1 00:00:03,400 --> 00:00:07,640 Speaker 1: On this episode of News World. Years ago, a diagnosis 2 00:00:07,640 --> 00:00:11,480 Speaker 1: of cancer would have been a death sentence. Medically, we 3 00:00:11,560 --> 00:00:14,000 Speaker 1: didn't know enough of at cancer and how best to 4 00:00:14,080 --> 00:00:18,680 Speaker 1: treat it. But thankfully there are new medical breakthroughs that 5 00:00:18,720 --> 00:00:23,520 Speaker 1: are being developed, giving hope to patients and their families everywhere. 6 00:00:24,239 --> 00:00:27,960 Speaker 1: The breakthroughs in cancer research and therapeutics in recent years 7 00:00:28,320 --> 00:00:32,520 Speaker 1: have led to dramatically better outcomes. We know so much 8 00:00:32,560 --> 00:00:36,319 Speaker 1: more now about cancer, what causes, how to treat it, 9 00:00:36,720 --> 00:00:39,960 Speaker 1: and most importantly, how to prevent it, than we've ever 10 00:00:40,000 --> 00:00:44,280 Speaker 1: known before. I wanted to spend some time understanding these 11 00:00:44,320 --> 00:00:49,360 Speaker 1: new developments and treating cancer. So I'm very pleased to 12 00:00:49,440 --> 00:00:53,519 Speaker 1: welcome my guest, doctor Patrick who. He is the President 13 00:00:53,560 --> 00:00:56,600 Speaker 1: and CEO of Moffat Cancer Center, one of the nation's 14 00:00:56,760 --> 00:01:02,000 Speaker 1: leading cancer hospitals and the only National Cancer Center Institute 15 00:01:02,040 --> 00:01:16,480 Speaker 1: designated comprehensive cancer Center based in Florida. Welcome, doctor, thanks 16 00:01:16,480 --> 00:01:20,600 Speaker 1: so much, really honored to be on your program today, Contrict. 17 00:01:21,000 --> 00:01:24,440 Speaker 1: Let me start and ask you what do you specifically 18 00:01:24,800 --> 00:01:29,800 Speaker 1: into oncology and focusing on cancer. Well, early on, when 19 00:01:29,840 --> 00:01:32,800 Speaker 1: I was growing up in at the state of West Virginia, 20 00:01:33,120 --> 00:01:35,759 Speaker 1: I had a number of friends and family members come 21 00:01:35,800 --> 00:01:38,920 Speaker 1: down with cancer, there's really no place to treat them 22 00:01:38,920 --> 00:01:40,720 Speaker 1: in West Virginia. They how had to go to the 23 00:01:40,800 --> 00:01:45,199 Speaker 1: National Cancer Institute for therapeutics. So I thought, we really 24 00:01:45,240 --> 00:01:48,480 Speaker 1: need better treatments for cancer that are more accessible to 25 00:01:48,480 --> 00:01:51,840 Speaker 1: a larger population, and so that really motivated me to 26 00:01:51,880 --> 00:01:54,840 Speaker 1: go into cancer research. And then when I started, the 27 00:01:54,840 --> 00:01:58,160 Speaker 1: immune system was just so fascinating to me that your 28 00:01:58,200 --> 00:02:01,560 Speaker 1: own body could kill cancer ourselves, And so that's why 29 00:02:01,640 --> 00:02:04,880 Speaker 1: I started over thirty years ago studying the immune system 30 00:02:04,880 --> 00:02:09,240 Speaker 1: and the immune response against cancer. My impression is from 31 00:02:09,280 --> 00:02:12,240 Speaker 1: talking to the number of year colleagues over the years, 32 00:02:12,680 --> 00:02:16,600 Speaker 1: including Andy Lashnabak, who of course came out of MD 33 00:02:16,760 --> 00:02:18,919 Speaker 1: Anderson it would only to be both head of the 34 00:02:19,040 --> 00:02:21,519 Speaker 1: National Cancer Institute and the head of the Food and 35 00:02:21,560 --> 00:02:24,440 Speaker 1: Drug Administration. But my impression is that the amount of 36 00:02:24,560 --> 00:02:27,760 Speaker 1: progress we've made in the last thirty to forty years 37 00:02:28,040 --> 00:02:32,399 Speaker 1: is just literally almost beyond imagination. When you look back, 38 00:02:32,400 --> 00:02:36,000 Speaker 1: would you agree that we really have a momentum in 39 00:02:36,280 --> 00:02:39,919 Speaker 1: finding ways to defeat cancer that's much greater than one 40 00:02:39,960 --> 00:02:43,919 Speaker 1: might have expected. It's really exciting right now. A number 41 00:02:43,919 --> 00:02:47,280 Speaker 1: of years ago, all of my patients would pass away 42 00:02:47,680 --> 00:02:50,880 Speaker 1: just about I treat advanced melanoma, a disease that starts 43 00:02:50,919 --> 00:02:54,400 Speaker 1: on the skin and spreads almost anywhere in the body, 44 00:02:54,480 --> 00:02:57,119 Speaker 1: and most of my patients would pass away within six 45 00:02:57,200 --> 00:02:59,919 Speaker 1: to twelve months. And now over half of them are 46 00:03:00,040 --> 00:03:05,400 Speaker 1: living long lives, essentially cured with durable survivals, largely because 47 00:03:05,440 --> 00:03:08,680 Speaker 1: we've learned to do two things. One is figure out 48 00:03:08,760 --> 00:03:11,480 Speaker 1: what the molecular nature of the diseases and give the 49 00:03:11,600 --> 00:03:15,200 Speaker 1: right medications to cut off their circuitry and to stimulate 50 00:03:15,240 --> 00:03:17,840 Speaker 1: the body's immune system to allow their immune cells to 51 00:03:17,919 --> 00:03:21,400 Speaker 1: kill their cancer. So all of this progress has been 52 00:03:21,440 --> 00:03:25,000 Speaker 1: extremely exciting for the field of cancer research and cancer therapeutics. 53 00:03:26,040 --> 00:03:28,760 Speaker 1: Someone said to me that we're really seeing a revolution 54 00:03:28,880 --> 00:03:34,040 Speaker 1: because we're moving with the kind of therapies you're describing, 55 00:03:34,520 --> 00:03:38,560 Speaker 1: We're moving towards kind of a personal approach to dealing 56 00:03:38,560 --> 00:03:43,640 Speaker 1: with cancer that's just dramatically different in applying massive amounts 57 00:03:43,680 --> 00:03:47,760 Speaker 1: of chemotherapy. I mean, can you describe to how there's 58 00:03:47,880 --> 00:03:53,720 Speaker 1: new molecular knowledge enables you to sit down with a 59 00:03:53,760 --> 00:03:57,720 Speaker 1: particular patient and develop a specific therapy that you think 60 00:03:58,360 --> 00:04:01,840 Speaker 1: is going to give them a romatically better chance of survival. 61 00:04:02,160 --> 00:04:05,520 Speaker 1: Absolutely so for the second year in a row. Our 62 00:04:05,720 --> 00:04:08,920 Speaker 1: death rates from cancer in this country are starting to decline. 63 00:04:09,240 --> 00:04:11,880 Speaker 1: That's largely because of our ability to stimulate the body's 64 00:04:11,880 --> 00:04:15,880 Speaker 1: immune system, but also because of the personalization of therapeutics 65 00:04:15,920 --> 00:04:19,120 Speaker 1: that you're talking about. For example, in lung cancer, when 66 00:04:19,160 --> 00:04:21,760 Speaker 1: I was starting out thirty years ago, we treated all 67 00:04:21,760 --> 00:04:25,800 Speaker 1: patients with advanced lung cancer with the same chemotherapy combination. 68 00:04:26,440 --> 00:04:29,000 Speaker 1: Now you have to check the genes in the lung 69 00:04:29,040 --> 00:04:33,480 Speaker 1: cancer and figure out what exact flavor of lung cancer 70 00:04:33,520 --> 00:04:36,839 Speaker 1: they have, and that will then advise you as to 71 00:04:37,040 --> 00:04:39,600 Speaker 1: how to treat them and treat them with the right 72 00:04:39,880 --> 00:04:44,040 Speaker 1: combinations of pills and IV medications. And so it's extremely 73 00:04:44,080 --> 00:04:48,200 Speaker 1: exciting right now to personalize therapeutics like that. For example, 74 00:04:48,400 --> 00:04:50,960 Speaker 1: last week, I saw a melanold patient and I really 75 00:04:51,000 --> 00:04:54,080 Speaker 1: couldn't decide on what her treatment was until I got 76 00:04:54,080 --> 00:04:58,760 Speaker 1: her tumor biopsied and everything sequenced so I could know 77 00:04:58,880 --> 00:05:03,160 Speaker 1: exactly what kind of melanomas she had. So that actually 78 00:05:03,200 --> 00:05:09,880 Speaker 1: means you're going to spend more time per patient understanding 79 00:05:10,760 --> 00:05:17,520 Speaker 1: both what their diseases but also what the potential they 80 00:05:17,560 --> 00:05:21,960 Speaker 1: have inside themselves for coping with the disease. Given the 81 00:05:22,040 --> 00:05:25,960 Speaker 1: right stimuls. I'm asking that is a total amateur. I 82 00:05:26,040 --> 00:05:29,840 Speaker 1: think what we have to do now is understand exactly 83 00:05:29,880 --> 00:05:34,279 Speaker 1: the molecular nature of their cancers, because cancers are driven 84 00:05:34,360 --> 00:05:37,680 Speaker 1: by genes, but cancer comes from our own cells, and 85 00:05:37,760 --> 00:05:40,280 Speaker 1: all the cancer cell is is our normal cells that 86 00:05:40,320 --> 00:05:44,880 Speaker 1: have gone a little bit nuts and are proliferating, dividing 87 00:05:45,040 --> 00:05:47,919 Speaker 1: in an uncontrolled way, and it takes over our organs. 88 00:05:48,279 --> 00:05:51,719 Speaker 1: And so that's driven by the genes in the cancer 89 00:05:51,800 --> 00:05:54,040 Speaker 1: that are messed up, and we have to figure out 90 00:05:54,120 --> 00:05:58,600 Speaker 1: which genes are having a problem and that sometimes and 91 00:05:58,680 --> 00:06:01,760 Speaker 1: sometimes not sometimes tis if we figured out, it will 92 00:06:01,800 --> 00:06:05,080 Speaker 1: allow us to give the right combinations of pills and 93 00:06:05,160 --> 00:06:08,880 Speaker 1: medications that will help turn off that cancer. And so 94 00:06:09,040 --> 00:06:12,960 Speaker 1: for some cancer types it's been extremely dramatic. Others we're 95 00:06:12,960 --> 00:06:16,360 Speaker 1: still struggling with. So part of this, which is kind 96 00:06:16,360 --> 00:06:19,280 Speaker 1: of fascinating, is you know, when I was a kid, 97 00:06:20,560 --> 00:06:22,400 Speaker 1: there were sort of cancers, and we kind of knew 98 00:06:22,440 --> 00:06:26,600 Speaker 1: that there was lung cancer, and we knew that there was, say, 99 00:06:26,640 --> 00:06:32,799 Speaker 1: breast cancer. But now you're dealing with an amazing array 100 00:06:32,839 --> 00:06:37,680 Speaker 1: of things who are collectively called cancers, but in fact 101 00:06:38,560 --> 00:06:41,840 Speaker 1: they each have a different kind of personality, and there's 102 00:06:41,880 --> 00:06:48,240 Speaker 1: just this extraordinary multiplication of our understanding how many unique 103 00:06:48,279 --> 00:06:51,320 Speaker 1: ways of being threatened we are. Is that a fair 104 00:06:51,360 --> 00:06:53,599 Speaker 1: way to put it. That's a great way to put 105 00:06:53,640 --> 00:06:56,560 Speaker 1: it in right now, what we used to say it 106 00:06:56,600 --> 00:06:59,440 Speaker 1: was lung cancer. It started in the lung, A cancer 107 00:06:59,440 --> 00:07:02,839 Speaker 1: that starts with their lung cells. Is now dozens of 108 00:07:02,880 --> 00:07:06,000 Speaker 1: different diseases, and it's changing all the time, the way 109 00:07:06,040 --> 00:07:08,480 Speaker 1: we diagnose it, the way we treat it. Same thing 110 00:07:08,520 --> 00:07:11,920 Speaker 1: with breast cancers, many different diseases. Sarcomas are probably over 111 00:07:11,960 --> 00:07:14,880 Speaker 1: a hundred different kinds of diseases. We really need to 112 00:07:14,960 --> 00:07:17,480 Speaker 1: understand it in order to treat it the best way. 113 00:07:17,880 --> 00:07:20,520 Speaker 1: That's why it is important for patients, I think, to 114 00:07:20,600 --> 00:07:24,119 Speaker 1: come to large comprehensive cancer centers such as Moffat Cancer Center, 115 00:07:24,320 --> 00:07:27,640 Speaker 1: because we have specialists that can keep up with all 116 00:07:27,680 --> 00:07:31,600 Speaker 1: of the vast and rapid changes that are happening every day. 117 00:07:31,600 --> 00:07:35,080 Speaker 1: They're new drugs being discovered. For example, I'm very specialized. 118 00:07:35,080 --> 00:07:38,840 Speaker 1: I treat only advanced melanoma cases, and in a sense, 119 00:07:38,840 --> 00:07:42,200 Speaker 1: it doesn't know what's happening in the more advanced examples, 120 00:07:42,240 --> 00:07:44,640 Speaker 1: cancer being one of them, but a whole range of 121 00:07:45,360 --> 00:07:52,080 Speaker 1: disease states where you just literally can't keep track. One 122 00:07:52,160 --> 00:07:56,200 Speaker 1: person couldn't possibly keep track, and you're inevitably going to 123 00:07:56,280 --> 00:08:01,480 Speaker 1: be part of some kind of collective college where that 124 00:08:01,720 --> 00:08:04,920 Speaker 1: has to be both a kind of team but also 125 00:08:04,960 --> 00:08:08,680 Speaker 1: a kind of platform and a kind of structure of information, 126 00:08:09,480 --> 00:08:13,840 Speaker 1: totally different than say thirty years ago. Absolutely correct. It's 127 00:08:13,880 --> 00:08:19,480 Speaker 1: becoming so sub specialized and as specific I am complicated 128 00:08:19,760 --> 00:08:24,200 Speaker 1: that large centers like MafA Cancer Center that have highly 129 00:08:24,240 --> 00:08:27,640 Speaker 1: specialized people. We have a lung cancer medical oncology team 130 00:08:27,640 --> 00:08:30,480 Speaker 1: for example, that only sees lung cancer because they have 131 00:08:30,520 --> 00:08:33,319 Speaker 1: to keep up with all of the rapidly changing literature, 132 00:08:33,360 --> 00:08:36,520 Speaker 1: and lung cancer I only see advanced melanoma, as I said, 133 00:08:36,520 --> 00:08:38,840 Speaker 1: and so we have a different group for each of 134 00:08:38,880 --> 00:08:43,680 Speaker 1: these kinds of cancer. So it's becoming much much more specialized. Increasingly. 135 00:08:43,880 --> 00:08:47,040 Speaker 1: We're also utilizing digital tools, so I think one day 136 00:08:47,040 --> 00:08:49,679 Speaker 1: that will also help to scale things that if we 137 00:08:49,720 --> 00:08:53,360 Speaker 1: can get molecular diagnoses and then we'll get a digital 138 00:08:53,440 --> 00:08:56,760 Speaker 1: answer using AI algorithms and other things to help us 139 00:08:57,040 --> 00:09:17,400 Speaker 1: with these fastly increasingly complicated there beautis to what degree 140 00:09:17,480 --> 00:09:22,960 Speaker 1: is the dramatic acceleration in our understanding of gene editing 141 00:09:23,040 --> 00:09:27,120 Speaker 1: through Christopher. How much is that also giving us a 142 00:09:27,160 --> 00:09:31,760 Speaker 1: whole new set of tools that are enhancing the ability 143 00:09:31,760 --> 00:09:35,880 Speaker 1: of people to an effect focus on fighting their own cancers. Well, 144 00:09:35,920 --> 00:09:40,080 Speaker 1: it's a really interesting and exciting technology. We have twenty 145 00:09:40,080 --> 00:09:43,160 Speaker 1: thousand genes. Each of our cells have about twenty thousand genes. 146 00:09:43,160 --> 00:09:45,440 Speaker 1: Each of those genes and code for a different protein, 147 00:09:45,520 --> 00:09:47,880 Speaker 1: and some of them are expressed, some are and that's 148 00:09:47,880 --> 00:09:51,320 Speaker 1: why our cells are all different. What Crisper allows us 149 00:09:51,400 --> 00:09:55,240 Speaker 1: to do is to cut out any one gene that 150 00:09:55,240 --> 00:09:57,680 Speaker 1: we would like to cut out, and so it allows 151 00:09:57,760 --> 00:10:01,040 Speaker 1: us to really regulate and change the gene. Now, that's 152 00:10:01,120 --> 00:10:03,680 Speaker 1: largely done in the test tube, so we've used that 153 00:10:03,760 --> 00:10:08,480 Speaker 1: mostly in laboratory studies with cell therapy. For examples, we're 154 00:10:08,520 --> 00:10:11,520 Speaker 1: taking out immune cells from a patient and then we 155 00:10:11,600 --> 00:10:15,439 Speaker 1: can change the genes, put car receptors in, for example, 156 00:10:15,480 --> 00:10:18,280 Speaker 1: to help them recognize cancers, and we can also eliminate 157 00:10:18,720 --> 00:10:22,880 Speaker 1: genes that will stop their ability to kill the cancer. 158 00:10:23,200 --> 00:10:25,600 Speaker 1: We can do that with Crisper and then we can 159 00:10:25,760 --> 00:10:28,240 Speaker 1: put those cells back in the body. That's what we're 160 00:10:28,320 --> 00:10:32,040 Speaker 1: largely using CRISPER for now. There was just a very 161 00:10:32,080 --> 00:10:35,680 Speaker 1: recent study where a company claims to have given the 162 00:10:35,800 --> 00:10:40,160 Speaker 1: Crisper agents intravenously and cut out some genes in the 163 00:10:40,200 --> 00:10:43,480 Speaker 1: liver directly. Now that wasn't for a cancer use. It 164 00:10:43,559 --> 00:10:48,040 Speaker 1: was for a metabolic disorder. But that's very interesting and 165 00:10:48,080 --> 00:10:51,360 Speaker 1: exciting use in vivo what we say, But for the 166 00:10:51,360 --> 00:10:54,480 Speaker 1: most part, what we've done and what we're utilizing is 167 00:10:54,640 --> 00:10:57,760 Speaker 1: trying to change these immune cells in the test tube 168 00:10:57,880 --> 00:11:01,800 Speaker 1: in the laboratory and then giving cells back into the body. 169 00:11:02,080 --> 00:11:05,400 Speaker 1: You look at the entire MARPHA system, how many different 170 00:11:06,679 --> 00:11:13,520 Speaker 1: new therapies are being developed in parallel inside Marpha. There 171 00:11:13,520 --> 00:11:17,800 Speaker 1: are dozens of trials, probably over one hundred trials being 172 00:11:17,840 --> 00:11:21,160 Speaker 1: done at any one time at Maphat Cancer Center, and 173 00:11:21,240 --> 00:11:24,319 Speaker 1: we have many many ways that we're trying to address 174 00:11:24,400 --> 00:11:27,920 Speaker 1: cancers because each cancer needs to be addressed specifically, So 175 00:11:28,040 --> 00:11:30,800 Speaker 1: there are dozens of trials for each kind of cancer 176 00:11:31,160 --> 00:11:33,400 Speaker 1: since each one needs to be addressed in a different way, 177 00:11:33,760 --> 00:11:38,000 Speaker 1: and they largely focus on several ways. One is targeted therapy, 178 00:11:38,040 --> 00:11:41,920 Speaker 1: where we personalize and look at the molecular problems with 179 00:11:42,000 --> 00:11:44,920 Speaker 1: the cancer and then give specific drugs, and the other 180 00:11:45,120 --> 00:11:48,240 Speaker 1: is immunotherapy, where we look at the cancer and we 181 00:11:48,679 --> 00:11:52,560 Speaker 1: design therapies to stimulate the body's immune system to kill 182 00:11:52,640 --> 00:11:55,600 Speaker 1: the cancer. So those are the two major therapies that 183 00:11:55,640 --> 00:11:58,160 Speaker 1: are being developed right now. We also have a number 184 00:11:58,200 --> 00:12:00,640 Speaker 1: of studies to try to prevent cancer, because I think 185 00:12:00,760 --> 00:12:04,080 Speaker 1: the prevention of cancer is going to be a huge area, 186 00:12:04,240 --> 00:12:06,880 Speaker 1: probably the most cost effective area that we can do 187 00:12:06,960 --> 00:12:09,480 Speaker 1: to help decrease the deaths from cancer in the future. 188 00:12:10,280 --> 00:12:14,600 Speaker 1: You know, to move from cancer itself to the institution 189 00:12:14,679 --> 00:12:17,600 Speaker 1: you now lead. I'm curious when you were an MD 190 00:12:17,720 --> 00:12:21,800 Speaker 1: Anderson correct one of this is wrong, but I think 191 00:12:21,800 --> 00:12:26,320 Speaker 1: it was the largest cancer treating center in the world. Yeah, 192 00:12:26,320 --> 00:12:30,840 Speaker 1: it's just an enormous facility in Houston. What was the 193 00:12:31,000 --> 00:12:36,120 Speaker 1: unique opportunity in your mind to go to MAFFA. I 194 00:12:36,240 --> 00:12:39,439 Speaker 1: ran medical oncology at MD Innerson Cancer Center, which is 195 00:12:39,440 --> 00:12:42,160 Speaker 1: a wonderful place. I was there for seventeen years and 196 00:12:42,320 --> 00:12:45,240 Speaker 1: it was the largest medical oncology practice in the world. 197 00:12:45,559 --> 00:12:48,480 Speaker 1: What attracting me about moffat and I'd been an advisor 198 00:12:48,559 --> 00:12:51,640 Speaker 1: for MAFFA for eight years and I knew the science 199 00:12:51,760 --> 00:12:56,319 Speaker 1: was incredible. I felt that as the only NCI designated 200 00:12:56,360 --> 00:13:00,280 Speaker 1: comprehensive cancer center in Florida, there is huge potential for 201 00:13:00,600 --> 00:13:04,840 Speaker 1: Moffat to grow into something much larger than it is now, 202 00:13:05,160 --> 00:13:08,640 Speaker 1: and that excited me. It's already a leader in sell 203 00:13:08,720 --> 00:13:11,400 Speaker 1: therapies and we can bring it to the next level 204 00:13:11,720 --> 00:13:14,679 Speaker 1: to help to prevent cure cancers for the future. As 205 00:13:14,679 --> 00:13:16,880 Speaker 1: an advisor for eight years, I just thought the science 206 00:13:16,960 --> 00:13:18,960 Speaker 1: was incredible that was being done there and that we 207 00:13:19,040 --> 00:13:20,920 Speaker 1: wanted to just build it out so that we can 208 00:13:21,000 --> 00:13:25,959 Speaker 1: translate that great science into therapeutics. What's the total footprint 209 00:13:25,960 --> 00:13:30,440 Speaker 1: of Love of People are Urish? You know where it 210 00:13:30,520 --> 00:13:35,120 Speaker 1: is geographically, etc. It's in Tampa, Florida, and there's seventy 211 00:13:35,120 --> 00:13:38,720 Speaker 1: five hundred employees. We treat a total of seventy five 212 00:13:38,760 --> 00:13:43,079 Speaker 1: thousand distinct patients a year there. We also have recently 213 00:13:43,120 --> 00:13:47,800 Speaker 1: purchased seven seventy five additional acres in Pasco County. We're 214 00:13:47,840 --> 00:13:51,320 Speaker 1: gonna build a lot of research and technology there as well. 215 00:13:51,679 --> 00:13:54,920 Speaker 1: So we're very excited about the multiple campuses that are 216 00:13:54,920 --> 00:14:12,720 Speaker 1: growing in the Tampa Bay area. I really wanted to 217 00:14:13,280 --> 00:14:16,240 Speaker 1: have a chance to interview you because many years ago, 218 00:14:16,320 --> 00:14:19,520 Speaker 1: when I stepped down as speaker, a very close friend 219 00:14:19,520 --> 00:14:23,880 Speaker 1: of mine who you know well, Senator Connie mac came 220 00:14:23,920 --> 00:14:26,200 Speaker 1: to me and said, you know, would I be on 221 00:14:26,240 --> 00:14:28,920 Speaker 1: the advisory board and what's what's happening and lend my 222 00:14:29,000 --> 00:14:33,280 Speaker 1: name occasionally to things. And I was just fascinated with 223 00:14:33,360 --> 00:14:36,720 Speaker 1: the energy and the drive and the growth. And Connie 224 00:14:36,800 --> 00:14:40,600 Speaker 1: himself as an astonishing person. His family has a long 225 00:14:40,680 --> 00:14:44,320 Speaker 1: and tragic history with cancer. And when we were balancing 226 00:14:44,360 --> 00:14:48,400 Speaker 1: the federal budget, which required cutting virtually everything, and we 227 00:14:48,480 --> 00:14:51,120 Speaker 1: balanced it for four to three years for the only 228 00:14:51,160 --> 00:14:54,560 Speaker 1: time in your lifetime, but Connie came and said, we 229 00:14:54,640 --> 00:14:57,320 Speaker 1: don't just want to be stupid about this. He literally 230 00:14:57,360 --> 00:15:01,000 Speaker 1: led a fight to double the size of the National 231 00:15:01,000 --> 00:15:04,120 Speaker 1: Instance that help budget while we were balancing the budget 232 00:15:04,120 --> 00:15:07,520 Speaker 1: by cutting almost everything else. And I think it was 233 00:15:07,560 --> 00:15:10,800 Speaker 1: one of the major turning points in terms of the 234 00:15:10,840 --> 00:15:14,960 Speaker 1: sheer volume of research at a time when the knowledge 235 00:15:14,960 --> 00:15:18,680 Speaker 1: that we're acquiring is amazing. And so that relationship between 236 00:15:18,800 --> 00:15:22,320 Speaker 1: NIH and Senator Mac and the Moffitt Center, to me, 237 00:15:22,920 --> 00:15:27,200 Speaker 1: has always been historic, and I've been amazed watching the 238 00:15:27,280 --> 00:15:31,120 Speaker 1: MAHA Center grow is a kind of youthful eagerness of 239 00:15:31,240 --> 00:15:34,520 Speaker 1: people who are really excited by the work they're doing 240 00:15:34,520 --> 00:15:37,160 Speaker 1: and the lives they are saving. And I think that 241 00:15:37,680 --> 00:15:39,720 Speaker 1: your role there is a very key part of that, 242 00:15:39,840 --> 00:15:42,320 Speaker 1: and that's part of why I wanted to do a 243 00:15:42,360 --> 00:15:48,960 Speaker 1: podcast both about what's happening with cancer, but also the 244 00:15:49,040 --> 00:15:55,560 Speaker 1: way this changes institutions because you literally now have so 245 00:15:55,680 --> 00:16:00,000 Speaker 1: much knowledge potentially available that takes a totally different model 246 00:16:00,640 --> 00:16:02,960 Speaker 1: in order to be able to bring it together. One 247 00:16:03,000 --> 00:16:04,440 Speaker 1: of the questions I want to ask you is for 248 00:16:04,520 --> 00:16:07,560 Speaker 1: people who maybe genetically come out of a high risk 249 00:16:07,560 --> 00:16:09,560 Speaker 1: of cancer, you know, what do they need to know 250 00:16:10,120 --> 00:16:13,160 Speaker 1: and what extra steps should they take. I certainly agree 251 00:16:13,160 --> 00:16:16,280 Speaker 1: with you, Senator mac has done an incredible job through 252 00:16:16,320 --> 00:16:18,840 Speaker 1: the years, along with you and others to double that 253 00:16:19,160 --> 00:16:22,880 Speaker 1: budget because everything emanates from science and the fact that 254 00:16:22,880 --> 00:16:25,200 Speaker 1: we're here today with this second year in a row 255 00:16:25,240 --> 00:16:29,200 Speaker 1: of the death rates decreasing, that's extremely exciting. But it's 256 00:16:29,280 --> 00:16:33,360 Speaker 1: all from science and science funding, of which the National 257 00:16:33,400 --> 00:16:36,960 Speaker 1: Cancer Institute is a major source of that funding, and 258 00:16:37,000 --> 00:16:40,800 Speaker 1: that's really led to this revolution of stimulating the body's 259 00:16:40,800 --> 00:16:44,360 Speaker 1: immune system against cancer as well as personalizing the therapies 260 00:16:44,400 --> 00:16:47,240 Speaker 1: to give the right target of therapies against cancer, as 261 00:16:47,280 --> 00:16:50,560 Speaker 1: well as many prevention methods as well that are out there. 262 00:16:50,800 --> 00:16:52,720 Speaker 1: So we have a long way to go still, there's 263 00:16:52,760 --> 00:16:57,280 Speaker 1: some cancers that we still need far greater therapies for 264 00:16:57,440 --> 00:17:01,600 Speaker 1: such as pancreatic cancer and glioblastoma cancer that starts in 265 00:17:01,600 --> 00:17:05,960 Speaker 1: the brain. We really need to improve those therapies by 266 00:17:06,000 --> 00:17:09,119 Speaker 1: a large margin. But I have hope, I really have 267 00:17:09,200 --> 00:17:14,159 Speaker 1: hope that focusing on prevention, focusing on immunotherapy, stimiling the 268 00:17:14,160 --> 00:17:17,400 Speaker 1: body's immune system, and targeted therapies, that we can get 269 00:17:17,440 --> 00:17:20,960 Speaker 1: there for all the cancers. It's my belief that people 270 00:17:21,000 --> 00:17:24,120 Speaker 1: should not naturally die of cancer. That's not a natural 271 00:17:24,200 --> 00:17:26,639 Speaker 1: cause of death. In my opinion, that we need to 272 00:17:27,280 --> 00:17:31,520 Speaker 1: really find therapies for each of these kinds of cancers. Now, 273 00:17:31,560 --> 00:17:34,480 Speaker 1: your question about genetic susceptibility is a really a good one. 274 00:17:34,800 --> 00:17:37,720 Speaker 1: There's a whole field of genetic counseling for people who 275 00:17:37,760 --> 00:17:42,800 Speaker 1: have susceptibilities, and depending on the exact gene that is 276 00:17:42,880 --> 00:17:46,520 Speaker 1: in their lineage, they're molecular tests that can be done 277 00:17:46,560 --> 00:17:49,159 Speaker 1: for that. We call it the germline. That's the DNA 278 00:17:49,280 --> 00:17:52,000 Speaker 1: that we inherit from our mother and our father. That's 279 00:17:52,040 --> 00:17:55,320 Speaker 1: called our germline DNA. And if it's specific genes, there 280 00:17:55,320 --> 00:18:00,879 Speaker 1: are therapeutics, even preventative surgeries. So there's treatments that we 281 00:18:00,920 --> 00:18:03,800 Speaker 1: can give, but also maybe tell people to be extremely 282 00:18:03,800 --> 00:18:06,159 Speaker 1: careful one way or the other with their lifestyle, but 283 00:18:06,280 --> 00:18:11,159 Speaker 1: also preventative therapies. For example, there are some gene types 284 00:18:11,200 --> 00:18:15,280 Speaker 1: where some patients have elected to get their ovaries removed, 285 00:18:15,359 --> 00:18:19,560 Speaker 1: for example if they have a big susceptibility to ovarian cancer, 286 00:18:20,119 --> 00:18:22,480 Speaker 1: and that has been found to be highly effective for 287 00:18:22,520 --> 00:18:26,159 Speaker 1: those specific patients. But that counseling can be done by 288 00:18:26,160 --> 00:18:30,080 Speaker 1: a whole team of geneticists and surgeons. As you learn 289 00:18:30,119 --> 00:18:33,879 Speaker 1: more and more about how to preempt, if you will, 290 00:18:34,400 --> 00:18:37,640 Speaker 1: certain kind of cancers. One of the things I've been 291 00:18:37,640 --> 00:18:41,320 Speaker 1: fascinated with in Joe de Santis at Kinglish three sixty 292 00:18:41,320 --> 00:18:44,639 Speaker 1: has really been working on is the whole notion of 293 00:18:44,880 --> 00:18:50,920 Speaker 1: health span versus lifespan, and looking at how long can 294 00:18:50,960 --> 00:18:54,880 Speaker 1: we keep you healthy, not just keep you alive. Somebody said, 295 00:18:55,200 --> 00:18:57,680 Speaker 1: you know that you can say somebody seventy five, But 296 00:18:57,800 --> 00:19:00,680 Speaker 1: are these seventy five in a nursing home, sent a 297 00:19:00,720 --> 00:19:03,119 Speaker 1: tennis court. I want to see how you think this 298 00:19:03,200 --> 00:19:06,720 Speaker 1: applies if it does to cancer. But part of the 299 00:19:06,720 --> 00:19:09,960 Speaker 1: theory behind a health span focus is that so many 300 00:19:10,720 --> 00:19:15,879 Speaker 1: of our sort of expensive diseases a diabetes would be 301 00:19:15,920 --> 00:19:21,399 Speaker 1: an example, are actually diseases that are side effects of aging. 302 00:19:22,280 --> 00:19:25,399 Speaker 1: And to the degree you could develop a health span 303 00:19:25,560 --> 00:19:30,040 Speaker 1: strategy where people were less likely to age, not that 304 00:19:30,040 --> 00:19:32,720 Speaker 1: they wouldn't in the end die, but that they be 305 00:19:32,760 --> 00:19:35,520 Speaker 1: healthy all the way up to it, you really dramatically 306 00:19:35,640 --> 00:19:39,399 Speaker 1: change the propensity to get serious and to have the 307 00:19:39,520 --> 00:19:43,720 Speaker 1: kind of chronic conditions that are very expensive and very debilitating. 308 00:19:44,160 --> 00:19:47,080 Speaker 1: Would that also apply to some of the cancers that 309 00:19:47,600 --> 00:19:51,800 Speaker 1: if an effect we could sidestep the aging process, we 310 00:19:51,840 --> 00:19:55,880 Speaker 1: would also side step triggering certain kinds of cancers. It's 311 00:19:55,880 --> 00:19:58,320 Speaker 1: a great question, and it's a very early field and 312 00:19:58,440 --> 00:20:01,160 Speaker 1: one that there needs to be much more research being done, 313 00:20:01,480 --> 00:20:05,000 Speaker 1: but it is being studied. It's being studied in organisms 314 00:20:05,040 --> 00:20:08,159 Speaker 1: that have much shorter lifespans, such as in mice, and 315 00:20:08,240 --> 00:20:12,159 Speaker 1: even shorter than that roundworms. It's interesting how related we 316 00:20:12,200 --> 00:20:15,120 Speaker 1: are to all living organisms on this planet, and we've 317 00:20:15,200 --> 00:20:19,200 Speaker 1: learned a lot from studying roundworms. In the literature, we're 318 00:20:19,240 --> 00:20:22,280 Speaker 1: now knowing some of the pathways that are inducing aging, 319 00:20:22,600 --> 00:20:25,960 Speaker 1: and some of the molecular pathways. One of them is 320 00:20:26,480 --> 00:20:31,400 Speaker 1: called the insulin like growth factor pathway, and it's got 321 00:20:31,400 --> 00:20:36,200 Speaker 1: different names in different organisms, but essentially is the insulin 322 00:20:36,280 --> 00:20:39,000 Speaker 1: like growth factor pathway that one I think is a 323 00:20:39,040 --> 00:20:41,520 Speaker 1: predominant one, but there are many other pathways as well, 324 00:20:41,920 --> 00:20:44,000 Speaker 1: and the question is what can we do about it? Well, 325 00:20:44,000 --> 00:20:47,320 Speaker 1: we really haven't perfected crisper to go in there and 326 00:20:47,400 --> 00:20:49,880 Speaker 1: change every cell in our body. Yet we can't go 327 00:20:50,000 --> 00:20:53,879 Speaker 1: do that right now, but there might be lifestyle things 328 00:20:53,880 --> 00:20:56,840 Speaker 1: we can do that will allow us to age slower. 329 00:20:57,240 --> 00:20:59,800 Speaker 1: So you're saying that diabetes may be a function of 330 00:20:59,800 --> 00:21:03,120 Speaker 1: a I'd like to flip that around and say aging 331 00:21:03,200 --> 00:21:06,639 Speaker 1: may be a function of diabetes, because it's very clear 332 00:21:06,680 --> 00:21:11,199 Speaker 1: that people with uncontrolled sugars also age faster and have 333 00:21:11,240 --> 00:21:14,560 Speaker 1: a lot of the diseases of aged people much faster. 334 00:21:14,800 --> 00:21:18,600 Speaker 1: And what high sugars do is also trigger this insulin 335 00:21:18,640 --> 00:21:21,040 Speaker 1: like growth factor, which is found to be one of 336 00:21:21,080 --> 00:21:25,200 Speaker 1: the major pathways of aging in these organisms. And so 337 00:21:25,560 --> 00:21:28,479 Speaker 1: one thing that can be done, and much more research 338 00:21:28,560 --> 00:21:32,080 Speaker 1: needs to be done, but I think controlling one's sugar 339 00:21:32,359 --> 00:21:36,960 Speaker 1: intake and sugar levels will control your insulin like growth 340 00:21:37,040 --> 00:21:41,560 Speaker 1: factor one levels and that may decrease the aging process. 341 00:21:41,800 --> 00:21:44,199 Speaker 1: I say may, because of course we have to do 342 00:21:44,200 --> 00:21:47,000 Speaker 1: a lot more research, but it is something that I 343 00:21:47,200 --> 00:21:50,880 Speaker 1: personally do myself is very careful with my own sugar 344 00:21:50,960 --> 00:21:55,360 Speaker 1: intake and I watch my sugar levels very closely, and 345 00:21:55,480 --> 00:21:58,040 Speaker 1: I have been on a low carbohydrate diet now for 346 00:21:58,880 --> 00:22:02,399 Speaker 1: eight years to try to lower that infant like growth 347 00:22:02,440 --> 00:22:05,359 Speaker 1: factor why in the influent levels, And people can find 348 00:22:05,359 --> 00:22:08,840 Speaker 1: that information on our show page at newtsworld dot com, 349 00:22:08,840 --> 00:22:11,359 Speaker 1: where we will have a link to your Moffat Cancer 350 00:22:11,400 --> 00:22:14,760 Speaker 1: Center website. I really encourage people to go look because 351 00:22:15,280 --> 00:22:17,960 Speaker 1: I think every single year you're going to be posting 352 00:22:18,000 --> 00:22:22,679 Speaker 1: more and more breakthroughs and more and more new therapies. 353 00:22:23,240 --> 00:22:26,399 Speaker 1: And I really appreciate given the kind of schedule you 354 00:22:26,440 --> 00:22:29,439 Speaker 1: have to keep and the scale of your institution, I 355 00:22:29,480 --> 00:22:33,200 Speaker 1: really appreciate you taking the time today to share these 356 00:22:33,240 --> 00:22:35,800 Speaker 1: ideas with us. Well, thank you very much. I'm really 357 00:22:35,800 --> 00:22:42,040 Speaker 1: honored to be on your program today. Thank you to 358 00:22:42,080 --> 00:22:45,520 Speaker 1: my guests, doctor Patrick who You can learn more about 359 00:22:45,640 --> 00:22:49,439 Speaker 1: new medical breakthroughs and curing cancer and the Moffat Cancer 360 00:22:49,520 --> 00:22:54,480 Speaker 1: Center on our show page at newtsworld dot com. Newtsworld 361 00:22:54,880 --> 00:22:59,200 Speaker 1: is produced by Ginglers three sixty and iHeartMedia. Our executive 362 00:22:59,280 --> 00:23:04,119 Speaker 1: producer is Debbie Myers, our producer is Guardzi Sloan, and 363 00:23:04,200 --> 00:23:07,960 Speaker 1: our researcher is Rachel Peterson. The all work for the 364 00:23:08,000 --> 00:23:12,359 Speaker 1: show was created by Steve Penley. Special thanks to the 365 00:23:12,400 --> 00:23:16,280 Speaker 1: team at Gingwish three sixty. If you've been enjoying news World, 366 00:23:16,600 --> 00:23:19,600 Speaker 1: I hope you'll go to Apple Podcasts and both rate 367 00:23:19,640 --> 00:23:22,720 Speaker 1: us with five stars and give us a review so 368 00:23:22,880 --> 00:23:26,920 Speaker 1: others can learn what it's all about. Right now, listeners 369 00:23:26,960 --> 00:23:30,480 Speaker 1: of news World can sign up for my three free 370 00:23:30,480 --> 00:23:35,399 Speaker 1: weekly columns at Gingwish three sixty dot com slash newsletter. 371 00:23:36,040 --> 00:23:38,520 Speaker 1: I'm new Kingrich. This is news World.