THU AM News: Cancer center leader discusses promising research areas, treatment challenges; UW Health board invests $1M into workforce housing fund

January 25, 2024

— The head of the UW Carbone Cancer Center says advanced imaging, nuclear medicine and immunotherapies are among the most promising areas of cancer research happening in Wisconsin.

Dr. Howard Bailey, director of the Madison-based cancer treatment and research organization, spoke this week during a meeting of the Wisconsin Technology Council’s Investor Networks. He emphasized the progress being made in understanding and developing more effective treatments for the disease, as well as new approaches to prevention.

“What has happened in the last 10 to 15 years, with the discovery of more aspects of immunology, is we are literally curing people now that 10 years ago we did not,” he said Tuesday. “So there’s great growth in that, and how we can apply that to all things.”

UW-Madison researchers at the UW Carbone Cancer Center are studying prostate cancer, multiple myeloma, breast cancer, leukemia, and head and neck cancers, among many other forms of the disease. The center is typically engaged in 20 to 30 different studies at any given time, Bailey said.

But the central challenge of developing treatments is that even within a specific type of cancer, significant variations can make it difficult to treat different patients in the same way, he explained. Two women with a specific form of breast cancer — infiltrating ductal carcinoma, for example — could have different genetic factors and require different treatments.

Still, he said combining the latest imaging techniques with the use of radioisotopes shows great promise, touting the work of nuclear chemists in the field of cancer diagnostics and therapy. These radioactive materials help clinicians identify the precise location and structure of cancer within the body, enabling the targeted destruction of these cells while healthy tissues are spared.

Meanwhile, new breakthroughs in immunology are giving patients’ own immune systems the ability to fight off cancer.

“What has happened in cancer research and care is, diseases will have kind of a sudden big jump,” he said, referring to advances in how they’re understood and treated. “But again as you’d imagine, the catch is there’s hundreds of different cancer types … In some cancers, we’re always making little baby steps. In others, it’s just suddenly a big leap.”

Along with improved treatments, Bailey also touched on his work related to preventing cancer in the first place. He said the UW Cancer Center leads such efforts that include other major institutions such as Mayo Clinic and Johns Hopkins.

“We’re doing some of the first in the world breast cancer prevention vaccines right now, where people are flying in to do some of that with us here, and in other areas,” he said. “Again, we’re not there yet, but that’s some of the things we want to look at.”

Getting innovations like these into the clinic in a timely manner often requires private enterprises, he noted. Bailey added researchers are increasingly interested in getting involved with that process.

“When I first started, oftentimes researchers just wanted to do their thing in the lab — which is wonderful — and that was it,” he said. “But nowadays, the new generation even of very basic researchers, they want to know how are you going to get my knowledge, my creativity to people … How are we changing people’s lives?”

The “vast majority” of the clinical trials at the center are conducted in partnership with pharmaceutical companies and startup businesses, he added.

“That’s the fastest way to make a difference,” he said.

— The UW Health board has moved to invest $1 million into the Dane Workforce Housing Fund, supporting efforts to provide more affordable housing in the Madison area.

This is the second time the health system’s board has invested in the fund, having invested the first $1 million in the Dane Workforce Housing Fund I, which launched in 2020. That first round had raised $11.8 million from 14 investors to build 747 new housing units, exceeding initial goals.

Madison Development Corporation President Lorrie Heinemann says investors in the fund “fill a gap in the financing that could not be filled by another source of capital at a reasonable cost, giving developers a lower interest rate.”

She notes they can then offer some of the new apartments to people making 50% to 80% of the county’s median income, which was $123,400 for a family of four in 2023. Many of UW Health’s employees fall in this range, according to UW Health Manager of Talent Acquisition Chuck Klein.

“People tell us they are surprised by how expensive housing is in Madison, particularly people who are moving from out of state,” Klein said.

The Madison Development Corp. continues to raise money for its second fund, and aims to reach $10 million by February, according to the release.

For more of the most relevant news on COVID-19, reports on groundbreaking health research in Wisconsin, links to top stories and more, sign up today for the free daily Health Care Report from WisPolitics.com and WisBusiness.com.

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— The latest episode of “WisBusiness.com: The Show” features Tommy Stanek, founder and CEO of Graceful Management Systems.

This Madison-based company’s software system helps manage unexpected construction costs, scheduling delays and communication issues with contractors. These are among the top complaints among construction firms, according to Stanek.

“If people haven’t experienced those problems themselves, they definitely know somebody who has,” he said. “And we’re bringing a solution to these problems. A lot of the time, contractors just don’t have the answers to those questions.”

Graceful Management Systems is currently seeking investors as it conducts beta testing starting in April, Stanek said, and is accepting applications from contractors that want to take part in that process.

The business was one of the winners of the 2023 Governor’s Business Plan Contest, and will be featured later this year during the Early Stage Symposium in Madison.

The show also previews upcoming events hosted by the Wisconsin Technology Council, which produces the show.

Watch the full episode and find details on those events here.

— On the heels of yet another two-year UW campus cutting back, the Universities of Wisconsin president says “we haven’t given up on those schools.”

“I think we had to accept what was market reality,” President Jay Rothman told a Milwaukee Press Club – WisPolitics luncheon days after UW-Marinette announced it would end in-person classes after the spring semester. UW-Marinette is the fourth two-year campus to announce major cutbacks, following similar moves at UW-Milwaukee at Washington County and UW-Oshkosh Fond du Lac and the closure of UW-Platteville Richland.

“And the attendance at … those branch campuses has dropped drastically in the last 10 years, far more than any enrollment decline that we saw in any of our universities,” Rothman said. “So we simply have to accept the fact that consumers are not looking at those branch campuses in the way they once might have. And therefore, we need to change our business model. And that’s what we’re doing.”

He said chancellors are looking at all the branch campuses.

“But we are looking at other ways, whether that be adding four-year degree programs at some of those universities, whether that be offering continuing education, opportunities at those branch campus locations, each of them will be a separate case in and of itself,” he said. “One size does not fit all.”

See more from the luncheon at WisPolitics.

— State officials set a new record for the number of professional licenses issued in a year, with a total of 60,696 initial licenses in 2023.

The Department of Safety and Professional Services this week announced that figure is 38% larger than the 44,047 licenses issued in 2022. The average review time for applications is 3.6 calendar days, according to the agency’s release.

“When Governor Evers appointed me to lead this agency 17 months ago, we were talking about DSPS licensing review times in terms of months,” DSPS Secretary Dan Hereth said in a statement. “We went from months to weeks, and now we’re measuring application review times in days.”

See the release.

— The Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. is promoting an upcoming trade venture to Canada with stops planned in Toronto and Winnipeg.

In an email yesterday, WEDC said the trade venture will take place April 7-12. The agency notes Toronto is Canada’s largest metropolitan area and the fourth largest in North America, while Winnipeg is a hub for railways and other transportation.

WEDC says Wisconsin companies will “find a friendly market with many potential buyers” in Canada, especially if their products or services stand out from others being offered there.

The cost for participants is $2,500 for the first participant from a company, and $2,000 for each additional person from that company. Participating businesses will receive a market summary, one-on-one appointments with potential customers and other contacts, hotel accommodations, ground transportation, airfare and some group meals.

— A Swiss company called IWG has announced plans to open 18 workspace centers in Wisconsin, including co-working spaces, private offices and meeting rooms.

With the planned additions, the company would have 30 centers throughout the state, according to yesterday’s release. All of the newly announced spaces are slated to open sometime this year.

IWG Founder and CEO Mark Dixon notes 40% of U.S. workers already work in a hybrid model, with some split between remote and in-office time. More than 90% of the 900 locations the company launched in 2023 are located in suburbs and small towns, the release shows.

The new Wisconsin facilities will be located in Sheboygan, Appleton, Delafield, Green Bay, Hartland, Verona, Middleton, Bellevue, Cedarburg, Greenfield, Brookfield, Madison, Hales Corner, Grand Chute and De Pere. Three will be in Green Bay and two will be in Brookfield.

“With important business hubs across the state, Wisconsin is a fantastic place for us to boost our expansion plans,” Dixon said in a statement. “The need for high-quality flexible workspaces continues to soar as hybrid working becomes the new normal.”

See the release.

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