Southwest Oncology Group Operations Office employees are now part of the Health Science Center.
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When the Cancer Therapy & Research Center merged with The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio in December, a lesser-known group affiliated with CTRC became part of the UT Health Science Center ― the 31 employees of the Southwest Oncology Group (SWOG) Operations Office.

Nationwide network of researchers and physicians
With a network of more than 5,000 physicians and researchers located across the country at universities, in clinics and in private practice, SWOG is one of the largest cancer clinical trials cooperative groups in the United States. The majority of the group’s clinical trials, all involving adult subjects primarily in Phase II and Phase III studies, are funded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI). Conducting protocols through a cooperative group gives researchers access to a larger number of patients in many locations for their trials and a funding mechanism to conduct them.

Operations office located in Texas Research Park
SWOG has three national offices with distinct responsibilities. SWOG’s headquarters, with its administrative and medical leadership, is located at the University of Michigan. The organization’s database and statistical leadership are at the Statistical Center in Seattle, Wash. The operational and regulatory leadership are housed in the operations office in San Antonio, located in the Texas Research Park near the Institute for Drug Development, a CTRC component known for its extensive expertise in Phase I cancer clinical trials.

“We are glad to have a direct link to SWOG,” said Brian Herman, Ph.D., vice president for research at the Health Science Center. “Some of our faculty members have been involved in SWOG trials that have had significant findings. We are looking forward to being able to participate in more SWOG trials in the future,” he said.

Health Science Center provides business management functions
In addition to participating in some of the group’s clinical trials, CTRC also provided business management functions for the operations office, including human resources and the disbursement of grant funding. Since the merger, these management functions are now handled by the Health Science Center.

SWOG has strong roots in San Antonio and at Health Science Center
While SWOG may not be a household name, it has strong roots in San Antonio. Charles Coltman Jr., M.D., a professor in the Department of Medicine’s hematology/oncology division, served as chairman of SWOG for 24 years until he stepped down in 2004. He also was the group’s connection to CTRC, where he served in various capacities including president and chief executive officer until 2004 when he became president emeritus. The group made major strides during his tenure, including a strong increase in membership, diversification in the types of cancers studied and significant achievements in the treatment and prevention of cancer.

Among his most significant contributions were shepherding the two largest cancer prevention trials in the country, the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial (PCPT) and the Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial (SELECT), both conducted at the Health Science Center and many other study sites across the U.S.

Dr. Thompson leading new prostate cancer treatment trial through group
Ian Thompson, M.D., professor and chair of the Department of Urology and holder of the Henry B. and Edna Smith Dielmann Memorial Chair, was the national study coordinator for the PCPT. Results of the study showed that finasteride, prescribed to reduce the size of enlarged prostate glands in men, also lowered the risk for prostate cancer by 25 percent. Further analysis of the results recently showed that the drug’s ability to shrink the prostate improved the results of a widely used screening tool, the prostate-specific antigen test, making it easier for physicians to detect high-grade prostate cancer.

Now, Dr. Thompson is the national study coordinator for a new prostate cancer treatment trial being offered through the Health Science Center that compares “watchful waiting” with aggressive treatment for early-stage prostate cancer.

“I've been an active member of SWOG for about 20 years. If not for SWOG, we would not have made the enormous advances in cancer we've seen over the past two decades. We've forever changed and improved the cure of cancer of the kidney, bladder and prostate, improving not just cure rates but quality of life, as well,” Dr. Thompson said.

Joseph Basler, Ph.D., M.D., clinical professor of urology, is the campus coordinator for SELECT, the largest prostate cancer prevention trial in the U.S. with more than 35,500 participants. “The main benefit I see of conducting trials through SWOG is that the NCI sponsorship lends credibility to the results,” Dr. Basler said.

Dr. Karnad plans to boost Health Science Center’s patient accrual on SWOG trials
Anand Karnad, professor and the Castella Aging Chair in the School of Medicine’s division of hematology/oncology, is the Health Science Center’s principal investigator for the 13 SWOG trials currently being conducted on campus. His mission is to help the Health Science Center rank among the top three institutions for patient accrual on SWOG clinical trials by 2010.

Clinical trials offer novel treatments to South Texans
Conducting clinical trials provides the opportunity to bring novel treatments to patients in South Texas, whose population often suffers from health care disparities. “We have a mission to expand access to the Hispanic/Latino population in this region and to promote high quality cancer care through participation in cancer clinical trials,” Dr. Karnad said. “Through SWOG, we have access to the best minds in cancer research in the critically important work of taking science from the laboratory to those who are sick with cancer. And with the results, we are able to establish new standards of care.”