Jennifer Beebe-Dimmer, Ph.D., M.P.H., assistant professor of Internal Medicine at Wayne State University School of Medicine and the Karmanos Cancer Institute, received a $664,290 training grant from the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health for research involving the influence of genetic susceptibility on the development of prostate and bladder cancers.

The grant, which includes laboratory training and genetics coursework at Wayne State and the University of Michigan, is designed to provide formal background for Dr. Beebe-Dimmer in cancer genetics research and build on her experience as a cancer epidemiologist. The two studies, for which she is the primary investigator, apply traditional approaches of genetic analysis to novel areas of genetic research. Both are sub-studies of larger projects of the University of Michigan.

The first study is a follow-up to a recent finding by the U-M Prostate Cancer Genetics Project, which investigates genes associated with the inherited forms of prostate cancer. Results from PCGP suggest a region on chromosome 22 is linked to prostate cancer in African-Americans. Dr. Beebe-Dimmer will continue the research by assessing where specifically on the chromosome these prostate cancer-susceptibility genes are located. Additionally, she will work to develop new recruitment strategies to increase the participation of African-Americans with hereditary prostate cancer in clinical studies.

In the second study, Dr. Beebe-Dimmer will investigate the genes suspected of influencing the body’s ability to metabolize and eliminate inorganic arsenic and bladder cancer risk. The research is a sub-study of U-M’s Arsenic and Bladder Cancer Research Study, and will eventually combine data with a similar study conducted in New England. Dr. Beebe-Dimmer will assess the separate and joint effects that genes and arsenic exposure have on the development of bladder cancer.

Because prostate and bladder cancers are suspected to be influenced by genetic susceptibility, Dr. Beebe-Dimmer’s research is of exceeding importance in identifying populations at an increased risk for developing these diseases. In the future, people who have a known genetic predisposition may avoid being diagnosed with these forms of cancer by employing strategies aimed at primary prevention or avoid being diagnosed with more aggressive forms of cancer because of early detection.

Students, staff and visitors to the Wayne State University School of Medicine will no longer be allowed to smoke on any campus grounds starting this summer.

Wayne State University officials have approved a complete no-smoking policy for the School of Medicine campus.

The smoking ban takes effect July 7, 2008. On that date, smoking will no longer be allowed anywhere on the School of Medicine campus, including areas inside and outside of Scott Hall, the Lande Building, the Elliman Building, the Mott Center, and facilities at 101 East Alexandrine, 110 East Warren Ave., 2751 East Jefferson and 2761 East Jefferson.

One of the last refuges for smokers was a designated outdoor area adjacent to Scott Hall. That area will be eliminated and off limits to smokers under the new policy.

Chuck Pokriefka, director of facilities and support services for the School of Medicine, said posters and signs indicating the campus no longer allows smoking will be posted in a number of areas, including those where smokers generally congregated. A poster counting down the days to the policy’s implementation will be located in the lobby of Scott Hall. Employees were notified via email and a notice accompanying paychecks. Students were notified of the policy through email and a posting on the school’s website.

The no-smoking policy was recently approved by the Wayne State University Provost and the university’s general counsel, said Dr. Kertia Black, assistant dean for Student Affairs and chairwoman of the Smoking Ban Committee of the Wayne State University School of Medicine.

Dr. Black said the policy was developed in response to a petition drive conducted last year by the School of Medicine Student Senate to ban smoking on the entire School of Medicine campus.

Joseph Burkett, Student Senate executive president and a proponent of the petition drive, said 1,300 signatures supporting a complete smoking ban were collected.

As medical students, “we learn about the ill effects of smoking every day,” said Burkett, 25, of Dearborn. “It was an inconvenience before, but once the Detroit Medical Center became a non-smoking campus, there were just too many smokers in front of the entrance of the medical school, around the library and at our picnic tables to allow it to continue.”

To enforce the no-smoking policy, a cadet will patrol the campus grounds. The cadet will remind any potential breakers of the policy that they are in a no-smoking area.

Nearly 100 faculty, friends and family members gathered at the Townsend Hotel in Birmingham, Mich., recently to celebrate the establishment of the Morris Goodman, Ph.D., and Selma Goodman Endowed Chair in Molecular Anthropology.

The Chair was established to recognize faculty scholarly achievement and to support interdisciplinary research in phylogenomics, the science of determining the function of a gene based on its evolutionary history, and tracing a species' evolution by combining the information from genes or entire genomes.

The Chair will support the furtherance of research and the advancement of knowledge in the evolution of humans and other mammals, and will be jointly appointed through the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, and the Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics at Wayne State University.

“This Chair is for someone who is willing to do risky transformative research,” said Dr. Goodman. “This person will do adventurous things and do what’s necessary to advance this field.”

Considered a founder in the field of molecular evolution, Dr. Goodman is noted for his research that proved chimpanzees are more closely related to humans than to other apes. Published in 1962, his results caused a commotion in the scientific community. In 1986, he again captured the world’s attention with research showing that gorillas, chimps and humans differ genetically by less than 2 percent, and all may have branched off the evolutionary tree at about the same time. Dr. Goodman’s controversial findings initially rocked evolutionary theory, but have since been corroborated by scientific groups worldwide.

A faculty member at the School of Medicine since 1958, Dr. Goodman is a member of the WSU Academy of Scholars and recipient of the Distinguished Faculty Award. He is a member of both the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Sciences, two of the highest honors that can be accorded an American scientist or engineer.

Dr. Goodman has held positions as professor in both the Departments of Anatomy and Molecular Biology and Genetics, and adjunct professor in the Department of Anthropology. Presently, Dr. Goodman holds a joint appointment between the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, and the Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics.

“With Dr. Goodman, we have an individual who has set the bar high,” said School of Medicine Dean Robert Mentzer Jr., M.D. “He has given greatly to our educational make-up at the School of Medicine.”

John Flack, M.D., M.P.H., F.A.H.A., chair of the Department of Internal Medicine, has announced the appointment of Joseph P. Uberti, M.D., Ph.D., as division chief for Hematology-Oncology in the Department of Medicine at the Wayne State University School of Medicine.

Dr. Flack said Dr. Uberti’s appointment culminates an exhaustive national search.

A professor of Medicine since 2004, Dr. Uberti heads the Adult Bone Marrow Transplant Program and co-directs the Bone Marrow and Stem Cell Transplant Program at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute.

Dr. Uberti attended Wayne State University as an undergraduate, securing a bachelor’s degree in biology and a doctorate in biochemistry. He graduated the Wayne State University School of Medicine in 1983. He served as chief medical resident at Detroit Receiving Hospital from 1986-87. Dr. Uberti completed his fellowship in Hematology-Oncology at Wayne State University/DMC from 1987 to 1989. Since completion of his training he has, at different times, been on the faculty of both Wayne State University and the University of Michigan.

“I have the utmost confidence that Dr. Uberti will do an exemplary job as chief of the Division of Hematology-Oncology,” said Dr. Flack. “He understands the Department of Medicine and the Cancer Center, as well as the crucial interface between these two entities.”

Dr. Flack said that Dr. Uberti, in addition to maintaining a deep loyalty to the School of Medicine, is highly respected both within the Division of Hematology-Oncology as well as throughout the Department of Medicine, the medical center and the medical community. “I have long admired and respected Dr. Uberti for his honesty, integrity and clinical excellence. I feel very fortunate that the combined efforts of the Wayne State University School of Medicine, the Department of Medicine and the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute culminated in landing Dr. Uberti to lead the Division of Hematology, the largest division within the Department of Medicine.”

John Ruckdeschel, M.D., president and CEO of the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute, said, "Joe Uberti will make an outstanding division head. He understands the delivery of high quality care and its constant interface with research and education. He has helped lead one of the premier bone marrow transplant programs in the country and we look forward to his role in the cancer center as chief of the Hematology-Oncology Service."

The Michigan Academy of Family Physicians has named Tsveti Markova, M.D., F.A.A.F.P., Educator of the Year for 2008.

Dr. Markova will formally receive the award at the MAFP Scientific Assembly in Traverse City in July.

“I am very honored and humbled to receive this award. I truly enjoy being a physician, sharing what I know and learning at the same time with students, residents and colleagues,” she said. “I would like to share this award with all: students, who constantly challenge me with their questions; residents, who grow confidently into competent family physicians; colleagues from the department, hospital and university who are my true partners and collaborators. I would like to extend special appreciation to our department Chair, Dr. Maryjean Schenk, for her mentorship, support and leadership."

Dr. Markova has been involved in medical education for more than 12 years, first joining the faculty at the North Oakland Medical Center Residency Program, and then in 2001 as program director of the Wayne State University School of Medicine Family Medicine Residency program. She leads the graduate medical education activities at the department, teaching residents and mentoring residency faculty in areas of instructional techniques and teaching skills, scholarship and curriculum development. She was promoted to associate professor in 2007.

She led the successful establishment of a new WSU-Crittenton Family Medicine residency program in Rochester, achieving a three-year Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education accreditation, the maximum length of accreditation given for a new program. The program is set to open a practice in a new medical office building on the grounds of Crittenton Hospital this summer.

Dr. Markova also serves as interim vice chair for Clinical Operations, championing the Electronic Health Records implementation. She led the Family Medicine Center to the 2005 and 2006 Governor’s Award of Excellence for Improving Care in Ambulatory Care Setting and the 2007 Michigan Peer Review Organization Pillar Award of Excellence in Addressing Health Care Disparities.

She is an active member of various hospital and university committees, including the Dean’s Council for Graduate Medical Education. She has been an active contributor to the Southeast Michigan Center for Medical Education and has served on the Family Practice Executive Committee for five years. Dr. Markova received teaching awards from the School of Medicine in 2003 and 2006, and the Department of Family Medicine and Public Health Sciences in 2002 and 2004.

Helene Lycaki, Ph.D., former Professor of Psychiatry and Assistant Dean for Health Affairs at the School of Medicine was tragically killed in a car accident while attending a conference in Croatia last week.

After earning her master’s degree from the University of Athens, Dr. Lycaki left her native Greece for Wayne State University, where she earned a Ph.D. in clinical psychology and went on to serve as a respected member of the School of Medicine faculty and the Michigan mental health community for more than 30 years.

Dr. Lycaki was a very dedicated faculty member in the Department of Psychiatry. She understood the importance of building and cultivating relationships. As the School’s former Assistant Dean for Health Affairs, Dr. Lycaki played a vital role as School of Medicine liaison for government relations in Lansing and identified networking opportunities that linked outside resources to clinical, research and educational programs within the School of Medicine.

“Many of us benefited from her wisdom and generosity,” said David Rosenberg, M.D., Research Director for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. “We continue to be motivated and inspired by her loyalty to the Department and School of Medicine, her friends and colleagues and her vision for Psychiatry and Psychology.”

A Memorial service to honor of Dr. Lycaki, her professional contributions and her public service will be held on Friday, June 27th at 4:30 pm at Children’s Hospital of Michigan and a religious memorial service will follow on Sunday June 29th at St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Bloomfield Hills, MI.

Memorial Service
Friday, June 27th 4:30 pm
Children’s Hospital of Michigan, Boardrooms ABC
3901 Beaubien Detroit, Michigan 48201

Religious Memorial Service
Sunday June 29th
St George Greek Orthodox Church
43816 Woodward Ave (North of Square Lake Rd) Bloomfield Hills MI 48302
(248) 335-8869

Liturgy will start at 10:00 am and the memorial prayer at 11:00 am. Reserved seats for the memorial service will be on the first rows on the right side of the church. Refreshments will follow after the service at the church’s hall at 11:45.

Plans are being arranged for the establishment of a student fellowship in honor of Dr. Lycaki. A collection of special memories and stories of Dr. Lycaki are being collected for her family.

For further information about contributions to the student fellowship or to the memory book, and RSVP please contact:

Shirley Terlecki at 313-577-1841, sterleck@med.wayne.ed or Pamela Falzarano at 313-745-4649, pfalzara@med.wayne.edu

Ming Liu, Ph.D., a 2003 graduate of the Wayne State University School of Medicine, died at her Greenville, North Carolina, home June 7. She was 37.

In November 2007, Dr. Liu was diagnosed with colon cancer. Family members and friends said she battled the disease “courageously.” She died peacefully at her home, surrounded by her husband, son Jeffrey, 6, and family.

Both Dr. Liu and her husband, Li Yang, Ph.D., graduated from Wayne State University. Dr. Liu graduated in 2003 from the Department of Biochemistry. Dr. Yang graduated in 2002 from the Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics. They transferred to the University of California at Los Angeles after graduation from WSU to perform postdoctoral fellowships, and in September 2007 moved to Greenville, North Carolina, where Dr. Yang became an assistant professor at East Carolina University.

In addition to her husband and son, Dr. Liu is survived by her parents, Dan Liu and Mingyu Ma, of Beijing; sisters, Feng Liu and husband, Qingxiang Cai, of Xuzhou, China, and Yun Liu, of Beijing; nephew, Hua Cai; and her parents-in-law, Guanghuai Yang and Youe Xie, of Huaihua, China.

A memorial service was schedule to take place June 12 at Wilkerson Funeral Home. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society, 930-B Wellness Drive, Greenville, NC 27834

A graduate and a resident alum of the Wayne State University School of Medicine will lead the Michigan State Medical Society for the next two years.

Michael Sandler, M.D., who graduated from the Wayne State University School of Medicine in 1971, was installed as president of the 15,000 member Michigan State Medical Society. Richard E. Smith, M.D., a West Bloomfield obstetrician/gynecologist, was elected president-elect. Dr. Smith, who completed his residency at Wayne State University, will serve a one-year term as president-elect and then will be installed as president of the 15,000-member MSMS in April 2009.

Dr. Sandler, a West Bloomfield diagnostic radiologist, is senior staff in the Department of Diagnostic Radiology at Henry Ford Hospital and serves on the Michigan Radiological Society board of directors.

During his year as MSMS president, he will focus on public health issues, including insurance coverage for the uninsured and the pending physician shortage also will be priorities. To address these and other issues, Dr. Sandler plans to encourage physicians and patients to become involved in the political process.

"If we allow our political foundation to crumble, then the blame goes not on the politicians, but on the owners of the system, including you and me," Dr. Sandler said in his inaugural speech. “The system works only when we participate, stay organized, support our message and elect our candidates."

Dr. Sandler is a member of the MSMS Committee on State Legislation and Regulations, and serves on the state of Michigan's Certificate of Need Commission. He is a past chair of both the MSMS Board of Directors and the Michigan Doctors' Political Action Committee. He also serves on the Michigan Delegation to the American Medical Association and is a member of the AMA's political action committee board.

He has been the president of the American Society of Clinic Radiologists and the Michigan Radiological Society. Dr. Sandler has been awarded fellowship in the American College of Radiology, the Society of Radiologists in Ultrasound and the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine.

Dr. Sandler also serves on the School of Medicine Alumni Board of Governors, and was the 2007-08 chairman of the Alumni Annual Fund.

A past president of the Wayne County Medical Society of Southeast Michigan, Dr. Smith has served the past seven years on the MSMS Board of Directors representing physicians in Wayne County. He serves on the MSMS Foundation Board of Directors, the MSMS Maternal and Perinatal Health Committee and the MSMS Future of Medicine Task Force.

"This is a critical time for physicians in our state," said Dr. Smith, a graduate of Howard University College of Medicine. “It will be through our leadership and collaboration with business, government and other health organizations that we will be able to address future health care delivery problems of our patients and colleagues."

Dr. Smith is the service chief of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Henry Ford Hospital, and director of Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology. He is a past chair of the Henry Ford Medical Group Board of Governors and a past member of the Henry Ford Health System Board of Trustees. He is a member of the American Medical Association, the National Medical Association and the Detroit Medical Society.

In addition, he serves on the Greater Detroit Area Health Council Board of Directors, the Governor's Task Force on Teen Pregnancy Prevention and as a member of the Southeast Michigan March of Dimes Board of Directors.

The MSMS association includes 15,000 medical doctors in Michigan affiliated with the American Medical Association.

Wayne State University School of Medicine saw 247 of its students cross the stage at its annual Commencement Ceremony, held at Detroit’s Fox Theater on June 4. The graduating physicians and researchers will leave Wayne State and enter residencies and programs throughout the state, the nation and the world.

“Today is a day of celebration,” said Robert M. Mentzer Jr., M.D., dean of Wayne State University School of Medicine, during his commencement greeting. “A day to put aside the challenges that confront us professionally and marvel, just for a time, at what you’ve accomplished. It is a joyous occasion, and one of which you should feel justifiably proud. Now, it is your charge to use the tools of your education to continue your quest for knowledge.”

The Keynote Commencement Address was delivered by Unni Karunakara, M.D., Ph.D., and focused on many of the global health issues that face the world today. Dr. Karunakara is board member of Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontiéres in the United States. He has dedicated his career working to improve the treatment and diagnosis of malaria, sleeping sickness, kala azar and chagas disease. He is deputy director of Health at the Earth Institute at Columbia University for the Millennium Villages Project and is an assistant professor in the Heilbrunn Department of Population and Family Health at Columbia’s Mailman School of Public Health.

Also addressing the graduates was WSU President Irvin D. Reid, who will step down later this year. He presided over what will be his final Commencement Ceremony as president.

 

Dean Mentzer ended his address to the students with a warm invitation to the graduates. “Know that your faculty and your dean take pride in your accomplishments and go with you in spirit as you continue your training. And know that your university will always be your home; a place of refuge, a place for dialogue and a place where you can reconnect with your physician family.”

 

For more information about the 2008 Commencement Ceremony, select from the information below:

2008 Commencement Web site

Dean's Commencement Address
View Photo Gallery
Commencement Videos