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A historic new chapter in Hawai‘i cancer care began this week as the University of Hawai‘i Cancer Center officially opened its Ho‘ōla Early Phase Clinical Research Center, the first center in the islands dedicated to conducting early phase clinical trials for cancer. The private grand-opening ceremony on Monday, July 6, was attended by more than 200 people, including federal, state, university and community leaders, and UH Cancer Center employees, celebrating the launch of the center within the UH Cancer Center in Kaka‘ako. The Ho‘ōla EPCRC includes dedicated patient treatment areas, specialized clinical research space and a certified pharmacy. Highly trained staff will work closely with investigators, referring physicians and research sponsors to safely conduct early phase clinical trials that will bring innovative research, and new critical cancer-treatment options to the people of Hawai‘i and the Pacific. Read the story in our Newsroom.

Hawai‘i patients spent at least $230 million on out-of-state cancer care from 2021 through 2023, a new study from the UH Cancer Center has found. The findings highlight the significant financial impact — and human toll — of geographic isolation on patients and the health care system. The study found that patients with complex cancers were much more likely to require care outside the state, and suggests that increased investments in locally accessible specialty services, like the ones the new Ho‘ōla Early Phase Clinical Research Center will provide, could reduce the need for some patients to travel outside the state. Read the story in our Newsroom.

You now have until Wednesday, July 15, to sign up for “Healing Through Art,” a public workshop presented on Saturday, July 18, by the Susan C. Hirano Cancer CARE Community of the UH Cancer Center. Explore a variety of therapeutic modalities, to reduce anxiety, depression and distress. Dr. Jami Fukui of the UH Cancer Center will provide an introduction; and Katsumi Takemoto will lead attendees in shakuhachi meditation. Breakout sessions with Jocelyn Cheng, Jessie Kai and Lena Acosta Knight will feature washi tape crafting, ti-leaf lei making and pencil drawing. Use the event form to register; walk-ins are welcome, but breakout session selection will be limited. Please join us.

Congratulations to Dr. John Shepherd and Dr. Youping Deng, of the UH Cancer Center and UH Mānoa John A. Burns School of Medicine, who were awarded more than

$12 million from the National Institutes of Health to establish the Pacific Center for Artificial Intelligence and Data Science in Medicine (PAC-AID). The new research center will be dedicated to accelerating biomedical discoveries through artificial intelligence and data science to benefit people in Hawaiʻi and the Pacific region, and worldwide. PAC-AID will support workforce development and faculty-led research, and help to foster the next generation of independent investigators. Read more in our Newsroom.

The Hawaiʻi Colorectal Cancer Summit summit is set for Friday, July 24, 9 a.m. to
1 p.m. at ‘Alohilani Resort- Bluefin Room. The event will bring together healthcare providers, public health professionals, health plans, patient navigators, community organizations, cancer survivors and others. Discussion will cover colorectal cancer trends, best practices, and collaborative strategies to improve screening, follow-up care and patient outcomes. The summit is presented by the Hawai‘i Public Health Training Hui, a program of Hawai‘i Public Health Institute, and the Western Region Public Health Training Center. Register using the event form.

‘Healing Through Art’ — Workshop presented by the Susan C. Hirano Cancer CARE Community, UH Cancer Center

Saturday, July 18 | 9-11 a.m.
Sullivan Conference Center, UH Cancer Center
Public welcome; free admission
Register on event page; deadline to register is July 15
Walk-ins welcome, but session selection will be limited.

‘Physical Activity and Cancer’— Workshop presented by the Susan C. Hirano Cancer CARE Community, UH Cancer Center
Saturday, October 17 | 9-11 a.m.
Sullivan Conference Center, UH Cancer Center
Public welcome; free admission
Details for program and registration to come; watch for updates on the event page.

JOB BOARD

Assistant Professor – Cancer Biology

Fiscal Specialist

Graduate Assistant – Cancer Epidemiology (1)

Graduate Assistant – Cancer Epidemiology (2)

For all University of Hawaiʻi Internal Civil Service Recruitments, please see the bulletin by the Human Resources Office for the most current vacancies.

Polygenic scores for risk of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma: evaluation of novel and published models. Antwi SO, Coombes BJ, Carlson EE, Larson NB, Rabe KG, Atkinson HJ, Majumder S, Bamlet WR, Schaid DJ, Zhong J, McKean D, Arslan AA, Beane Freeman LE, Bracci PM, Canzian F, Truong T, Atkins J, Du M, Gallinger S, Goodman PJ, Katzke V, Campa D, Kooperberg C, Le Marchand L, …, Yu H, Yuan C; MAYO-RGC Project Generation; Regeneron Genetics Center; Risch HA, Wolpin BM, Stolzenberg-Solomon RZ, Klein AP, Amundadottir LT, Oberg AL. NPJ Precis Oncol. 2026 May 27.

Frequent Detection of Abasic Sites and O6-Methyl-2'-Deoxyguanosine and Absence of Substituted Aromatic DNA Adducts in Colorectal Tissue of Smokers and Meat-Eaters with Colorectal Cancer. Brandt K, Konorev D, Bellamri M, Yao L, Villalta PW, Burnett T, Abe J, White K, Wilkens L, Le Marchand L, Turesky RJ. Chem Res Toxicol. 2026 May 18;39(5):1030-1050.

Comparison of WHO and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Growth References for Classifying Height and Weight Status in Young Children in the United States-Affiliated Pacific. Yamanaka AB, Davis JD, Wilkens LR, Hurwitz EL, Fialkowski MK, Coleman P, Deenik J, Fleming T, Guerrero RL, Novotny R. Curr Dev Nutr. 2026 May 13;10(6):107714. 

Differences in overall survival for invasive epithelial ovarian cancer by race and ethnicity: results from the Ovarian Cancer Association Consortium. Meagher NS, White KK, Wilkens LR, Anton-Culver H, Bandera EV, Carney ME, Cramer DW, Cushing-Haugen KL, DeFazio A, Doherty JA, Gentry-Maharaj A, Goode EL, Goodman MT, Harris HR, Karlan BY, Kaufmann SH, Kelemen LE, Köbel M, Koziak JM, Le Marchand L, Lester J, McGuire V, Menon U, Modugno F, Moysich KB, Pearce CL, Pharoah PDP, Pike MC, Qin B, Risch HA, Rothstein JH, Sarink D, Sieh W, Steed H, Terry KL, Thompson PJ, Titus LJ, Van Gorp T, Whittemore AS, Winham SJ, Jordan SJ, Wu AH, Webb PM; AOCS Group; Peres LC, Merritt MA. Br J Cancer. 2026 Jun 30. 

Cervical cancer burden and elimination readiness in the US-affiliated Pacific Islands: A structured narrative review. Nguyen DTN, Islam R, Qin J, Senkomago V, Buenconsejo-Lum L, Jeong Y, Gopalani SV, Kang YJ, David M, Reichhardt M, Edilyong J, Tippins A, Lu E, Chutaro E, Scarinci I, Arriola T, Simms K, Canfell K, Palafox N. Cancer Epidemiol. 2026 Jun 29;103:103144. 

Remote Assessment of Parkinson Disease Using Deep Learning on Structured Mouse-Trace Data From Suspected Cases: Machine-Learning Pilot Feasibility Study. Shahriar Zawad MR, Tumpa ZN, Sollis L, Parab S, Washington P. JMIR Form Res. 2026 Jun 26;10:e81368. 

E-cigarette and cannabis use and co-use patterns and dependence trajectories among young adults in the United States.   Pokhrel P, Phillips KT, Phillips MM, Kawamoto CT, Herzog TA. Addiction. 2026 Jun 25. 

Less Can Be More by Circulating Tumor DNA Use in ERBB2-Positive Breast Cancer. Ueno NT. JAMA Oncol. 2026 Jun 25. 

Adherence to the Mediterranean diet and risk of pancreatic cancer: an analysis of 2.3 million participants in the Pooling Project of Prospective Studies of Diet and Cancer (DCPP). Shen Q, Mobley C, Wang M, Ferrari P, Adami HO, Afshar N, Babic A, van den Brandt PA, Cheng E, Eliassen AH, Fung TT, Giovannucci EL, Hirabayashi M, Hou T, Huang BZ, Huang WY, Joshu CE, Kanehara R, Katzke V, Lacey JV Jr, Landry MJ, Larsson SC, Liao LM, Martinez ME, McCullough ML, Miller AB, Milne RL, Moore SC, Mucci LA, Naudin S, Prizment A, Park SY, Rohan TE, Riboli E, Robien K, Sandin S, Sawada N, Shams-White MM, Sinha R, Smith-Byrne K, Stampfer MJ, Stolzenberg-Solomon RZ, Um CY, Visvanathan K, Wang SS, Weiderpass E, White E, Willett WC, Wolk A, Wolpin BM, Yuan C, Smith-Warner SA, Genkinger JM. Eur J Epidemiol. 2026 Jun 25. 

The effect of distributional information on the categorization of unaccusativity. Lin KK, Washington P, Deen KU. J Child Lang. 2026 Jun 25:1-35. 

Clinical trial enrollment processes and strategies to enhance clinical trial participation at rural National Cancer Institute Community Oncology Research Program sites. Okado I, Chang S, Fukaya EM, Braun-Inglis CM, Berenberg JL. Cancer. 2026 Jul 1;132(13):e70503. 

The Prevention Gap: Cervical Cancer in Older Women. Perkins RB, Fontenot HB, Manassaram-Baptiste D, Scott AM, Smith RA, Vadaparampil ST. Womens Health Issues. 2026 Jun 20:S1049-3867(26)00074-5. 

Incorporating dietary information to enhance polygenic prediction models with applications to body mass index and type 2 diabetes. Lee EY, Dinh BL, Tang J, Streicher SA, Wang X, Biswas S, Tian H, Yu X, Taparra K, Naseri T, Viali S, Weeks DE, Carlson JC, Haiman CA, Marchand LL, Maskarinec G, Wilkens LR, Park SY, Chiang CWK. Genes Nutr. 2026 Jun 18. 

Fish Consumption and Colorectal Neoplasms among Lynch Syndrome Carriers. Bulbaai MT, Wesselink E, Bisseling TM, Koornstra JJ, van Leerdam ME, Le Marchand L, Newcomb PA, Samadder NJ, Schep-Wijnveen HJ, Kampman E, van Duijnhoven FJ. J Nutr. 2026 Jun 17:101670. 

Pharmacophore Directed Retrosynthesis Applied to Waixenicin A: Synthesis and Bioactivity of Derivatives Bearing a Minimal Proposed Pharmacophore. Parris MR, Suzuki S, Kiledal SA, Gong XB, Zhang X, Penner R, Sun HS, Feng ZP, Horgen FD, Fleig A, Hull KG, Romo D. Org Lett. 2026 Jun 26;28(25):7947-7952. 

Fusaric Acid Analogs and Dimers from Marine-Derived Fusarium sp.: Biosynthetic Insights and Chloramphenicol-Enhanced Antibacterial Activity. Zaman KAU, Petriti V, Dhakal D, Sarotti AM, Yan C, Wu X, Wu Z, Jiang Y, Rubin GM, Turkson J, Zheng G, Ding Y, Cao S. J Nat Prod. 2026 Jun 26;89(6):1811-1820. 

PFAS Policies and Reductions in Drinking Water Contamination Across the United States: Incorporated Policy Perspectives from Los Angeles Residents.   Li S, Schielzeth R, Galindo T, Valencia C, Smith AL, Chatzi L, Aung MT. Next Res. 2026 Jul;9:101827. 

The interplay between loneliness, cortisol, and NK cell function: The role of cortisol in NK cell dysfunction. Saurabh A, Baumer Y, Mendelsohn LG, Aquino Peterson EM, Sandler D, Lopez De Leon SJ, Dave A, Baez AS, Ortiz-Whittingham LR, Pita MA, Cintron MA, Tarfa HA, Reynolds ST, Hicks SR, Sharda S, Seo JE, Lopez-Ocasio M, Dagur PK, Kuhn SA, Redekar NR, Troendle JF, Wells AL, Marah M, Tolentino KJ, Corley MJ, Maunakea AK, Nieman LK, Andrews MR, Powell-Wiley TM. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2026 Jul;189:107870. 

ATR inhibition potentiates the antitumor efficacy of HER3-DXd in HER3-positive/HR-positive breast cancer by increasing DNA damage.    Xie X, Lee J, Gi YJ, Poullikkas T, Fuson JA, Fan PD, Fukui JA, Tripathy D, Ueno NT. Br J Cancer. 2026 Jul;135(1):33-47. 

Exposure to Industrial Air Toxics and Risk of Breast Cancer in California: The Multiethnic Cohort Study. Van Deventer D, Park SL, Cheng I, Wu AH, Chen Y, Yang J, Stram DO, Le Marchand L, Ritz B, Heck JE. J Occup Environ Med. 2026 Jul 1;68(7):513-521. 

Late-Onset Rheumatoid Arthritis and Air Pollution in a Multiethnic Cohort. Wu AH, Tseng C, Park SY, Stram DO, White K, Wu J, Vigen C, Setiawan VW, Yu X, Gazal S, Haiman C, Wilkens L, Le Marchand L, Cheng I, Stohl W. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2026 Jul;78(7):1425-1436. 

Tailoring e-Cigarette Health Messages by Vaping Status: How Source and Message Presentation Type Shape Young Adults' Perceptions.   Lee DN, Villanti AC, Stevens EM. Nicotine Tob Res. 2026 Jun 23;28(7):1163-1170.

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