Dr. James Brooks' photo courtesy of Stanford University. Dr. Victor Reuter's photo courtesy of Dr. Victor E. Reuter. Photographed by Kin C. Kong.

Two Nationally Recognized Scientists Named to the Fiscal Year 2013 DoD Prostate Cancer Research Program Integration Panel

The Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) Prostate Cancer Research Program (PCRP), US Department of Defense (DoD), named two highly acclaimed scientists to the PCRP Integration Panel (IP) during its Fiscal Year 2013 (FY13) Vision Setting meeting, held January 10-11 in Herndon, Virginia. The scientists, Dr. James Brooks of Stanford University and Dr. Victor Reuter of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, join a distinguished group of scientists, clinicians, and consumer advocates, who comprise the seventeen-member advisory body (https://CDMRP.HEALTH.MIL/pcrp/panels/panel13).

The PCRP IP, comprised of some of the nation's foremost innovative thinkers and creative leaders in prostate cancer research and clinical care, is an external advisory body that recommends an appropriate vision, award mechanisms, and investment strategy for the program, makes funding recommendations on applications submitted to the program, and assists the program officers by providing advisory input on policy development and critical issues in prostate cancer research and clinical management. The panel is led by an elected chair, assisted by a chair-emeritus and chair-elect. The FY13 PCRP IP Chair is Dr. Maha Hussain of the University of Michigan. Dr. Hussain is a professor of medicine and urology, associate director for clinical research, and prostate cancer program co-leader at the University of Michigan. She is an internationally recognized expert in genitourinary malignancies and clinical trials.

The PCRP, established in 1997, is sustained through grassroots efforts of prostate cancer advocates and supporters seeking Congressional funding to support innovative, high impact, meritorious scientific investigations in prostate cancer research. These efforts have transformed the landscape of biomedical research, energized prostate cancer research investigators, and focused attention on conducting highly collaborative, multidisciplinary, multi-institutional research to realize a cure for those affected by the disease. As the PCRP enters its sixteenth year, the three new scientists along with the other members of the panel will be faced with the many challenges in understanding prostate cancer and preventing its effects. The new members will bring their respective areas of expertise to bear to address some of the critical issues affecting patients and the obstacles investigators must overcome to defeat prostate cancer.

CDMRP Director, COL Jeffrey Leggit, in welcoming the two new scientists, said, "The PCRP IP has been instrumental in helping the program find and fund the research that has resulted in many of the major advancements recently seen in prostate cancer clinical care, and we are very excited to have Drs. Brooks and Reuter bringing their substantial expertise to continuing that success."

Dr. James Brooks, certified by the American Board of Urology, is Professor of Urology, Chief of Urologic Oncology, and Acting Chair of the Department of Urology at the Stanford University School of Medicine. He holds an appointment in the Center for Molecular and Genetic Medicine and is a member of Bio-X at Stanford. Dr. Brooks has been recognized with numerous awards and honors for his contributions to the field of urologic oncology. He received the Keith and Jan Hurlbut Professorship by Stanford University and, in 2010, was named co-chair of the Prostate and Urologic Cancers Group and chair of the Imaging Interest Group of the Early Detection Research Network (EDRN) by the National Cancer Institute. Dr. Brooks is an expert in genetics, urological diseases, and clinical trials. His basic research interests include developing diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers for use in the management of prostate cancer and other urological diseases. Additionally, he is actively involved in the development of new technologies and assays that facilitate the validation and qualification of biomarkers for clinical use. While a majority of his work has focused on validating clinical biomarkers for prostate cancer disease management, he is also conducting prostate cancer active surveillance clinical trials, involved in quality of life management following radical prostatectomy, and the development of novel molecular imaging technologies and strategies for prostate cancer.

Dr. Victor Reuter is Professor of Pathology and Vice-Chair of the Department of Pathology and also Director of the Pathology Core Facility, Genitourinary Pathology and Genitourinary Pathology Fellowship Program. He serves as a member and attending pathologist of Memorial Hospital, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Dr. Reuter specializes in the characterization and validation of tissue-based markers for use in tumor classification and patient risk stratification in disease management. In particular, he is interested in determining the molecular markers associated with the development and progression of genitourinary disease with the goal of validating and qualifying these markers for use in clinical management of disease. Dr. Reuter has obtained funding for his research from the National Cancer Institute.


Note: Congressional appropriations for the FY13 PCRP are not yet known. Integration Panel recommendations for FY13 are contingent upon the availability of federal funds for this program.

Point of Contact:

Jennie Mettert-Young
CDMRP Public Affairs
301-619-9783
CDMRP.PublicAffairs@amedd.army.mil