2016 Basic Translational Science Investigator
NANETS congratulates Christopher M. Heaphy, PhD of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine as the NANETS 2016 Basic Translational Science Investigator (BTSI) Award recipient. The BTSI is sponsored by the Neuroendocrine Tumor Research Foundation (NETRF) and is made possible by the generous support of the Margie and Robert Peterson Foundation. The BTSI is awarded to a NANETS member in their first five years of faculty appointment and is meant to encourage the pursuit of basic or translational research with a focus on neuroendocrine tumors. The BTSI is a grant award of $100,000 to be distrubuted over the two year grant award cycle. Dr. Heaphy plans to utilize the BTSI award to invest in his translational research to further the understanding of pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor biology.
2016 NANETS Clinical Investigator Scholarship
NANETS congratulates Claudius Conrad, MD, PhD of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center as the 2016 NANETS Clinical Investigator Scholarship recipient. The NCIS award focuses on supporting a clinical project as well as the investigator's potential to make future clinical contributions to the neuroendocrine tumor field. This award is in honor of Edda Gomez-Panzani, MD for her dedication and work on behalf of patients living with neuroendocrine tumors. The 2016 recipient, Dr. Claudius Conrad will continue his focus on the treatment of patients with pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors and neuroendocrine liver metastasis.
FDA approves new diagnostic imaging agent to detect rare neuroendocrine tumors
On June 1, 2016, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted approval to Netspot, the first kit for the preparation of Gallium-68 dotatate positron emission tomography (68Ga-dotatate PET) imaging. Gallium-68 dotatate is a positron-emitting analogue of somatostatin, and the radioactive probe helps locate tumors in patients with somatostatin receptor-positive neuroendocrine tumors.