68,767 lives changed in 5 years: How Nebraska Medicine researchers and clinicians are redefining the cancer fight
The Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center just turned five.
“In the past five years, we’ve made tremendous progress,” says Kenneth Cowan, MD, PhD, director, Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center. “Thanks to research and tremendous advances in cancer care, more patients who get diagnosed with cancer now survive their disease. Over 20 million Americans are alive today after surviving cancer – roughly double the survival rate compared to 20 years ago.”
The Cancer Center’s strides in the fight against cancer tie into nationwide goals. For example, the Cancer Moonshot aims to reduce the death rate from cancer by at least 50% over the next 25 years. President Joe Biden, who spoke at the cancer center’s ribbon cutting in 2017, has said he will spend the rest of his life fighting to eradicate the disease. His son, Beau, died of brain cancer in 2015.
Dr. Cowan understands the pain of losing someone dear to cancer. Both of his parents and his cousin died from the disease, motivating Dr. Cowan to make fighting cancer his personal and professional mission.
And he’s not alone. More than 200 world-leading specialists and researchers work together to transform the cancer experience. “Everyone who works here – from nurses and pharmacists to the patient resource center and environmental cleaning services – comes here with the mission of helping every single patient live a healthy life,” says Dr. Cowan. As of June 2022, the cancer center has cared for 51,237 patients in outpatient clinics and 17,530 people in the C.L. Werner Cancer Hospital.
Read on to see the exciting new therapies, procedures and clinical trials available today at the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center - ushering in the future of cancer care.
New cancer treatments, therapies and procedures available here
Cancer treatment is getting more personal. “Every day, we’re working toward the future of new patient therapies – better treatments, more options for prevention, better management of risk,” says Dr. Cowan. “Our goal is to break down the barriers between research laboratories and the clinic.”
Personalized, innovative therapies include:
- CAR T-cell therapy uses a patient’s own cells to fight lymphoma, leukemia and multiple myeloma
- New targeted therapy for lung cancer patients, with fewer side effects than chemotherapy
- Twice-daily radiation helps people with treatment-resistant lymphomas – and cuts the treatment time in half
- Another new approach is to take “natural killer cells” from a healthy person and give them to a someone with multiple myeloma to attack cancer
The more we understand, the better the therapy. “Patients who get diagnosed with cancer have a much higher chance of surviving this disease, thanks to advances in research and better understanding of what drives cancer to grow,” says Dr. Cowan.
Get the best cancer care possible
Nebraska’s only National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center includes a 10-story research tower, an eight-story inpatient treatment center and a multidisciplinary outpatient center.
“Our doctors can take a tissue sample from a patient in the operating room and sequence their cancer genome to see what drives their cancer cells to grow,” says Dr. Cowan. “We can also take a piece of someone’s tumor, grow it in our lab, and test new drugs against the isolated tumor to see which drugs work.”
High-tech procedures offered:
- Robotically or video-assisted surgeries for lung cancer, meaning smaller incisions and faster recovery
- Mastectomy patients can have sensation in their breasts again, thanks to nipple nerve reconstruction
- Blood stem cell transplants, which require a multidisciplinary team and decades of expertise
If something happens, we’re here. Our Infusion Center serves as both a treatment center and urgent-care-type facility for those battling cancer.
Healing the human spirit
Our holistic care through counseling, the healing arts, pain management and emotional care supports the whole person. One patient described it as, “Human beings taking care of human beings.”
- Meaningful, restorative works of art throughout the cancer center create an atmosphere of hope and resilience, including Leslie’s Healing Garden and the Chihuly Sanctuary
- Massage therapy, yoga, and other services available at the Resource and Wellness Center
- Registered dietitians customize nutrition care for cancer patients and survivors
- Scalp cooling slows hair loss during chemotherapy, and free wigs help survivors look and feel their best
“Many more patients are surviving cancer today and going on to live a much more normal life after,” says Dr. Cowan. “Our Cancer Survivorship Program helps survivors understand later effects of cancer and get the right screenings, so they can live a healthy life.”
Access to new cancer treatments before they’re widely available
“The Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center is uniquely designed to put cancer research and treatment in the same building. Our researchers work side by side with clinicians,” says Dr. Cowan. “No other cancer center in the world can match it.”
Here are just a few of our 100+ clinical trials:
- Powering up a lung cancer patient's immune cells
- Radioprotector reduces side effects for anal cancer patients
All in all, cancer care looks more hopeful today than ever.
What will the next five years of redefining the cancer fight look like? “Faster, better treatments,” says Dr. Cowan. “We’re here to raise the tide for everybody.”
