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| July 7, 2010 |
| Emory Earns Full Membership in Radiation Therapy Oncology Group |
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Emory University through its Department of Radiation Oncology has earned full membership status in the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG).
RTOG is one of nine National Cancer Institute-supported cancer cooperative groups conducting large multi-center cancer clinical trials in the United States, Canada, and elsewhere. RTOG has been continuously funded by the NCI for over forty years, and Emory joins 28 American and 7 Canadian institutions who currently constitute the group’s full member roster.
Emory is the first institution in the United States in more than in 3 years to earn full membership in RTOG. In the Southeast, only Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa and the University of Alabama at Birmingham hold full membership status in RTOG. As is true of the Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University, both of these facilities are also NCI-designated cancer centers.
“Emory and its affiliated hospitals earned this designation in less than two years, which speaks to the focus and dedication of our research faculty and staff at the Winship Cancer institute, Emory University Hospital, Grady, Emory Midtown Hospital, and the VA," says Walter J. Curran, Jr, MD, executive director of Winship and chair of Emory's Department of Radiation Oncology. "Full membership means our clinical trials data management meets and exceeds rigourous standards for the highest quality of care."
Full membership enables Winship to establish affiliate members across the United States and Canada. Affiliate members play an important role because clinical researchers are able to accrue patients from a wide geographic and demographic spectrum and more patients have an opportunity to participate in clinical trials.
“The benefit to patients is increased access to new investigational therapies and the absolute highest standard of care, which are established by the NCI and other federal agencies,” says Curran, who was recently re-elected to serve as RTOG Group Chairman. “We will work with the Georgia Cancer Coalition and the Georgia Center for Oncology Research and Education to expand the availability of RTOG trials throughout the state of Georgia and beyond.”
The RTOG is the lead American cancer cooperative group conducting large clinical trials for patients with brain tumors, tumors of the head and neck region, and prostate cancer. In addition, its clinical trial portfolio includes clinical trials for patients with cancers of the lung, gastrointestinal tract, breast, and gynecologic and genitourinary systems.
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