2009 Geriatric Oncology Retreat
CANCER & AGING

William and Ida Friday Center, Chapel Hill, NC
November 17, 2009

Close to 70 people attended the Cancer and Aging retreat for the new UNC Lineberger Geriatric Oncology Program. Led by Dr. Hy Muss, professor of medicine and program director, the program featured talks by a variety of UNC faculty involved in geriatric care and research. Following the presentations, participants had time to meet and lay the groundwork for future projects and collaborations.

"This retreat was a way to bring lots of UNC people together who are already involved in geriatric medicine, care, and research." Dr. Muss said, "Having an awareness of the many programs and faculty members at UNC will serve as a springboard for resources and collaborations as we develop the Geriatric Oncology Program."

Speakers included:

Drs. Shelley Earp, UNC Lineberger director, and Richard Goldberg, N.C. Cancer Hospital Physician-in-Chief and UNC Lineberger associate director.

Dr. Jan Busby-Whitehead, director of the UNC Center for Aging and Health and Geriatrics

Drs. Steve Bernard and Laura Hanson, co-directors of the UNC Palliative Care Program

Ellen Schneider, associate director of the Institute on Aging

Dr. Don Rosenstein, director of the UNC Comprehensive Cancer Support Program

Alan Hoyle and Li Wen of the Carolina Well Database and the UNC Lineberger Data Warehouse

Dr. Ned Sharpless, speaking on molecular markers of aging and p16 trials.

Dr. Hy Muss, director, UC Lineberger Geriatric Oncology Program, speaking on "Carolina 'senior' Registry and Geriatric Assessment: Ongoing Clinical trials."

Following the retreat, participants were joined by UNC faculty and staff to hear Dr. Larry Norton, Deputy Physician-in-Chief for Breast Cancer Programs; Medical Director, Evelyn H. Lauder Breast Center; Norna S. Sarofim Chair in Clinical Oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

Drs. Hy Muss and Shelley Earp, UNC Lineberger director, adjust slides for a presentation.	Dr. Laura Hanson presenting information on palliative care research at UNC
Dr. Steve Bernard answers a question from a participant	Dr. Muss shares data about geriatric research
Dr. Larry Norton gives a talk on "Breast Cancer: New Ideas in Tumor Biology."