American Cancer Society VP heads Geisinger’s cancer program
Published: August 26, 2010
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The war on cancer in northeastern Pennsylvania is being reinforced by the arrival of Victor G. Vogel, M.D., M.H.S., as director of cancer services at the Geisinger Health System.
The upbeat and spiritual Dr. Vogel sports “heavyweight” medical credentials. In addition to vast national experience in oncology, he is the former national vice president of research at the American Cancer Society.
Dr. Vogel points out that all facets of medical care for cancer patients are vastly improved compared to what was available only a generation ago. Because of new treatments, 13 million Americans are cancer survivors.
“We have not yet achieved a final victory, but we are winning this war,” says Dr. Vogel. “The front line has moved closer, and the advent of the information age has helped considerably.”
Despite his optimism, Dr. Vogel also delivers some sobering news about cancer for America’s 70 million Boomers. He explains that today’s best research indicates only one-third of modern cancers are caused by environmental activities, such as smoking, pollution and occupational exposures. Therefore, most America’s cancer cases can be traced to genetics, illness or aging.
He says that the most important risk factor for the disease is age, because average life expectancy has jumped from 50 years in 1900 to 70 or 80 years today, oncologists will remain busy.
“Cancer among the Boomers is a certainty,” says Dr. Vogel. The accompanying good news is that diagnosis and treatment within oncology continue to improve. Technologies associated with imaging, screening, testing, and minimally invasive surgery are all rapidly advancing.
The progress with radiation is especially encouraging. In the past, radiation techniques once used deadly cobalt and caused complications such as skin ulcers.
Today, linear accelerators shoot high energy photons at tumors. The energy beams are shaped by a computer to match the shape of the tumor, thereby minimizing damage to nearby tissues.
“A lot of this technology came from our space program,” says Dr. Vogel. “The National Cancer Act signed by President Nixon was also vital, and I believe this was the most important piece of legislation we’ve had in the last 50 years.”
Thanks to cancer research, Dr. Vogel says the horror days of poisonous chemotherapies are now a thing of the past. Some pharmacological treatments now available work like smart bombs and target only cancer cells after molecular genomic labs have profiled a sample of the tumor and prescribed the best drugs.
These targeted medications are less toxic than the drugs of a generation ago and produce manageable side effects. In addition, more than 20 anti-nausea drugs exist, along with injections that encourage white blood cell production to lessen the possibility of infection.
Dr. Vogel, who is a lay minister, has a personal connection to cancer. He lost his mother, grandmother and two aunts to the disease, and three of these deaths occurred when the patient was relatively young.
Despite these tragic losses, Dr. Vogel says, “I still have almost an irrational optimism in the war against cancer.”
In regard to Geisinger’s overall oncology program, Dr. Vogel wants his patients to return home from Geisinger’s primary facility in Danville after initial treatments have been administered there, and then receive follow-up care such as radiation at remote Geisinger centers near their home town.
Comparative effectiveness research and clinical trials for new treatments are also a part of Dr. Vogel’s formula.
“Pennsylvania’s population usually stays here, and the region is therefore great for outcome studies,” say Dr. Vogel.
For the business community, Dr. Vogel explains that the advances now being achieved against cancer are a part of Geisinger’s drive to identify best practices and control costs. He says that American medical care must become smarter and more efficient, and oncology treatments which reduce complications and allow a patient to stay at home are a part of this.
While any comprehensive “cure” for cancer still remains elusive, Dr. Vogel continues with his optimistic, but realistic, analysis of the breakthroughs research has achieved. Immune therapy, although once pictured as a real answer, has proven to be a colossal disappointment.
“We’re still working to understand the power of the immune system,” says Dr. Vogel.
Cancer vaccines have become a reality, and because liver cancer is the globe’s top malignant threat, due to hepatitis, vaccines can achieve a 70 to 80 percent drop in these cancer cases. Cervical cancer is a sexual disease which is transmitted by the HPV virus, which is also being thwarted by vaccines.
Genetic therapy against cancer is an area where great hope is being generated. Dr. Vogel explains that medical science has identified thousands of gene mutations that can cause a pre-disposition to cancer, including breast, colon, and blood cancers such as leukemia.
The goal of the associated research is to create genetically directed therapies. Because the blueprint to create a human being is comprised of 30,000 human genes, and 20,000 of these have an unknown purpose, much work remains to be done.
“When you start changing a person’s DNA proteins, we’re entering a brave new world,” says Dr. Vogel. “Ethical debates are inevitable.”
He also points out that the natural ability to repair cancer-causing DNA damage in a few individuals is astounding, and that this process has been observed in research. This process, which is a part of nature, may be a segment of the final answer and is being carefully studied.
Howard Grant, M.D., executive vice president and chief medical officer with Geisinger, comments that the system has made a commitment to its cancer services by offering leading-edge treatments and technologies. In 2009, the system expanded the Frank M. and Dorothea Henry Cancer Center at Geisinger Wyoming Valley.
“Dr. Vogel now brings additional clinical and research experience to Geisinger,” says Dr. Grant. “I am confident that his compassionate bedside manner, coupled with nationally recognized cancer expertise, will allow him to successfully lead our cancer program and bring new ideas, services and research opportunities to the people of central and northeast Pennsylvania, and beyond.”
Bob Durkin, president of the Northeast Regional Cancer Institute (NRCI), explains that many talented people are serving the oncology needs of the region, and that Geisinger is enhancing its talent level with the addition of Dr. Vogel.
“It’s vital to bring fresh research from the research bench to the bedside,” says Durkin. “When talent and the quality of our provider members grow, all of the members of NRCI benefit.”
