Research & Technology
New Cancer Research
Spectrum Health and Van Andel Research Institute Play Vital Role in New Cancer Research
Enter Multiyear Agreement With Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., April 3, 2011 – Spectrum Health and Van Andel Research Institute are part of a new national research effort that could help patients with multiple myeloma, an incurable blood cancer.
The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF) is spearheading the multi-year, multi-million dollar research effort. In 2012, more than 21,000 adults in the United States were diagnosed with multiple myeloma and approximately 11,000 people died from the disease. The five-year relative survival rate for multiple myeloma is approximately 34 percent, one of the lowest of all cancers.
Spectrum Health was selected to participate in the study because of its extensive research, which currently includes over 800 studies, and because its Advanced Technology Laboratory has extensive experience in diagnosing and monitoring patients with multiple myeloma, is accredited by the College of American Pathologists and is a Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) laboratory.
“We are very excited to be a partner in this effort to determine how to conquer this disease,” said Lisa A. Shannon, Chief Operating Officer, Spectrum Health Grand Rapids. “This is very important research and we are proud to lend our expertise and experience to the effort. Partnerships like this expand the opportunity for success in conquering diseases like multiple myeloma.”
Van Andel Research Institute (VARI) will work with the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) to centrally collect and store tissue samples and extract DNA and RNA from samples for next-generation sequencing analysis including whole-genome and RNA-sequencing. TGen will provide the central hub for the sample analysis.
“We are gratified to participate in a landmark study with such potential to uncover previously unknown molecular processes of multiple myeloma,” said Scott Jewell, Ph.D., VARI Deputy Director for Research Resources and Director, Program for Biospecimen Science. “We look forward to close collaboration with the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation, Spectrum Health and TGen.”
The national foundation hopes that this research will provide a comprehensive view of myeloma at the molecular level and enable the research community to better understand what drives a patient’s response to treatment or disease progression and tailor therapy accordingly. This may also generate new leads for targeted drug development, with the goal of increasing response to therapy and overall survival.
“The strong collaboration of academia, the clinical community and industry in this landmark project will enable us to translate new information into improved treatment approaches more efficiently and effectively than ever before,” said Louise M. Perkins, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer, Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation.
One thousand patients from throughout the country will be enrolled in the study. The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation began enrolling patients through a network of academic and community clinical centers last year. Study participants will provide an initial tissue sample at the time at which they are newly diagnosed, and will provide follow-up tissue samples at the time of first and additional relapse. Sequential analysis of these tissue samples will shed new light on the relationship between molecular variation and patients’ response or resistance to therapy.
Spectrum Health will provide the BRAF gene analysis and a flow cytometric immunophenotype of each patient’s myeloma using state-of-the-art analytics in its clinical diagnostics laboratory.
“It is exciting for us to be involved in such a comprehensive and important national research effort. This puts our technological expertise and experience to the best possible use – potentially saving lives,” said Sue Mammina, director, Spectrum Health Lab & Pulmonary.
Using the Program for Biospecimen Science and its biorepository at VARI, Dr. Jewell’s program will produce the collection kits used in the collection of patient specimens using collection and biobanking best practices to centrally manage the collection and biobanking for this study.
VARI will process the specimens and isolate the cancer cell population and prepare derivatives for genomic analysis at TGen. VARI will use the VARI/TGen bioinventory software to assist in the tracking and management of the biospecimens throughout the life of the project.
About Spectrum Health
Spectrum Health is a not-for-profit health system in West Michigan offering a full continuum of care through the Spectrum Health Hospital Group, which is comprised of nine hospitals including Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital, a state of the art children’s hospital that opened in January 2011, and 190 service sites; the Spectrum Health Medical Group and West Michigan Heart, physician groups totaling more than 600 providers; and Priority Health, a health plan with 625,000 members. Spectrum Health is West Michigan’s largest employer with more than 18,000 employees. The organization provided $176.5 million in community benefit during its 2011 fiscal year.
www.spectrumhealth.org
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About Van Andel Research Institute
Established by Jay and Betty Van Andel in 1996, Van Andel Institute is an independent research organization dedicated to preserving, enhancing and expanding the frontiers of medical science, and to achieving excellence in education by probing fundamental issues of education and the learning process. This is accomplished through the work of over 200 researchers in more than 20 on-site laboratories and in collaborative partnerships that span the globe.
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February 29, 2024