November 10, 2022 | Volume IV, Issue 22

Larner Community & Supporters Celebrate Opening of Firestone Medical Research Building

The atmosphere was bright and celebratory, despite a mix of gray skies, sun and a cool wind, at the October 27 grand opening and dedication of the Larner College of Medicine’s  Firestone Medical Research Building. Attendees at the dedication ceremony included donors; leaders from across the college, the University of Vermont and the UVM Health Network; medical alumni, faculty, staff, students and research trainees; and community and business leaders. Also present were representatives of architects Payette Associates and Black River Design and the main contractor for the building, Vermont-based PC Construction.

The event marked the conclusion of a two-year-and-twenty-nine-day journey, which started during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, when many construction projects across the state had halted and when biomedical research on the SARS-CoV2 virus at Larner was operating in high gear.

Larner alum Steve Firestone, M.D.’69 launched the building process with a lead gift made in memory of his mother and his father, Dr. Frederick Firestone. The senior Dr. Firestone had received medical training in Vienna, Austria, in the 1930s, made his way to the United States, completed his medical internship, and joined the U.S. Army during the Second World War, where he served in Europe as a battalion surgeon and earned two Silver Star Medals. After the war, he opened a modest medical practice, where his wife, Bobbie, worked alongside him as a nurse, and they served their community for many years.

Read the full article about the Firestone Building Grand Opening.

Pictured above: Dean Page welcomed attendees to the grand opening of the Firestone Medical Research Building. (Photo: David Seaver)

UVM Cancer Center Brings VT High Schoolers, International Experts to Campus for "Convergence" Event

On October 24 to 27, the University of Vermont welcomed 100 students from five local high schools to join cancer research experts from around the country and throughout the world to participate in “Cancer Convergence,” a national event focused on discussing the interdisciplinary techniques used to advance cancer treatment. 

The conference was co-hosted by the UVM Cancer Center and the National Science Foundation-sponsored Cancer Convergence Education Network, founded by acclaimed Institute of Advanced Study cancer researcher Arnie Levine, Ph.D.

The event consisted of 24 lecture-discussions during four days, with participation from faculty, graduate students and postdoctoral trainees at the university. In addition to UVM faculty, presenters included researchers from the University of Cambridge (England), Memorial Sloan Kettering, Dana Farber, Columbia University, University of Pennsylvania, and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.  

As part of the activities, the high school students attended a half-day “Careers in Cancer” event on October 24. They broke into small groups and interacted with world-renowned scientists to learn about career pathways in cancer research. The students also visited several of the university’s cancer research labs to meet researchers and view demonstrations. 

“Integrating interdisciplinary approaches to cancer research ... is prompting new questions, setting new research directions, and providing researchers with new technologies that are already leading to new cancer treatments and cures,” said Randall Holcombe, M.D., M.B.A., director of the UVM Cancer Center.

Link to the full article about UVM's "Convergence" event.

Pictured above: Katie Queen (center), a UVM Cellular, Molecular and Biomedical Sciences graduate student, leads high school students from Vermont’s Essex, South Burlington, Winooski, Burlington, and Champlain Valley Union high schools on a tour of the Stumpff Lab during the Cancer Convergence event. 

Celebrating Research Excellence at the College

The Larner College of Medicine celebrated and recognized the accomplishments of faculty, students, and staff who contribute to expanding knowledge through research at the three-day 2022 Dean’s Celebration of Excellence in Research.
The series of events, which launched on October 31 with the Graduate Student Research Showcase, also featured “The State of Research at the College and Dean’s Excellence in Research Awards” on November 1, the 2022 Research Laureate Lecture by Yvonne Janssen-Heininger, Ph.D., UVM Distinguished Professor and professor of pathology and laboratory medicine, on November 2, and a three-day poster display highlighting postdoctoral research and Larner core research facilities. 

Speakers at the State of Research at the College and Dean's Excellence in Research Awards event included Larner College of Medicine Dean Richard L. Page, M.D., UVM Vice President for Research Kirk Dombrowski, Ph.D., Interim Senior Associate Dean for Research Richard Galbraith, M.D., Ph.D., and Associate Dean for Graduate Education and Postdoctoral Training Christopher Berger, Ph.D.

In closing the state of research and awards event, Dr. Galbraith admitted that, during his many years and positions in research at the College of Medicine and the university, “the extraordinary became ordinary”; however, after taking on interim roles as co-director of the UVM Cancer Center and senior associate dean for research, “the ordinary became extraordinary again ... Do not take for granted the things that you do, because they are extraordinary,” he told attendees.

Link to the full Celebration of Excellence in Research article, including a list of awards and respective awardees.

Pictured above: (left to right) Dr. Galbraith, the Vermont Lung Center’s Stephanie Burns, who received the Clinical Research Coordinator Award; and Dean Page. (Photo: David Seaver)

More Vermont Patients Getting Screened for Lung Cancer

November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month — an opportunity to highlight the importance of screening for the third most common cancer in the United States, and the leading cause of cancer-related death among both men and women. The disease has long vexed physicians and public health advocates focused on reducing mortality rates and health care costs.

When Beth Zigmund, M.D., associate professor of radiology, stepped into her current role as director of lung cancer screening at The University of Vermont Medical Center in 2021, she already knew that one of her top priorities would be to enhance the hospital’s efforts to identify and treat lung cancer cases as early and effectively as possible.

Lung cancer screening is available to people ages 50 and older who have smoked the equivalent of a pack of cigarettes per day for 20 or more years. Evidence supporting the positive impact of annual lung cancer screening for people who fall into these categories is very strong, but, according to Dr. Zigmund, “for a variety of reasons, patients just don’t get screened.”

In fact, nationwide, screening rates for lung cancer are very low, according to a recent study led by the American Cancer Society (ACS), which found that out of 8.5 million eligible adults between the ages of 55 and 80, roughly 560,000 are screened each year – that’s fewer than one in 15 eligible people. At about 15 percent, Vermont’s lung cancer screening rate outstrips the national average, but “we're still missing the vast majority of people who are eligible for screening,” says Zigmund. 

To improve screening rates, Dr. Zigmund worked with a team of Epic analysts to build a system for collecting and displaying lung screening data that can help clinicians better identify patients who might be eligible for UVM Medical Center’s Lung Cancer Screening Program. Data collection is under way at  UVM Medical Center and UVM Health Network–Central Vermont Medical Center, with plans to expand the program to patients and communities across all of UVM Health Network’s service area. 

Read the full article.

Pictured above: Dr. Zigmund sits amidst monitors showing low-dose CT lung cancer screening images.

Accolades & Appointments

Feedback? Contact Us!

The Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine | University of Vermont |
University of Vermont Medical Center