NCI Reaffirms Sylvester as South Florida’s Only NCI-Designated Cancer Center: Why it Matters
Article Summary
- Five years ago, Sylvester became a National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated cancer center, the 71st U.S. center to be designated by the NCI, part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health.
- The NCI recently renewed Sylvester’s designation—and it remains the only NCI-designated cancer center in South Florida.
- The NCI recognized Sylvester for its impactful research, scientific accomplishments, survivorship and community outreach programs, as well as its commitment to training the next generation of physicians and researchers and community service.
Five years after being awarded the prestigious National Cancer Institute (NCI) designation, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center has earned it again.
In July, Sylvester, part of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, renewed its status as an NCI-designated cancer center, achieving an “Outstanding” score from the NCI.
Only 72 cancer centers nationwide have received the NCI designation, conferred for scientific leadership in laboratory and clinical research and commitment to training scientists and health care professionals. The NCI also recognizes efforts to tailor research studies to the problems facing local communities with programs that have state and nationwide potential.
As one of the 72 NCI-designated cancer centers, Sylvester is in the top 4% of all cancer centers in the nation.
“Our cancer center’s achievement of an outstanding score for the NCI renewal demonstrates the unwavering commitment and dedication of our entire organization,” said Joseph James Echevarria, CEO and acting president of the University of Miami and CEO of UHealth—University of Miami Health System. “I am incredibly proud of our team’s relentless pursuit of excellence and the profound impact Sylvester has had and will continue to have on cancer research and patient care.”
In a state with the second-highest cancer burden in the U.S., the renewal affirms Sylvester’s commitment to continue pursuing cancer cures and cements Sylvester’s role as the only designated cancer center in South Florida offering clinical trials only available at NCI-designated cancer centers.
“We have built something of great value for our community,” said Sylvester Director Stephen D. Nimer, M.D., who has led Sylvester since 2012. “We have been transforming cancer care in South Florida through teamwork, excellence and discoveries; harnessing advances in precision medicine, breakthrough science such as immunotherapy, translational research, integration of cutting-edge technologies and compassionate, patient-centric care and survivorship programs that save lives, provide hope and ease the burden of cancer.”
“The NCI grant underscores our cancer center’s ability to deliver top-tier clinical care and innovative treatments to our patients,” said Dipen J. Parekh, M.D., chief operating officer of UHealth. “This funding is crucial in our ongoing mission to have excellent patient outcomes and provide hope to cancer patients.”
As the only academic medical center in the region, Sylvester earned NCI’s high marks five years ago with its innovative programs in clinical care, research and community outreach. For this renewal, Sylvester presented transformational new programs and initiatives, e.g., in experimental therapeutics and cancer survivorship, expanding its impact since the first NCI designation.
“The renewal of our NCI grant bolsters our cancer center’s research and treatment capabilities and enhances the learning opportunities for our medical students and residents,” said Henri R. Ford, M.D., M.H.A., dean and chief academic officer of the Miller School. “This grant ensures that our future health care professionals will be at the forefront of cancer care, equipped with the knowledge and skills to make a great impact in cancer research.”
A Rigorous Review
The NCI evaluates cancer centers across the nation through a highly competitive process overseen by approximately 17 nationally recognized cancer scientists and physician researchers, who are selected for their specific areas of expertise. For instance, experts in cancer epigenetics reviewed Sylvester’s program in that area as part of its 1,992-page Cancer Center Support Grant (CCSG) renewal submittal. Reviewers read the submitted grant and additional materials provided in advance of an in-person “site visit.”
The reviewers then spent an entire day at Sylvester evaluating and discussing the CCSG documents as well as the most up-to-date cancer center metrics and recent impactful discoveries that are presented in the form of succinct slide presentations from Sylvester’s research leaders. The reviewers gave praise and even better scores to each of Sylvester’s core research programs in Cancer Control, Cancer Epigenetics and Tumor Biology. They also gave an outstanding score to Sylvester’s new program in Translational Clinical Oncology, which was launched in 2022. Dr. Nimer received an exceptional rating as Sylvester’s director, the top score, as did many other scored areas of the grant application.
Community Needs and Care
For over a decade, Sylvester’s Cancer Survivorship and Supportive Care programs have helped keep patients healthy during and after treatment, with robust support services for the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of patients as part of an integrative approach. Dr. Nimer has also recruited top scientists in lifestyle medicine who are leading important research studies on the impact of nutrition and exercise on cancer, as well as genetic testing and preventative or novel diagnostic interventions for those at high risk of developing cancer.
“Our NCI grant empowers Sylvester to continue serving the community with the most advanced research and compassionate care,” said Jayne S. Malfitano, chair of Sylvester’s Board of Governors, president of the Harcourt M. and Virginia W. Sylvester Foundation and daughter of the center’s namesake. “Since its inception, Sylvester has been committed to making a profound difference in the lives of patients and their families.”
Since 2019, Sylvester has grown larger, with a much greater impact on the community. It has developed into a destination cancer center for those with many different types of cancer (e.g., leukemia, lymphoma, myeloma, sarcoma, brain tumors, gastrointestinal and genitourinary cancers) by hiring dozens of luminary physicians and investigators and launching multiple new programs that address disease-specific areas.
The center’s proximity to the Caribbean and Latin America and its highly diverse catchment area makes it unique among NCI-designated centers, said Dr. Nimer. This enables multiple studies on the social determinants of health and cancer incidence and treatment, extending internationally with collaborations across the hemisphere and the globe. Sylvester’s research also focuses on cancers with an elevated prevalence and mortality in South Florida, including hematologic cancers, hormone-related cancers, gastrointestinal cancers, and infection-associated cancers, including cervical and head and neck cancers, liver cancer and stomach cancer.
Part of a Bigger Network
The NCI, the primary federal cancer research and training agency, launched the cancer center designation program in the 1970s.
NCI designation supports cross-collaboration among cancer centers. Patients at NCI-designated centers have access to hundreds of clinical trials organized by the NCI’s National Clinical Trials Network that are only available at NCI-designated centers.
Sylvester also has the only academic phase 1 clinical trials program in South Florida for children and adults with cancer. This program provides access to new investigational treatments at the earliest stages of evaluation.
When Sylvester initially applied for NCI designation in 2019, 520 of its patients were accrued to “interventional treatment” clinical trials. With the growth of its research programs, 769 Sylvester patients were enrolled in such clinical trials over the last 12 months, representing a 48% increase over five years.
A Rising Tide
The NCI designation adds heft to Sylvester’s reputation and helps attract major philanthropic donations. In 2019, the same year as its designation, Sylvester received a $126 million anonymous gift, representing the largest single gift in the history of the University of Miami. Sylvester also attracts additional significant and regular contributions from the community.
Last year, Sylvester’s 50th-anniversary gala raised more than $3 million; The Pap Corps all-volunteer fundraisers donated $8.4 million. This year, Sylvester received a $50 million naming gift from Kenneth C. Griffin, a business leader and philanthropist, to help construct the 12-story Kenneth C. Griffin Cancer Research Building, slated to open in 2025. Also, the 2024 Dolphins Cancer Challenge raised a record-breaking $12 million and involved 6,702 participants.
Sylvester’s rising profile also attracts talented scientists and physicians from around the nation. Since 2019, the center has grown to more than 3,160 physicians, physician-scientists, nurses and clinical and research staff. In 2023, the center recruited 34 accomplished or promising new physicians and physician-scientists, including many luminary hires.
“We have built tremendous teams of researchers, many working on some of the toughest-to-treat cancers,” said Dr. Nimer.
Other key achievements and milestones since 2019 include:
- Tripled the number of high-impact, peer-reviewed publications (impact factor greater than 10) that report Sylvester’s research.
- Increased cancer research funding from peer-reviewed sources, such as the NCI, from $25.5 million in 2019 to $34 million in 2023.
- Hosted Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Summits starting in 2019; initiated the biannual Cancer Survivorship Symposium in 2022; and continued to host the annual International Firefighter Cancer Symposium (since 2019).
- Changing the standard of care by participating in and leading clinical research studies. Sylvester’s efforts supported the approval of multiple drugs, including pralsetinib, a targeted therapy for lung cancer, in 2020.
- Leading or co-leading giant grant awards, such as the more than $13 million grant initiated in 2021 to support two major studies examining disparities among Hispanic cancer patients; a $9.5 million grant starting in 2022 to investigate esophageal adenocarcinoma; $7 million, awarded in 2022, to research the effects of exercise and nutrition on ovarian cancer outcomes; and $5 million awarded in 2022 to study using advanced imaging to improve radiation therapy for glioblastoma patients.
- Spearheaded the $7.5 million National Human Genome Research Institute’s (NHGRI’s) Molecular Phenotypes of Null Alleles in Cells (MorPhiC) program, a comprehensive effort in 2023 to understand the function of every human gene, an effort led by Stephan Schürer, Ph.D.
- Navigating the COVID-19 pandemic, rapidly ramping up testing capacity and continuing to provide high-quality, safe care for cancer patients; starting a data registry in 2020 to understand COVID-19’s impact on cancer patients; and supporting a project to detect the COVID-19 virus in sewage.
- In 2021, we were named the first World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Cervical Cancer Elimination for diligent efforts to address cervical cancer.
- Launched the Cancer Assessment Risk Evaluation (CARE) Clinic in 2021, designed to provide options for people at high risk of breast cancer.
- Launched the Engineering Cancer Cures initiative in 2022 with the University of Miami College of Engineering to accelerate collaborative discoveries.
- Opened the Eileen Youtie Predisposition Syndrome Initiative in 2022 to provide specialized, coordinated care to individuals diagnosed with hereditary cancer and those predisposed and at higher risk for cancers due to inherited genetic mutations.
- Hosted a 2022 visit by First Lady Jill Biden, Ed.D., to support survivorship efforts and the advancement of breast cancer prevention and care.
- Garnered recognition by the American College of Surgeons for superior surgical practice standards and enhanced patient care, earning an ACS Surgical Quality Partner designation in 2023.
- Successfully advocated for a new endpoint that will lead to accelerated drug approval in multiple myeloma when C. Ola Landgren, M.D., Ph.D., presented to a key U.S. Food and Drug Administration committee in April 2024. The “minimum residual disease” endpoint, based largely on studies by Sylvester’s myeloma leader, promises to cut years off evaluating and approving new treatments.
- Supported, through collaborative research, new U.S. screening guidelines for anal cancer in people with HIV, issued in 2024.
- Contributed to new national standards for cancer survivorship care developed by the NCI and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs under President Biden’s Cancer Moonshot initiative in 2024.
Looking Ahead
Sylvester now has 10 clinical satellite locations throughout Florida,three more than in 2019, augmenting its outreach to medically underserved communities. In addition, it also opened a Naples care coordination and support services office on the West Coast of Florida. In the next year, UHealth and Sylvester will open two major clinical satellites: UHealth Doral and UHealth SoLé Mia.
“Sylvester’s scientific contributions not only directly serve the needs of its community but also impact cancer care across the country and the globe by changing practice, influencing policy and shifting research paradigms,” said Dr. Nimer.
In 2029, Sylvester will again need to renew its NCI designation; thus, over the next five years, the center will continue to focus on its strategic goals to meet and exceed NCI requirements and continue to make major contributions to the nation’s work against cancer.
Sylvester will continue to build infrastructure to support cutting-edge research (e.g., a new proteomics facility) and to promote teamwork and the co-localization of scientists conducting research in related areas, said Dr. Nimer. The Griffin Cancer Research Building is a big part of that effort and will double the center’s research footprint.
“These efforts will be catalytic for us and elevate the impact of our medical research. They also send a message across our country about how serious we are about finding new ways to cure and prevent cancer,” said Dr. Nimer.
Tags: Dean Henri Ford, Dr. Dipen Parekh, Dr. Stephen Nimer, Jayne Malfitano, National Cancer Institute, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center