• A
• A
• A

Award acknowledges leading-edge cancer treatments in Northeast Wisconsin

Thomas Saphner, MD, FACP, of Green Bay Oncology was honored in Bethesda, Maryland, at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Community Clinical Oncology Program annual awards.

Saphner was recognized at the September 27 event for accrual of patients to clinical trials. He received a Platinum Award for accruing more than 25 patients this calendar year alone, one of only 35 doctors in the U.S. to achieve this distinction.

“Accrual” is the match of a cancer patient with an appropriate clinical trial that evaluates the effectiveness of a new treatment.

“Most people in the Green Bay area don’t know that the latest cancer treatments are available right here,” Saphner says. “I hope this recognition helps create awareness. We are providing the same exact treatments that some patients choose to leave the market to receive. They don’t need to do that.”

As examples, Saphner noted that area patients participated in recent clinical trials for Herceptin® and Oxaliplatin, now widely accepted as effective treatments for breast cancer and colon cancer, respectively.

“Patients in Northeast Wisconsin benefited from these drugs before they were approved and available to the rest of the population.”

Saphner also serves as the principal investigator for the St. Vincent Regional Cancer Center – Community Clinical Oncology Program (CCOP), this region’s only NCI-affiliated program. He noted that clinical trials help recruit top medical talent to the area. “We are able to attract and retain the best doctors, those who are committed to staying on top of the constant changes and opportunities that research and new treatments bring.”

In 2002, the St. Vincent Regional Cancer Center – CCOP was formed with an NCI grant to increase clinical trials in the Green Bay area. Over the years, more than 2,500 area patients have chosen cancer treatment as part of a clinical trial. The St. Vincent Regional Cancer Center – CCOP is one of only three NCI-designated sites in Wisconsin and 64 sites across the U.S.

In 2006, Green Bay Oncology was recognized by the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) for contributions to clinical research.

Founded in 1976, Green Bay Oncology is the region’s largest group of board-certified hematologists and medical oncologists, serving thousands of patients each year through its Green Bay locations at St. Vincent and St. Mary’s hospitals, as well as at locations in Sturgeon Bay and Oconto Fall, Wis., and in Iron Mountain and Escanaba, Mich.