Brown Medicine MOVING THE NEEDLE

Dr. Stephanie Graff explains details and results of the landmark Destiny Breast 04 Trial – which has changed the way that doctors treat patients with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer, and helped determine if patients can be treated differently with early diagnosis. The Trastuzumab Deruxtecan T-DXd) (brand name: Enhertu) drug finds HER2-positive breast cancer in a targeted fashion and delivers chemotherapy to it, known as “smart chemo.” 

Research results received a standing ovation at a plenary session presentation before 42,000 oncologists at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting in Chicago.

Topics discussed include Destiny Breast 06 and 07 Trials, various stages of cancer, the role of cellular protein and the hormone estrogen, how often T-DXd is delivered intravenously, its side effects and availability, and how participation in clinical drug trials should be the first step for patients after cancer diagnosis. Dr. Graff also talks about her Woman Disruptor of the Year award in the field of medical oncology and her Brown Hematology/Oncology Fellowship Mentor of the Year Award.

Special guest in the studio is Dr. Stephanie Haddad, a second-year Brown Internal Medicine resident interested in oncology with experience as a breast cancer clinical trial research coordinator.

Brown Medicine is pleased to be on the forefront of cutting-edge science and exciting research such as this particular study.

Dr. Khan talks about the dangers of cigarette smoking and tobacco use. 

Getting screened for lung cancer can help save a person’s life. This simple, non-invasive CT scan test, done annually, can increase the chance of finding cancer early. People whose lung cancer is diagnosed early are nearly 10x more likely to live longer.

In this episode, Dr. Hina Khan, a thoracic oncology physician with Brown Medicine’s Division of Hematology and Oncology, discusses her latest research and public education study aimed at improving awareness of lung cancer screening, particularly among ethnic and minority populations in Rhode Island. 

Topics discussed include who is most at risk for lung cancer, what the screening test involves, risk factors, who is eligible to participate in this study, what barriers exist to getting screened, and how patients can enroll.

For more information, contact Dr. Khan at 401-893-7126 or [email protected].

Dr. Hina Khan is also a thoracic oncologist at the Brown Cancer Center at Rhode Island Hospital in Providence; assistant professor in hematology and oncology at Brown University’s Warren Alpert School of Medicine, and has led several research projects as principal investigator related to the needs of diverse, underserved communities.

In addition to her research, she works in a lab doing translational lunch cancer research and sees patients will all stages of lung cancer.

A conversation with Dr. Stephanie Graff, physician with the Hematology/Oncology Division of Brown Medicine, about breast cancer risk factors, symptoms(common and uncommon) and statistics; the latest breakthroughs in treatment and medicine; clinical trials; research to improve the standard of care and diagnoses; and her experiences working with breast cancer patients. Dr. Graff is also director of breast oncology at the Lifespan Cancer Institute and medical advisor for the Dr. Susan Love Foundation for Breast Cancer Research.

Cultural stereotypes can influence judgments, decision-making and behaviors in unwanted and unintended ways. Bias Reduction in Internal Medicine (BRIM) is an NIH grant-funded study (led by researchers at University of Wisconsin-Madison) to determine whether physician faculty training using a “breaking the bias habit” approach is effective at reducing implicit bias. Brown Medicine is one of several participating institutions throughout the U.S. participating in this evidence-based, data-driven study.

At Brown Medicine, BRIM is led by Dr. Dominick Tammaro, an internist with Brown Medicine’s Division of General Internal Medicine and the Internal Medicine Residency Director with the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University.

In this podcast episode, Dr. Tammaro is joined by his General Internal Medicine Division colleague Dr. Kate Cahill. They discuss their role in the BRIM study, unconscious bias and its effect on patient interaction, attitudes toward male/female disparities, and how one learns bias. Drs. Tammaro and Cahill also discuss patterns of gender bias, identifying bias as a habit and strategies to break the habit, what faculty are saying about the BRIM training, moving toward diversity and inclusion, and training the next generation of physician students in reducing implicit bias.