College News

In the past year, three researchers at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine at OU Health Sciences have earned more than $5 million in grant money to study causes and potential treatments for necrotizing enterocolitis, a deadly intestinal disease that primarily affects infants born prematurely. Because NEC occurs suddenly and progresses rapidly, research is crucial for giving the most fragile babies a chance at life.

Researchers at OU Health Stephenson Cancer Center at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences have embarked on a revolutionary new research study that could improve the detection of a deadly disease — pancreatic cancer — and give patients a chance to live longer, healthier lives.

Results of a global clinical trial published recently in The New England Journal of Medicine show that a new drug significantly improves survival in women with epithelial ovarian cancer, a deadly gynecologic cancer that often becomes resistant to chemotherapy. The lead author of the study is Kathleen Moore, M.D., associate director of clinical research at OU Health Stephenson Cancer Center at OU Health Sciences and a professor of obstetrics and gynecology in the OU College of Medicine.

“Precision medicine,” an emerging approach to health care in which a patient’s genetics, diseased tissue and other factors guide clinicians to personalize treatment strategies, can dramatically improve health outcomes for people with various diseases, notably cancer.

While today’s drugs help the majority of people with breast cancer survive for years, many who are treated eventually develop Type 2 diabetes, often years after treatment ends. A recent journal publication by a researcher at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine at OU Health Sciences sheds light on the link between the two diseases and raises awareness for patients and physicians alike.