Collaborate in Hope: Supporting Radiation Oncology

Opportunities for Partnership and Growth in the Field of Radiation Oncology

Opportunities for supporting the Department of Radiation Oncology are many; in doing so you will assist one of the best academic radiation oncology programs in the country.

Our dedicated teams are not only committed to superb patient care and excellence in research, teaching, and leadership, but they are creating disruptive technologies and pioneering treatments with global impact. Radiation Oncology researchers are continually working to define optimal treatment approaches, produce the best plans, employ first-rate techniques, provide healing experiences for our patients, assess outcomes, and develop new treatment approaches.

We invite you to become a part of their life-changing work. Below is an overview of options – which one appeals to you?

The Fund of Your Choice

The UF College of Medicine’s Department of Radiation Oncology Development staff has considerable experience in helping people create and document giving plans that are strategically developed and thoughtfully executed. Contact UF Health Giving at 352-265-7237, or offdev@shands.ufl.edu.

Faculty Support

Endowed professorships like the Rodney R. Million, M.D. Chairman’s Professorship in Radiation Therapy (Dr. Million shown right) are critical to rewarding existing faculty for their research excellence, as well as attracting new faculty to join the Radiation Oncology department. Providing salary and research stipends, endowed positions allow new faculty to establish the research programs and existing faculty to expand on their research or launch novel research projects. Together we can move the field forward! Funds that support professorships in Radiation Therapy, Radiation Oncology, and Proton Therapy as well as our clinical research efforts include:

• The John P. Cofrin Professorship in Radiation Therapy
• The Rodney R. Million, M.D. Chairman’s Professorship in Radiation Therapy
• The UF Resident Alumni Professorship
• The Thomas P. Mitchell Professorship in Physics
• The William and Joan Mendenhall Professorship in Radiation Oncology
• The James E. Lockwood Professorship in Pediatric Proton Therapy

Resident & Education Support

To support teaching, resident education, research and academic programs in Radiation Oncology, consider giving to:

• The Radiation Therapy Fund
• The Radiation Oncology Clinical Research Endowment
• The David Fink Radiation Oncology Endowment
• The Clenon Newsome Radiation Oncology Research and Education fund
• The Amdur/Mendenhall Radiation Oncology Lectureship

Continuing Education

Radiation Oncology Continuing Education events, like our annual Annual Research Seminar, offer high-quality learning opportunities for students, alumni and working professionals. We utilize faculty to help identify needs and develop programs addressing a wide range of subjects.

Research

One of the great benefits of receiving cancer care at an academic health center is that our clinician-scientists participate in cutting-edge research. In addition to multi-institutional clinical trial groups, the Radiation Oncology Department is involved in in-house protocols (sets of instructions for treatment, or treatment plans) that are used at the University of Florida. Research in radiobiology, prostate cancer, angiosarcoma and metastatic cancer are supported by funds including:

• The Clinical Physics Research and Development Fund
• The Research in Radiobiology fund
• The Prostate Cancer Research Fund
• The Shermanitta M. Benson Angiosarcoma Cancer Fund
• The Metastatic Cancer Research, Technology and Patient Program Fund

Patient Support

Without donations, lodging expenses force many patients to decline much-needed treatment here in Gainesville or potentially seek other treatment alternatives closer to home. Thankfully, UF’s Southeastern Healthcare Foundation can assist with lodging expenses – but we need your help. The Southeastern Healthcare Foundation, Inc. was created to support the mission of Shands Teaching Hospital and Clinics, Inc. and the University Of Florida College Of Medicine. Giving is easy – please make your check out to: Southeastern Healthcare Foundation (include “Radiation Oncology Fund #3065” in the memo) and mail your generous donation to:

UF Health Office of Development
P.O. Box 100386
Gainesville, FL 32608

Seed Grants

• Seed Grants

The competition for federal grant dollars is fierce and requires proof of concept in order to be seriously considered. Seed grants allow faculty to test out novel ideas and concepts, proving them to be viable, before submitting applications for further funding. And for every dollar invested in seed funding, approximately $13 is returned in additional extramural funding.

To illustrate this point, Assistant Professor Walter O’Dell, PhD, received a $50,000 seed grant from a local organization to fund the initial stages of his work examining the effects of radiation therapy on the lungs of breast cancer patients. Ultimately, however, his research was found valuable enough to receive grant funding of almost $1.5 million. Seed funding provides a critical edge for faculty as they seek additional grant funding or collaboration opportunities within the department or with external partners. Seed grants often lead to proof of concepts that allow faculty to move forward with successful applications for state and/or federal research grants.

Importantly, seed grants jump start new discoveries that might not otherwise move past the idea stage and foster collaborations between the Radiation Oncology department and UF Proton Therapy Institute (UFPTI) cancer researchers. Such interactions can bring new and exciting directions and focus to our research efforts.

Equipment for Leading-edge Treatments

• 3D Printers for Physicians and Physicists

The use of 3D printing by scientists and researchers is only growing, as 3D printing has the ability to offer superior, tailored results in a cost-effective manner. Specifically, advanced 3D modeling will assist our physicians during highly targeted stereotactic radiosurgery, as well as our physicists as they create more accurate views for complex cases. Ultimately, 3D printers will serve to deepen our understanding of these challenges and help us to discover the treatment that would best suit an individual patient.

Currently, 3D printing technology is rapidly expanding. Our immediate needs include printing three-dimensional anatomy featuring embedded tumors and vasculature. To achieve this goal, we are seeking printers capable of simultaneously printing in multiple colors (e.g. red for arterial vessels, blue for veins, and yellow for both lym­phatics and ureters, to assist with renal cancer patients) and with the ability to create transparent objects so that the internal tumor and related anatomy can be appreciated.

Supporting the UF Health Proton Therapy Institute

Proton therapy is a precise, effective radiation treatment, which destroys cancer cells with less damage to healthy tissue. This reduces side effects and lessens the risk of developing treatment complications later in life. Proton therapy is often used in combination with conventional radiation therapy, chemotherapy and/or surgery.

When a patient enters the UF Health Proton Therapy Institute, they are assured of receiving the highest quality care. More than 165 employees are dedicated to delivering proton cancer treatment in a way that takes the entire person into account, so patients can keep living life to the fullest. Learn about supporting UFHPTI here.

We invite you to learn more.

We welcome your questions regarding projects proposed by Radiation Oncology scientists and scholars and we would like to match your interests with our own. Contact Diane Gebhardt, 352-265-8470, dgebhard@ufl.edu, for more information.

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