Bench to Bedside Podcast

On this episode of the Bench to Bedside podcast, Dr. Roy Jensen, vice chancellor and director of The University of Kansas Cancer Center, speaks with Dr. Melissa Javellana, a gynecological oncologist, about cervical cancer and her journey to becoming a cancer physician and researcher. Also joining the conversation, Ashley, a mom of two, shares why she made the decision to get her children the HPV vaccine – a shot that prevents cervical cancer.

If you appreciated this episode, please share, rate, subscribe and leave a review. For the latest updates, make you are following us on social media by searching for KU Cancer Center on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Do you have questions about cancer? Would you like to participate in this podcast? We want to hear from you! Send us an email with your questions at benchtobedside@kumc.edu or leave us a voice message at (913) 588-3880. Your question may be featured on a future episode.

Links from this episode:

• Learn more about cervical cancer
• Learn more about HPV vaccination
• Learn about the gynecological cancer care team at KU Cancer Center
• Learn more about Dr. Javellana
• Learn more about gynecological cancer research at KU Cancer Center

Everyone has a personal experience with cancer, but what exactly IS this disease that affects so many? On this episode of the Bench to Bedside podcast, we are joined by Dr. Danny Welch, associate director for Education at The University of Kansas Cancer Center, to answer that complex question. Dr. Welch’s career has centered on the spread – or metastasis – of cancer. And a personal connection has been a driving force behind his career — his mother died of metastatic cancer. He is passionate about cancer education and excels at explaining complex scientific research in a way that anyone can understand.

If you appreciated this episode, please share, rate, subscribe and leave a review. For the latest updates, make you are following us on social media by searching for KU Cancer Center on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. 

Do you have questions about cancer? Would you like to participate in this podcast? We want to hear from you! Send us an email with your questions at benchtobedside@kumc.edu or leave us a voice message at (913) 588-3880. Your question may be featured on a future episode.

Links from this episode: 

• Learn more about Dr. Welch’s research on cancer metastasis
• The four hallmarks of metastasis
• The definition of cancer
• Dr. Welch on the Bench to Bedside video series

Currently, only 4 percent of people who participate in a clinical trial are Black and 5 percent are Hispanic. On this episode of the Bench to Bedside podcast, Dr. Roy Jensen, vice chancellor and director of The University of Kansas Cancer Center, speaks with Dr. Tara Lin, medical director of the cancer center’s Clinical Trial Office, and Dr. Ronald Chen, Chair and professor of Radiation Oncology at the University of Kansas School of Medicine and associate director for Health Equity at the cancer center, about why diversity in clinical trials is important to the health of our region, and what The University of Kansas Cancer Center is doing to give all communities access. Ullyses Wright, a member of the cancer center’s patient research advocacy group (PIVOT) and cancer prevention clinical trial participant, also joins the conversation to share his perspective as a leader in the Kansas City African American community. 

If you appreciated this episode, please share, rate, subscribe and leave a review. For the latest updates, make you are following us on social media by searching for KU Cancer Center on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. 

Do you have questions about cancer? Would you like to participate in this podcast? We want to hear from you! Send us an email with your questions at benchtobedside@kumc.edu or leave us a voice message at (913) 588-3880. Your question may be featured on a future episode.

Links from this episode:

• Learn more about clinical trials at KU Cancer Center
• Learn more about the need for diversity in clinical trials
• Learn more about the KU Cancer Center clinical trials finder app, available for download on Apple and Android
• Clinical Trials - Why Diversity Matters video
•  KU Cancer Center uses art to raise awareness about access to clinical trials
• Learn more about KU Cancer Center’s patient research advocacy group, PIVOT
• Dr. Tara Lin shares the five things you may not know about clinical trials on the KU Cancer Center blog
• Dr. Ronald Chen shares efforts to eliminate cancer health disparities in Kansas and beyond

On this special episode of the Bench to Bedside podcast, hear a conversation between Dr. Christy Hagan, a breast cancer researcher at The University of Kansas Cancer Center, and Lauryn Werner, an MD/PhD student working in Dr. Hagan’s lab. Listen as they share how they ended up in the cancer research field, what their mentorship relationship looks like, how they balance their work and personal lives, and what it felt like when Lauryn herself was diagnosed with the very cancer they are studying. 

If you appreciated this episode, please share, rate, subscribe and leave a review. For the latest updates, make you are following us on social media by searching for KU Cancer Center on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. 

Do you have questions about cancer? Would you like to participate in this podcast? We want to hear from you! Send us an email with your questions at benchtobedside@kumc.edu or leave us a voice message at (913) 588-3880. Your question may be featured on a future episode.

Links from this episode:

• Learn more about Dr. Christy Hagan’s research 
• Lauryn Werner’s cancer journey
• Follow the Hagan Lab on Twitter 
• Go behind the scenes in the Hagan Lab on Instagram
• Learn more about cancer research at KU Cancer Center
• Learn more about training and education at KU Cancer Center
• Watch Dr. Hagan on the Bench to Bedside video series

Dr. Roy Jensen sits down for a conversation with Dr. Joseph McGuirk, division director of The University of Kansas Cancer Center’s Hematologic Malignancies and Cellular Therapeutics program. They discuss exciting advances in the research of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy, as well as Dr. McGuirk’s journey to becoming a national leader in cellular therapy research and treatment. Dr. McGuirk also details a traumatic childhood experience, which inspired him to become a cancer researcher and doctor. In addition, Anne Holzbeierlein, an acute myeloid leukemia survivor who was treated at by Dr. McGuirk at KU Cancer Center, shares her story, as well as advice for others who may be facing a similar diagnosis.

If you appreciated this episode, please share, rate, subscribe and leave a review. For the latest updates, make you are following us on social media by searching for KU Cancer Center on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Do you have questions about cancer? Would you like to participate in this podcast? We want to hear from you! Send us an email with your questions at benchtobedside@kumc.edu or leave us a voice message at (913) 588-3880. Your question may be featured on a future episode.

Links from this episode:

• Learn more about CAR T-Cell therapy and the future of this type of treatment via Dr. McGuirk's interview on the KU Cancer Center blog
• Read more about Anne Holzbeierlein's cancer story
• Learn more about Dr. McGuirk
• Watch Dr. McGuirk talk about CAR T-cell treatment on the Bench to Bedside video series
• Learn more about clinical trials at KU Cancer Center
• Find our Clinical Trials Finder App on Google and the Apple Store

What is a clinical trial? Why should people diagnosed with cancer consider a clinical trial? Are clinical trials safe? In this follow up episode, we answer those and all your burning questions about this topic with our first repeat guest on the podcast, Dr. Tara Lin, Medical Director of the KU Cancer Center Clinical Trials Office. 

Links from this episode: 

• Listen to the first part of our conversation with Dr. Lin on Episode 3 of the Bench to Bedside podcast - Cancer Clinical Trials: Why Diversity Matters
• Learn more about clinical trials at KU Cancer Center
• Dr. Tara Lin shares the five things you may not know about clinical trials on the KU Cancer Center blog
• Learn more about the KU Cancer Center clinical trials finder app, available for download on Apple and Android
• Dr. Roy Jensen on the importance of clinical trials for cancer (video)

If you appreciated this episode, please share, rate, subscribe and leave a review. For the latest updates, make you are following us on social media by searching for KU Cancer Center on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. 

Do you have questions about cancer? Would you like to participate in this podcast? We want to hear from you! Send us an email with your questions at benchtobedside@kumc.edu or leave us a voice message at (913) 588-3880. Your question may be featured on a future episode.

The book “In Sickness: A Memoir” shares the unbelievable story of Dr. Barrett Rollins, professor at Harvard Medical School and Chief Scientific Officer Emeritus at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and his wife Dr. Jane Weeks, a prominent researcher at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. In 2008, Dr. Rollins discovered a secret his wife had been keeping from him …. she had been suffering from untreated metastatic breast cancer for six years. As the couple went about their public roles as authorities on cancer research and treatment, Dr. Rollins helped his wife continue to hide her breast cancer and delay treatment, until it was too late. Dr. Roy Jensen, vice chancellor and director of The University of Kansas Cancer Center, speaks with Dr. Rollins about his journey, the cancer research community’s reaction to his wife’s diagnosis and death, complex questions about healthcare, relationships and medical ethics, as well as why he decided to publish a memoir about his experience.

What do YOU think about this incredible conversation! After listening, we invite you to call our Bench to Bedside Hotline at (913) 588-3880 and leave us a voicemail message with your comments or questions for Dr. Rollins and the podcast team. You can also send us an email at benchtobedside@kumc.edu. Your comments and questions may be shared on an upcoming episode!  

Links from this episode: 

• Buy the book "In Sickness: A Memoir" on Amazon
• Visit Dr. Rollins' website
• Dr. Rollins’ Spotify Playlist - This collection of songs spans several genres and decades, but each of them plays an important role in the life and relationship of Barrett and Jane. The playlist features everything from an achingly beautiful classical piece by Brahms that was played at Jane’s funeral, to the sweetly romantic pop songs that punctuate the couple’s relationship 
• "In Sickness” official video trailer 
• “In Sickness” official book club guide 
  
   

If you appreciated this episode, please share, rate, subscribe and leave a review. For the latest updates, make you are following us on social media by searching for KU Cancer Center on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. 

On this episode of the Bench to Bedside podcast, we are doing something a little bit different. As our host, Dr. Roy Jensen - vice chancellor and director of The University of Kansas Cancer Center - is usually the one asking the questions of our expert guests, but today, Dr. Jensen is the one in the hot seat! Megan Peters - digital communications manager for the cancer center and producer of the Bench to Bedside podcast - is joining the conversation today to ask some of the questions we’ve received for Dr. Jensen, including how he began his journey to a career in cancer research and care, why cancer prevention (especially smoking cessation) is so important to him, how he and his wife, Linda, raised thier three sons follow their own paths in life, and more! You won’t want to miss this insightful conversation! After listening, we invite you to call our Bench to Bedside Hotline at (913) 588-3880 and leave us a voicemail message with your comments or questions for Dr. Jensen and the podcast team. You can also send us an email at benchtobedside@kumc.edu. Your comments and questions may be shared on an upcoming episode! 

Links from this episode: 

• Learn more about Dr. Roy Jensen
• Learn about KU Cancer Center’s NCI comprehensive designation
• Get more information about cancer prevention
• Smoking cessation tools from KU Cancer Center
• Dr. Jensen’s Favorite Tunes Spotify playlist

If you appreciated this episode, please share, rate, subscribe and leave a review. For the latest updates, make you are following us on social media by searching for KU Cancer Center on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Earlier this season, we shared a conversation on the podcast with Dr. Barrett Rollins, Linde Family Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Chief Scientific Officer Emeritus at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. His recently released book, In Sickness: A Memoir, shares his unbelievable journey as Dr. Rollins discovers that his wife Dr. Jane Weeks, a prominent breast cancer researcher at Dana-Farber, had been suffering from untreated metastatic breast cancer for years and had been hiding it from everyone in her life. Many of our listeners were interested in learning more about this story, and we wanted to give them a chance to be a part of the discussion. Listeners called into our Bench to Bedside hotline, where they can leave voicemails with questions or comments for our guests, and we invited Dr. Rollins back to the podcast to respond to these questions. 

After listening to this episode, we invite YOU to be a part of the podcast! We want to hear your thoughts on the conversations we have here, topics you’d like to learn more about and any questions you may have for our guests. Call our Bench to Bedside hotline at 913-588-3880 and leave us a voicemail, or you can email your comments and questions to benchtobedside@kumc.edu. Your comments may be shared on a future episode!

• Listen to Dr. Rollins and Dr. Jensen on Episode 7 of this season of the Bench to Bedside podcast, “Secrets and Sickness with Dr. Barrett Rollins” on Apple, Spotify and Google.  
• Buy the book "In Sickness: A Memoir" on Amazon
• Visit Dr. Rollins' website
• Dr. Rollins’ Spotify Playlist - This collection of songs spans several genres and decades, but each of them plays an important role in the life and relationship of Barrett and Jane. The playlist features everything from an achingly beautiful classical piece by Brahms that was played at Jane’s funeral, to the sweetly romantic pop songs that punctuate the couple’s relationship.
• “In Sickness” official video trailer
• “In Sickness” official book club guide

With summer fast approaching, it's time to talk sun safety! In Kansas, cases of melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, increased significantly from 2008 to 2017. Protection from the sun's rays could prevent about 90% of all skin cancer cases. Since youth are especially at risk for overexposure to the sun with extended times outdoors, KU Cancer Center’s outreach network, the Masonic Cancer Alliance, implemented Pool Cool, a program to educate young people on sun safety behaviors. On this episode of the podcast Ashley Adorante from Pool Cool is taking a break while visiting pools across the state to share her top tips for staying safe in the sun and preventing skin cancer!

After listening to this episode, we invite YOU to be a part of the podcast! We want to hear your thoughts on the conversations we have here, topics you’d like to learn more about and any questions you may have for our guests. Call our Bench to Bedside hotline at 913-588-3880 and leave us a voicemail, or you can email your comments and questions to benchtobedside@kumc.edu. Your comments may be shared on a future episode!

• Learn more about the Pool Cool program
• Check your sun safety knowledge with this True or False quiz with Ashley on KU Cancer Center's Instagram
• Learn more about skin cancer risks and prevention

You’ve probably heard the phrase, “food is medicine,” but what does that mean when it comes to cancer prevention and treatment? Today Dr. Jill Hamilton-Reeves is joining Dr. Roy Jensen in the podcast studio to discuss nutrition and how the food we eat could aid in cancer prevention, as well as some of her current research into nutrition and cancer treatment. Dr. Hamilton-Reeves is a member of KU Cancer Center’s Cancer Prevention and Control research program and co-leader of the cancer center’s Nutrition Shared Resource, which is a team of nutrition experts who help researchers evaluate the effects of nutrition and diet on cancer therapies and prevention.

After listening to this episode, we invite YOU to be a part of the podcast! We want to hear your thoughts on the conversations we have here, topics you’d like to learn more about and any questions you may have for our guests. Call our Bench to Bedside hotline at 913-588-3880 and leave us a voicemail, or you can email your comments and questions to benchtobedside@kumc.edu. Your comments may be shared on a future episode!