CTRC investigator Monica Mita, M.D., is co-director of the course and will also give a presentation at the conference.
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Contact: Karen Stamm, 450-2020

SAN ANTONIO (Feb. 18, 2009) — Newly available anticancer drugs and promising agents that are still awaiting approval will be discussed at a conference for health care professionals March 6 – 7 at the La Quinta Inn & Suites Medical Center in San Antonio.

The 11th Annual Practical Applications of New Agents in Oncology conference is sponsored by the Institute for Drug Development, part of the Cancer Therapy & Research Center (CTRC) at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. The program is designed for physicians, pharmacists and nurses who treat cancer patients.

Many new cancer drugs developed at Institute for Drug Development
Because at least 20 cancer drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in recent years were developed or tested at the CTRC’s Institute for Drug Development, CTRC faculty can share firsthand experience. Joined by experts from major cancer centers around the United States, faculty will provide guidance to front-line clinicians, nurses and pharmacists about incorporating new anticancer agents into standard clinical practice and help them better understand and manage their side effects.

“The face of modern oncology and hematology has changed tremendously in the last five to 10 years due to the development and approval of new drugs,” observed Monica Mita, M.D., course co-director and assistant professor of hematology and medical oncology at the CTRC. “For the first time this year, we will focus our discussions on some novel and promising drugs or pathways that could further change the way we practice. Understanding the new drugs, their mechanism of action, benefits and side effects is essential for drug development in our quest for finding a cure for cancer.”

Investigators will discuss new classes of molecular agents
Sessions will address new classes of molecular agents that regulate the growth of cancer cells: mTOR inhibitors and insulin-like growth factor receptors (IGFR). The mTOR inhibitors to be discussed include:

• Temsirolimus, marketed as Torisel, for kidney cancer
  
• Everolimus, another kidney cancer drug soon to be approved by the FDA
  
• Deferolimus, a sarcoma drug still in clinical testing

The IGFR compounds that will be discussed are being tested in sarcoma and lung cancer patients, but are still in the preliminary stages. Other sessions will describe drugs that are disease-specific, such as agents for breast cancer, cancers of the blood, lung cancer and kidney cancer.

Conference presentors
Presentations will be give by Institute for Drug Development investigators as well as researchers from other major cancer centers including:

• Richard Elledge, M.D., oncologist, private practice (formerly Baylor College of Medicine)
  
• Robert Figlin, M.D., FACP, University of California, Los Angeles, Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center
  
• Alain Mita, M.D., CTRC
  
• Monica Mita, M.D., CTRC
  
• Swaminathan Padmanabhan, M.D., CTRC
  
• Alan Sandler, M.D., Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center Affiliate Network
  
• John Sarantopoulos, M.D., CTRC
  
• Susan Smith, M.S.N., AAI Pharm
  
• Daniel Von Hoff, M.D., FACP, Arizona Health Sciences Center, Translational Genomic Research Institute
  
• Stacey Young-McCaughan, RN, Ph.D., Brooke Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston

How to register
For more information, or to register for the conference, please visit www.newagents.org, or contact Symposia Director Rich Markow.


Continuing Education opportunities
CME: UT Health Science Center San Antonio School of Medicine is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

UT Health Science Center San Antonio School of Medicine designates this educational activity for a maximum of 8.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits TM. Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

CNE: The UT Health Science Center at San Antonio School of Nursing is an approved provider of continuing nursing education by the Texas Nurses Association, an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.

This activity meets Type I criteria for mandatory continuing education requirements toward relicensure as established by the Texas Board of Nursing. This education program offers up to 9.9 nursing contact hours.

ACPE: The University of Texas College of Pharmacy is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education as a provider of continuing pharmacy education. Pharmacists who successfully complete this program will receive 0.7 CEUs (7 contact hours) of continuing education credit. Successful completion of the program is defined as attending the entire conference and completing a Record of Attendance/Evaluation Form. Continuing education statements will be mailed by The University of Texas directly to participants within 6-8 weeks following the program. Program No. 067-999-09-005-L01-P

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The Cancer Therapy & Research Center (CTRC) at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio is one of the nation’s leading academic research and treatment centers, serving more than 4.4 million people in the high-growth corridor of Central and South Texas including Austin, San Antonio, Laredo and the Rio Grande Valley. CTRC is one of a few elite cancer centers in the country to be named a National Cancer Institute (NCI) Designated Cancer Center, and is one of only three in Texas. A world leader in developing new drugs to treat cancer, The CTRC Institute for Drug Development (IDD) is internationally recognized for conducting the largest oncology Phase I clinical drug trials program in the world, and participates in the clinical and/or preclinical development of many of the cancer drugs approved by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration. For more information, visit the Web site at www.ctrc.net.