using a futuristic, state-of-the art robotic technology, called the daVinci ® System. The webcast can be viewed at www.jeffersonhospital.org/webcast.

Jefferson Conference to Illuminate Approaches to a Patient’s Spiritual Care
(Published 11-23-2005) Thomas Jefferson University Hospital invites health care professionals, psychologists, social workers, medical students, chaplains and members of the clergy to discuss current issues on the spiritual care of the patient at a multi-dimensional conference entitled “Illuminating Pathways of Care: Medical and Spiritual Approaches.”

Over-the-Counter Arthritis Drug Might Also Help Against MS, Jefferson Neuroscientists Find
(Published 11-28-2005) Glucosamine, the over-the counter natural product that has been touted to help with joint and cartilage problems associated with arthritis, may also provide some relief to individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS), a degenerative, nervous system disease with no known cure.