People on cisplatin-based chemotherapy often suffer an unexpected side effect that can significantly compromise their quality of life, but new data could help improve their recovery, according to a study by USF Health researchers.

During treatment with this highly ototoxic drug, many patients experience hearing loss or tinnitus, but more specific input has been needed to address their needs, the Tampa-based team notes in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

“The average person should care about this because lots of people who have cancer are on cisplatin,’’ said Victoria Sanchez, Au.D., Ph.D., the study’s lead author and assistant professor and chief of the Audiology Section in the Department of Otolaryngology at the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. “Millions of people who are getting this medication can be affected with hearing loss.’’

Victoria Sanchez, Au.D., Ph.D.

Although previous studies have been published on the ototoxicity of cisplatin, patient-reported functional impairment had not been comprehensively evaluated. In the new study, USF Health researchers based their findings on feedback from patients who are or were on cisplatin.

This information could help doctors better predict side effects and improve treatment, said co-author Robert Frisina, Ph.D., a Distinguished University Professor and director of the USF Global Center for Hearing and Speech Research.

“Cisplatin also is used in childhood cancers, so you can imagine the impact this can have on their lives,’’ Dr. Frisina said. “Families would be interested in this research because these young adults and children would have to live with hearing loss and tinnitus for many years or for the rest of their lives … But we can’t treat this unless we understand all the mechanisms. Our hope is to one day prevent it altogether.’’

Specifically, testicular cancer survivors who were given cisplatin completed validated responses, including the Hearing Handicap Inventory for Adults and Tinnitus Primary Function Questionnaire. Associations between hearing loss or tinnitus and five pre-specified adverse health outcomes – cognitive dysfunction, fatigue, depression, anxiety, and overall health – were then evaluated.

The researchers concluded that one in three patients described “clinically significant functional impairment,’’ and that follow-up should include routine assessment and possible treatments for hearing loss and tinnitus by an audiologist.

“This is one of first reports where we included patient response,’’ Dr. Sanchez said, adding that hearing

Robert Frisina, Ph.D

health also is directly related to brain health.

However, many patients who suffer cisplatin-related hearing loss seldom change their behavior, even though hearing loss is the single largest modifiable risk factor for cognitive decline and dementia in the general population, the researchers said.

“Less than 10 percent of the people affected reported using hearing aids,’’ Dr. Sanchez said. “There are a lot of barriers to this, such as access and cost. And there’s the stigma some people have about wearing a hearing aid.’’

Cisplatin is used to manage and treat solid tumors and hematologic malignancies. While highly toxic, it is one of the most common chemotherapeutic agents used to treat cancer, either as a single-agent or combination therapy. Because of its success rate, it’s the preferred drug for testicular cancers, in addition to cancers of the bladder and ovaries.

But a drawback of such platinum-based drugs is the damage they can do to hearing. Cisplatin can leave between 40 to 80 percent of adults – and at least 50 percent of children – with “significant permanent hearing loss,’’ according to the National Institutes of Health.

Researchers aren’t certain on precisely why cisplatin invades the inner ear, while other organs in the body eliminate it within days or weeks. They do know that once in the ear, it usually does irreversible damage.

“Cisplatin is given to eliminate the cancer tumor, but for reasons not completely understood it goes into the inner ear and kills cells in the cochlea and does it through several mechanisms, such as inflammation, programmed cell death, or overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS),’’ Dr. Frisina said.

“It can kill hearing cells and they don’t grow back … So, one implication of our paper is people who have cancer-related hearing loss and tinnitus should seek treatment.’’

— By Kurt Loft for USF Health News 

USF Health researchers applied CRISPR technology to study the very large human non-protein coding gene expressed only in placenta, stem cells and certain cancers

TAMPA, Fla (March 16, 2020) — The placenta, an organ which attaches to the lining of the uterus during pregnancy, supplies maternal oxygen and nutrients to the growing fetus. Abnormal formation and growth of the placenta is considered an underlying cause of various pregnancy complications such as miscarriages, stillbirth, preeclampsia and fetal growth restriction. Yet, much remains to be learned about molecular mechanisms regulating development of this blood-vessel rich organ so vital to the health of a pregnant woman and her developing fetus.

Hana Totary-Jain, PhD, an associate professor of molecular pharmacology and physiology in the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, was senior author of the study published in Scientific Reports.

University of South Florida Health (USF Health) Morsani College of Medicine researchers recently discovered how a very large human non-protein coding gene regulates epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) – a process that contributes to placental development during early pregnancy, but can also promote cancer progression.

During the first trimester, fetal-derived placental cells known as trophoblasts invade the maternal uterine lining and modify its blood vessels to allow oxygenated blood to flow from the mother to fetus. However, trophoblast invasion requires tight regulation of EMT. If inadequate, trophoblast invasion is too shallow to adequately remodel the maternal blood vessels, and adverse pregnancy outcomes can occur. Conversely, excess EMT can cause exaggerated trophoblast invasion through the uterine wall leading to placenta accreta, a condition that can cause hemorrhage and often requires hysterectomy at delivery.

The USF Health researchers used a powerful genome editing technology called CRISPR (shorthand for “CRISPR-dCas9) to activate all of the chromosome 19 microRNA cluster (known as C19MC), so they could study the gene’s function in early pregnancy. C19MC — one of the largest microRNA gene clusters in the human genome — is normally turned off but becomes expressed only in the placenta, embryonic stem cells and certain cancers.

Dr. Totary-Jain discusses the molecular aspects of placenta development and pregnancy complications with research collaborator Umit Kayisli, PhD, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at USF Health.

In their cell model study, published Feb. 20 in Scientific Reports, a Nature research journal, the USF Health team showed that robust activation of C19MC inhibited EMT gene expression, which has been shown to reduce trophoblast invasion.

But when trophoblast-like cells were exposed to hypoxia – a lack of oxygen similar to that occurring in early placental development — C19MC expression was significantly reduced, the researchers found. The loss of C19MC function causes differentiation of trophoblasts from stem-like epithelial cells into mesenchymal-like cells that can migrate and invade much like metastatic tumors. This EMT process helps explain trophoblast invasion and early placental formation.

“We were the first to use CRISPR to efficiently activate the entire gene, not just a few regions of this huge gene, in human cell lines,” said the paper’s senior author Hana Totary-Jain, PhD, an associate professor in the Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology, USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. “Our study indicates C19MC plays a key role in regulating many genes important in early implantation and placental development and function. The regulation of these genes is critical for proper fetal growth.”

Above: Chromosome 19 microRNA cluster (stained purple) expressed in first-trimester placenta.  Below: In preparation for pregnancy, fetal trophoblast cells (brown) from which the placenta arises invade maternal decidual cells (pink) in the uterus lining. | Images courtesy of Hana Totary-Jain, originally published in Scientific Reports: doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-59812-8

“You need EMT, but at some point the process needs to cease to prevent adverse pregnancy outcomes,” Dr. Totary-Jain said. “You really need a balance between not enough invasion and too much invasion, and C19MC is important in maintaining that balance.”

Dr. Totary-Jain and others in her department collaborated with colleagues in the medical college’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology on the project.

“The USF Health study offers new insight into how trophoblasts interact with the maternal uterine environment to become more invasive or less invasive in the formation of the placenta,” said coauthor Umit Kayisli, PhD, a USF Health professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology. “More research on microRNA expression and how it inhibits EMT may help us better understand the causes and potential prevention of preeclampsia and fetal growth restriction, which account for 5-to-10 percent of all pregnancy complications as well as spontaneous preterm births.”

Investigating the effects of altered C19MC expression on cell differentiation and trophoblast invasion has implications not only for a better understanding of normal and abnormal placental development, but also for cancer and stem cell research, Dr. Totary-Jain added.

Dr. Totary-Jain and Dr. Kayisli

Photos by Freddie Coleman, USF Health Communications and Marketing

USF’s Microbiome Research initiative continues to gain momentum as USF Health and Moffitt Cancer Center faculty met recently to begin exploring how both institutions might best use their collective resources to advance in the emerging, complex field.

A panel of faculty and staff from USF Health and Moffitt Cancer Center discuss infrastructure, equipment and expertise needed to facilitate collaboration and expand microbiome research.

The July 1 Joint Workshop on Microbiomes and Cancer followed USF Health’s first Microbiome Joint Workshop with the University of Florida in May. USF Health and Moffitt scientists and clinicians presented several research topics, ranging from the implications of gut bacteria on colorectal cancer and role of the microbiome in cancer-treatment induced cardiac complications, to microbes as potential biomarkers of cancer treatment outcomes.

Stephen Liggett, MD, associate vice president for research at USF Health, and Thomas Sellers, PhD, director and executive vice president of Moffitt, welcomed workshop participants.

“We hope to take advantage of the brainpower, informatics, facilities and instrumentation between Moffitt and USF Health to move our microbiome research initiative forward in a collaborative and synergistic manner,” Dr. Liggett said.

Thomas Sellers, PhD, director and executive vice president of Moffitt, told participants that one in five cancers is caused by infection. “That just signals how important this (microbiome initiative) can be.”

“This microbiome initiative is an excellent example of how no one institution and no one individual can do the science independently. It takes a village,” said Dr. Sellers, who noted USF and Moffitt’s longstanding history of working together on medical education and cancer biology.

“There’s a lot of strength among the people in this room, some of whom may not have known they were going to be the world’s future microbiome experts. I’m optimistic about this first step in what could be a long and productive collaboration.”

The growth of basic, translational and clinical research centered on microbial populations in environments and hosts is still in its early stages. Just last month, 36 universities identified their institutions as “highly focused” on microbiome studies at the National Microbiome Centers Meeting in Irvine, Calif.

“Most were created over the past two years, and not all focus on the human microbiome,” said Christian Brechot, MD, PhD, associate vice president for international partnerships and innovation, senior associate dean for research in global affairs, and professor of infectious disease and international medicine at the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. “One characteristic shared by successful centers was that they all started with internal seed grants.”

Source: National Microbiome Centers Meeting, Irvine, CA, June 2019

At the workshop with Moffitt, Dr. Brechot confirmed that nine projects related to USF’s first call for Microbiome Research Awards, are being evaluated (two of the nine focused on cancer). These seed grants will support collaborative research between faculty members from at least two different departments or colleges.

USF Health has a foundation of microbiome research projects headed by individual investigators in medicine, nursing and public health and of supporting infrastructure, including the USF Genomics Program and Omics Hub, the Health Informatics Institute, and core facilities in proteomics and lipidomics. But, Dr. Brechot noted, achieving preeminence in microbiome research requires partnering with other leading institutions, like the University of Florida and Moffitt, to identify potential collaborative pilot projects, build stronger crossdisciplinary teams, and share resources needed to be competitive in attracting external grant funding.

Hua Pan, PhD, assistant professor of cardiovascular sciences at USF Health, is working with Washington University and Moffitt to study whether alterations in the gut microbiome can help predict which patients would be most susceptible to cancer treatment-induced cardiac complications.

A roundtable discussion moderated by Dr. Brechot and Anna Giuliano, PhD, director of Moffitt’s Center for Immunization and Infection Research in Cancer, began addressing the infrastructure, equipment and expertise needed to facilitate collaboration and expand research.

Charles Lockwood, MD, senior vice president for USF Health and MCOM dean, delivered the workshop’s closing remarks.

“Microbiome research is perfect for where we’re headed, because it literally impacts every other area of research,” said Dr. Lockwood, who cited the links between an imbalance in microbial populations (dysbiosis) and Parkinson’s disease, coronary artery disease, and infection-associated preterm births, as just a few examples. “We’ve got to be part of that… and we’re committed to (strategically) resourcing it.”

Anna Giuliano, PhD, director of Moffitt’s Center for Immunization and Infection Research in Cancer, said the challenge is translating complex microbiome research into interventions that will alter the course of disease. “Each cancer is unique… and molecular pathways can vary even within the same cancer.”

-Photos by Freddie Coleman, USF Health Communications and Marketing

Yu Chen, PhD, an associate professor in the Morsani College of Medicine’s Department of Molecular Medicine, was among five USF faculty members who recently received the university’s Excellence in Innovation Awards for their exceptional research and innovation.

Each winner received a $2,000 award and plaque presented at the annual luncheon of the USF Chapter of the National Academy of Inventors on Aug. 31.

Yu Chen, PhD

The award recognizes Dr. Chen for his patented technology of novel beta-lactamase inhibitors licensed by Gordian Biotechnologies to tackle the growing problem of antibiotic resistance, for the development of collaborations with Achaogen Inc., and for his publications last year in the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry and Future Medicinal Chemistry.

Dr. Chen’s structure-based drug design approach has led to the development of novel small molecule inhibitors against multiple proteins involved in antibiotic resistance, metastatic cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. Using an interdisciplinary approach, he combines both computational and experimental techniques to investigate the function and inhibition of enzymes related to bacterial cell wall synthesis, the biological process targeted by antibiotics such as penicillin.

Dr. Chen has extensive experience in biochemistry, X-ray crystallography and molecular docking. He has characterized the catalytic mechanisms of three enzymes and determined about 40 crystal structures including protein complexes with DNA or small molecules.

The crystal of a protein used to help design better beta-lactamase inhibitors.

The mouse model study combined a ketogenic diet and supplements with hyperbaric oxygen therapy 

Tampa, FL (June 10, 2015) — A team of researchers from the Hyperbaric Biomedical Research Laboratory at the University of South Florida (USF) has doubled survival time in an aggressive metastatic cancer model using a novel combination of non-toxic dietary and hyperbaric oxygen therapies.

The study, “Non-toxic metabolic management of metastatic cancer in VM mice: Novel combination of ketogenic diet, ketone supplementation, and hyperbaric oxygen therapy,” was published online today in PLOS ONE.

Led by principal investigator Dominic D’Agostino, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology at the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, the recently published research shows the beneficial effects of using ketone supplements in conjunction with a non-toxic therapeutic regimen developed previously by the team.  Ketones are produced when the body begins burning fat instead of carbohydrates for energy.

Principal investigator Dominic D’Agostino, PhD, and research associate Angela Poff, PhD, measure tumor growth in the mice receiving the investigational treatment in USF’s Hyperbaric Biomedical Research Laboratory

The research group previously published a study in PLOS ONE demonstrating the anti-cancer effects of therapeutic ketosis induced by the high-fat, low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet (KD) combined with hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT), which involves breathing high-pressure oxygen.  Inducing therapeutic ketosis solely with the ketogenic diet can be difficult, however, so the USF researchers created novel metabolic agents that induce ketosis without dietary restriction.  These ketone supplements slowed cancer growth on their own, and further enhanced the combined therapeutic effects of KD and HBOT.

In the recent USF study, mice with advanced metastatic cancer were fed either a standard high-carbohydrate diet or a carbohydrate-restricted ketogenic diet with ketone supplements and HBOT.  Therapeutic ketosis causes the body to shift from using glucose to fatty acids and ketones bodies for energy.

Normal healthy cells readily adapt to using ketone bodies for fuel, but most cancer cells lack this metabolic flexibility. Solid tumors also have areas of low oxygen, which promote tumor growth and metastatic spread.  HBOT involves breathing 100 percent oxygen at elevated barometric pressure, saturating the tumors with oxygen.  When administered properly, both ketosis and HBOT are non-toxic and may even protect healthy tissues while simultaneously damaging cancer cells.

Animals receiving the combination of KD, ketone supplements, and HBOT lived 103 percent longer than mice fed a standard high-carbohydrate diet. The researchers believe their study demonstrates the potential of these non-toxic therapies to contribute to current cancer treatment regimens and significantly improve the outcome of patients with advanced metastatic cancer.

Researchers at USF and elsewhere are investigating the potential benefits of the physiological state of therapeutic ketosis for several major diseases. The USF team believes these novel ketone supplements may be effective in other disorders besides cancer and have ongoing studies to test their potential use in wound healing, epilepsy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Alzheimer’s disease, glucose transporter type 1 (GLUT1) deficiency syndrome, and exercise performance.

The cancer study, funded by a charitable donation from Scivation Inc., was inspired by the research of Professor Thomas Seyfried of Boston College.  Dr. Seyfried has advanced the theory that cancer is a metabolic disease, leading to the development of new strategies to treat and prevent cancer.  The USF researchers are currently collaborating with other scientists to explore options for establishing human clinical trials.

-USF Health-
USF Health’s mission is to envision and implement the future of health. It is the partnership of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, the College of Nursing, the College of Public Health, the College of Pharmacy, the School of Biomedical Sciences and the School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences; and the USF Physician’s Group. The University of South Florida is a Top 50 research university in total research expenditures among both public and private institutions nationwide, according to the National Science Foundation. For more information, visit www.health.usf.edu

Media contact:
Anne DeLotto Baier, USF Health Communications & Marketing
abaier@health.usf.edu or (813)974-3303

Science is full of precision and vigilance. But sometimes, there are subtleties that present themselves that get ignored, pushed aside for the drive to stay on task or to stick with the parameters of a hypothesis.

Michele Parry, a student in the Masters of Molecular Medicine Pre-Professional Program at the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, was working for the former when she experienced the latter. It was an “ah ha!” moment that ended up being a key finding for why certain genes of cancer cells mutate, while others don’t.

Michele Parry.

Parry volunteered in the lab of George Blanck, PhD, professor of molecular medicine, who was studying how the size of a gene’s protein coding region affects it’s the likelihood of becoming mutated. While combing over screen after screen of data – spreadsheets, graphs, and countless lists – she spotted a trend: larger genes are more frequently mutated than smaller ones, and in particular genes encoding cytoskeletal proteins.

“She spotted something that I didn’t and, thanks to that, we were able to run with it,” said Dr. Blanck, whose work looks into the nuances of genes and who pushes to fill the pipeline with talented biomedical sciences students.

The gene mutation work warranted publication, for which Parry was first author. It’s unusual for master’s students to be first author of published research, but Parry’s story is a good example of the experiences students in the USF master’s program can have, Dr. Blanck said.

“This is what master’s students in our program can do,” Dr. Blanck said.  “The role of the student in research is becoming more apparent. Nurturing that experience for a student researcher is directly connected to our mission of teaching.”

Titled “Big genes are big mutagen targets: A connection to cancerous, spherical cells?” in the September 2014 edition of Cancer Letters – the publication resulted in funding for new research looking into how the shape of cancer cells (round versus flat) affects drug resistance.

Dr. Blanck and Wade Sexton, MD, associate professor in the USF Department of Oncologic Sciences and a bladder cancer specialist at Moffitt Cancer Center, were awarded the Anna Valentine Award by Moffitt Cancer Center for new work titled “Cytoskeletal protein related coding region mutations in bladder cancer.”

“Cancers cell have unique characteristics and their shape may affect whether or not they are resistant to drugs,” said Parry.

Parry has a bachelor’s degree in biology and wants to be a physician. Specifically, she wants to be an oncologist. She’s driven to understand the difficult science and realizes she’s lucky to pick it up so fast.

“I’m happy that I’m educated and can understand a lot of this,” she said. “And tutoring the master’s students really helps me cement the molecular biology concepts. We’ll see if I feel the same way as a medical student.”

Parry applied to medical school once and was told to strengthen her resume to increase her likelihood of acceptance.

So, strengthen it she did. Since first applying to medical school in 2012, she has graduated with her master’s degree earning a 4.0 GPA, she now works in Dr. Blanck’s lab and has been published as first author, she is an adjunct professor at St. Petersburg College, and she is the graduate teaching assistant for the master’s program.

“This was supposed to be my year off,” she joked. “But I needed to do all of this to strengthen my candidacy and to prove I could excel at the graduate level.”

Was that “ah ha!” moment proof of her abilities? Parry describes it more as a chance to contribute to promising cancer research.

“It makes me feel valuable,” she said, “and gives me a sense of gratitude.”

Photos by Eric Younghans, USF Health Office of Communications

The mouse model study by USF researchers combined ketogenic diet and hyperbaric oxygen therapy

Tampa, FL (June 5, 2013) — A combination of nontoxic dietary and hyperbaric oxygen therapies effectively increased survival time in a mouse model of aggressive metastatic cancer, a  research team from the Hyperbaric Biomedical Research Laboratory at the University of South Florida has found.

The study, “The Ketogenic Diet and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Prolong Survival in Mice with Systemic Metastatic Cancer,” was published online today in PLOS ONE. 

Led by Dominic D’Agostino, PhD, principal investigator  in the Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology at the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, the research shows the effects of combining two nontoxic adjuvant cancer therapies, the ketogenic diet and hyperbaric oxygen therapy, in a mouse model of late-stage, metastatic cancer. 

“Our study demonstrates the potential of these cost-effective, nontoxic therapies to contribute to current cancer treatment regimens and significantly improve the outcome of patients with advanced metastatic cancer,” D’Agostino said.

Study lead author Angela Poff, a doctoral student in the Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology, is shown here in the USF Hyperbaric Biomedical Research Laboratory.

Metastasis, the spreading of cancer from the primary tumor to distant spots, is responsible for over 90 percent of cancer-related deaths in humans.  A lack of available therapies effective against metastatic disease remains the largest obstacle in finding a cure for cancer. 

In the study, mice with advanced metastatic cancer were fed either a standard high carbohydrate diet or carbohydrate-restricted ketogenic diet.  Mice on both diets also received hyperbaric oxygen therapy, which uses a special chamber to increase the amount of oxygen in the tissues.

The ketogenic diet forces a physiological shift in substrate utilization from glucose to fatty acids and ketone bodies for energy.  Normal healthy cells readily adapt to using ketone bodies for fuel, but cancer cells lack this metabolic flexibility, and thus become selectively vulnerable to reduced glucose availability.  Solid tumors also have areas of low oxygen, which promotes tumor growth and metastatic spread.  

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy involves breathing 100 percent oxygen at elevated barometric pressure, saturating the tumors with oxygen.   When administered properly, both the ketogenic diet and hyperbaric oxygen therapy are non-toxic and may even protect healthy tissues while simultaneously damaging cancer cells, D’Agostino said. 

While both therapies slowed disease progression independently, animals receiving the combined ketogenic diet and hyperbaric oxygen therapy lived 78 percent longer than mice fed a standard high-carbohydrate diet.

The research, funded by a charitable donation from Scivation, was inspired by the research of Professor Thomas Seyfried of Boston College.  Dr. Seyfried has advanced the theory that cancer is a metabolic disease, inspiring the development of metabolic strategies to treat and prevent cancer. 

D`Agostino`s team is currently collaborating with Dr. Seyfried and other scientists to secure funding and develop protocols for establishing human clinical trials.

Article Citation:
“The Ketogenic Diet and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Act Synergistically to Prolong Survival in Mice with Systemic Metastatic Cancer;” A.M. Poff, C. Ari, T.N. Seyfried and D.P. D’Agostino; PLOS ONE, June 5, 2013: http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0065522

Media contact:
Anne DeLotto Baier, USF Health Communications
abaier@health.usf.edu or (813) 9745-3303

Tampa, FL (May 23, 2013) – The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) has approved a $2.1-million award to the University of South Florida College of Nursing to study “Patient Outcomes of a Self-care Management Approach to Cancer Symptoms: A Clinical Trial.” USF Distinguished Professor and Thompson Professor of Oncology Nursing Susan C. McMillan, PhD, ARNP, FAAN, will lead the research project.

The USF College of Nursing project will test a brief intervention, known as COPE, which aims to teach cancer patients management skills for improving symptoms they identify as the highest priority.

“Improving cancer patients’ ability to self-manage difficult symptoms may diminish patient suffering, improve quality of life, and decrease emergency room visits and associated healthcare costs,” Dr. McMillan said. “We hope that this intervention will be as successful for patient self-care as it has been when implemented with caregivers of hospice patients with cancer.”

The USF College of Nursing study is one of 51 new awards by PCORI, totaling $88.6-million over three years, to fund patient-centered comparative clinical research effectiveness projects.  It is part of a portfolio of projects that address PCORI’s national research priorities and will provide patients with information to help them make better informed decisions about their care.

The only other new PCORI award in Florida went to the college’s clinical collaboration partner Moffitt Cancer Center to study a navigator-guided psychoeducational intervention for prostate cancer patients and caregivers.  Richard Roetzheim, MD, professor of family medicine at the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, is one of the investigators for the Moffitt study.

Susan McMillan, PhD, is lead investigator for the USF Collge of Nursing’s newly awarded PCORI project.

The randomized clinical trial led by Dr. McMillan will evaluate the effectiveness of COPE in alleviating moderate to high-intensity cancer symptoms causing distress, frequency or interference with patients’ lives. To conduct the study, the researchers will recruit 300 cancer center outpatients with breast, colorectal, lung and prostate cancers

 “At the University of South Florida, the College of Nursing is conducting groundbreaking research to improve the health of patients, families and our community,” said Dianne Morrison-Beedy, PhD, RN, WHNP-BC, FNAP, FAANP, FAAN, senior associate vice president of USF Health, and dean of the College of Nursing. “At Nursing we are transforming healthcare and transforming lives – working with our healthcare partners locally, regionally and nationally to make life better.”

All the PCORI projects were selected through a highly competitive review process in which scientists, patients, caregivers, and other stakeholders helped to evaluate more than 400 applications for funding. Proposals were evaluated on the basis of scientific merit, how well they engage patients and other stakeholders, their methodological rigor, and how well they fit within PCORI’s national research priorities.

 “This project reflects PCORI’s commitment to support patient-centered comparative effectiveness research, a new approach to health research that emphasizes the inclusion of patients and caregivers at all stages of the study process,” said PCORI Executive Director Joe Selby, MD, MPH. “The research will provide patients and those who care for them better information about the healthcare decisions they face.”

“The vision of PCORI — that “patients and the public have the information they need to make decisions that reflect their desired health outcomes” — is highly aligned with the College of Nursing, where we focus on research that improves health,” said Cindy L. Munro, PhD, RN, ANP-BC, FAAN, USF College of Nursing professor and associate dean for research and innovation at the USF College of Public Health. “We are very proud that Dr. McMillan’s research has been selected for funding by PCORI.  Her work will not only benefit patients, but also serves as a model for research excellence in the College and beyond.”

Through the Center for Living with Chronic Illness, the USF College of Nursing focuses the research expertise of its nurse scientists, faculty and students as they collaborate on unique solutions to the nation’s leading health care problems, such as heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease and cancer.

The latest awards were part of PCORI’s second cycle of primary research funding. All were approved pending completion of a business and programmatic review by PCORI staff and issuance of a formal award contract.  This new round of funding follows PCORI’s initial approval of $40.7 million in support for 25 projects under the institute’s national research priorities

For more information about PCORI’s funding announcements, visit www.pcori.org/funding-opportunities.

-USF Health-

USF Health’s mission is to envision and implement the future of health. It is the partnership of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, the College of Nursing, the College of Public Health, the College of Pharmacy, the School of Biomedical Sciences and the School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences; and the USF Physician’s Group. The University of South Florida is a global research university ranked 50^th in the nation by the National Science Foundation for both federal and total research expenditures among all U.S. universities. For more information, visit www.health.usf.edu.

 -About PCORI-

The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) is an independent, non-profit organization authorized by Congress in 2010. Its mission is to fund research that will provide patients, their caregivers and clinicians with the evidence-based information needed to make better-informed health care decisions. PCORI is committed to continuously seeking input from a broad range of stakeholders to guide its work. More information is available at www.pcori.org.

Media contact:
Ashlea Bailey, USF College of Nursing Communications
(813) 396-9642, or ahudak@health.usf.edu