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Access Extra Third Annual New York City Oral Cancer Walk
Last spring, the second annual NYC Oral Cancer walk attracted around 500 participants, up from about 300 walkers in 2006, and raising over $30,000. This year, the goal was to double both the number of walkers and the funds raised. Vera Malezhik and Yelena Lange are two NYC dental hygiene students who participated in the walk. Access emailed them to ask whether the program met its goals this year. “The initiative was very successful,” Malezhik and Lange said. “Although we did not reach our goal of achieving twice as many walkers and raising twice as much money, we were very pleased to see an increased number of walkers (approximately 750) while raising more than $30,000 for the Oral Cancer Foundation (OCF), which was similar what we have raised last year. According to press materials from NYU, the walk took place in Harlem to call attention to the fact that oral cancer disproportionately affects African-American men, who have the highest rates of oral cancer in the United States. If detected in its earliest stages, however, oral cancer is easily treated. Free oral cancer screenings and general health screenings were available immediately following the walk. “We were responsible for organizing the screenings after the walk,” Malezhik and Lange said. “We set up a screening site in the Marcus Garvey Park and assisted doctors in conducting oral cancer screening for attendees. In addition, there were three vans from NYU, Columbia and Harlem Hospital. These vans were set up to perform similar screening functions. In addition to oral cancer screenings, other health-related screenings were performed (blood pressure, diabetes, eye exams, etc.)” Ross Kerr, DDS, MSD, clinical associate professor of oral and maxillofacial pathology, radiology, and medicine at the NYU College of Dentistry, and the faculty advisor for the walk, said, “We are absolutely delighted to be partnering with the Harlem Hospital Center, the Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce, Columbia University, and Renaissance Health Care Network, to bring the message that early detection of oral cancer saves lives. And April is just the beginning. In August, NYU dental students will be back in Harlem to do additional oral cancer screenings as part of HEAL, the Healthy Eating/Healthy Living Initiative sponsored by the Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce, in collaboration with the Harlem Hospital Center.” Additional sponsoring groups include The Oral Cancer Foundation, the Oral Cancer Consortium of New York and New Jersey, and ABC 7. “This was a very rewarding experience,” Malezhik and Lange told Access. “It was great to see so many people getting involved, asking many questions, and gathering information about the subject. Much of this credit goes to Dr. Kerr, who was the primary coordinator of this project, and other students (Marcus Johnson, Dmitry and Alex Baron, and others). “It was great to see so many students from different dental/hygiene schools to participate in the event. These are the next generation of screeners who can impact the disease through awareness of the importance of early detection and prevention. We are all looking forward to participating in the event next year, and we hope to have even a bigger participation so that we can actively continue to promote oral cancer awareness programs.” - New York University International Cancer Genome ConsortiumResearch organizations from around the world announced April 28 that they are launching the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC), a collaboration designed to generate high-quality genomic data on up to 50 types of cancer through efforts projected to take up to a decade. The new consortium invites research organizations in all nations to participate and will make its data available to the global research community. The U.S. will be represented by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). “Cancer’s complexity poses an enormous challenge,” said Elias A. Zerhouni, MD, director of NIH. “NIH is highly encouraged that the worldwide scientific community is joining to meet this challenge, and we are pleased to be a member of this ambitious international endeavor. The consortium’s commitment to making its data rapidly available in public databases will serve to accelerate research into the causes and control of cancer in the United States and throughout the world.” Each ICGC member intends to conduct a comprehensive, high-resolution analysis of the full range of genomic changes in at least one specific type or subtype of cancer, with studies that use common standards of data collection and analysis. Each project is expected to involve specimens from approximately 500 patients and have an estimated cost of $20 million. As part of its coordination efforts, ICGC will generate a list of approximately 50 cancer types and subtypes of clinical significance around the globe. ICGC members plan to assume responsibility for specific cancers, and one of the ICGC’s roles should be to facilitate the exchange of information so participants’ efforts do not duplicate each other. Current ICGC members include: Australia: National Health and Medical Research Council (Observer Status) “Clearly, there is an urgent need to reduce cancer’s terrible toll. To help meet that need, the consortium will use new genome analysis technologies to produce comprehensive catalogs of the genetic mutations involved in the world’s major types of cancer,” said Thomas Hudson, MD, of the ICGC Secretariat, which is based at the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research in Toronto. “Such catalogs will be valuable resources for all researchers working to develop new and better ways of diagnosing, treating and preventing cancer.” The ICGC is open to all entities that accept its policies and guidelines. A white paper detailing those policies and guidelines is available on the consortium’s Web site at www.icgc.org. - National Human Genome Research Institute In Memoriam
Menees was born in Baltimore, Md. and moved to St. Louis, Mo. and then to Wichita, Kan., where she graduated from Southeast High School. She received her Bachelor of Science in dental hygiene at the University of Missouri – Kansas City. She was a dental hygienist in the Kansas City and Albuquerque area, holding various offices in local and national dental hygienists’ associations. Among these, she was the president of the Kansas Dental Hygienists’ Association and the University of Missouri – Kansas City Dental Hygienists’ Alumni Association. Menees loved to travel and visited China in 1983. In 1987, she moved from Kansas City to Albuquerque with her fiancé, Leonard R. Lopez, DDS. Active in furthering the goals of the dentistry community, in 1991 she was given the Alumni Achievement Award from the University of Missouri – Kansas City. She was a clinical instructor in the dental hygiene program at the University of New Mexico, where she excelled in her role as a mentor to many students. She loved the people she worked with and her patients at the office of Bill Pavlakos, DDS, in Albuquerque for many years. To make a contribution in her honor: The Jamie Brown Menees Dental Hygiene Fund TV Ministry ADHA Institute for Oral Health In Memoriam
Morley majored in art at Fresno State College (now the California State University at Fresno) with the intention of teaching, but after obtaining her bachelor’s degree, she enrolled in the then-new dental hygiene program at Cabrillo College in Aptos, Calif. She graduated in 1969 and, following a trip to Europe, returned to San Diego to live with her sister and practice dental hygiene. Morley married Marine JAG officer Paul Morley in 1970, attended by maid of honor Judy Boothby, RDHAP, BS, her best friend from dental hygiene school. During her husband’s military service in Okinawa, Morley, along with her mother and her husband, spent two weeks traveling in Asia. When her husband returned to the United States, they found a home in Del Mar Heights where Morley led a very active life, which included many hobbies, crafts, sailing, skiing, scuba diving and extensive travel. A devout Christian, Morley visited Jordan, Israel and Egypt in 1988, and traveled with her church to Moscow where she saw Billy Graham speak one of seven different times. Morley worked in several dental offices, including one in La Jolla where she stayed for 15 years. She served as president of the San Diego County Dental Hygiene Society, vice president and president of the California Dental Hygienists’ Association, and an expert examiner and recorder for the State of California Dental Examiners in Dental Hygiene. She also served for many years on the board of the Children’s Dental Health Association and was a member of several civic organizations. She left dental hygiene in 1999, following diagnosis with Alzheimer’s disease. In recent years, she and her husband enjoyed many cruises. She is mourned by her husband and many friends and colleagues. Anyone wishing to make a contribution to the ADHA Institute for Oral Health in her honor may do so by visiting www.adha.org/institute/donate/ or calling (800) 243-2342, ext. 244.
- This edition of Extra was compiled by Jean Majeski
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ADHA was saddened to learn of the death of Carol Morley, RDHEF, BS, on October 4, 2007. Born in Oakland, Calif., Morley lived in Fresno as a child. As a teenager, she loved working at an area resort as a “mermaid” who performed underwater swimming routines to music. She worked her way through college, making the acquaintance of Nat ‘King’ Cole, Johnny Mathis and Mickey Rooney, and even babysitting Shirley Jones’ children. 
