Fourth-year medical students at the University of Louisville will find out the next step in their professional journey March 15 as they participate in Match Day 2013, the national event that matches graduating medical students to residency programs at academic medical centers, hospitals and other health care providers throughout the United States.

The National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) provides a uniform, impartial process for matching medical school applicants’ preferences for residency positions with residency programs’ preferences for applicants.Following interviews with their choices of residency programs, fourth-year medical students submit those preferences to the NRMP. The residency programs do likewise, submitting their preferences for applicants to the NRMP. A matching algorithm then uses those preferences to place individuals into positions, and all matches throughout the United States are announced at the same time on the same day.

Match Day is a joyous and exciting event for medical students, as each receives an envelope, opens it and finds out where his or her professional journey as a medical doctor will take place after graduation.

Approximately 150 fourth-year students at UofL’s School of Medicine will take part in the program. Match Day 2013 organizers at UofL are students Tama S. The and Andrea "Annie" Nagengast, who will be among the group finding out where they will go for residency training at Match Day 2013.

The event takes place at the Greater Louisville Medical Society Building (also known as the Old Medical School Building), 101 W. Chestnut St.

The complete schedule is as follows:

• 10 a.m.: Doors open; students arrive
• 11:20 a.m.: Announcements
• 11:45 a.m.: Envelopes distributed
• Noon: Open envelopes
• 12:20 p.m.: Door prize drawings
• 12:45 p.m.: The event ends

To see how Match Day works, check out coverage of the 2012 event at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H40dm8ojRVc.

<p align="left">The Kentucky Cancer Program at the University of Louisville, Buckhead Mountain Grill and Rocky’s Italian Grill invite area breast cancer survivors to get their groove on on Tuesday, Oct. 8.</p>
<p align="left"><a href="http://www.kycancerprogram.org/special-events">“Breast Cancer Survivors Greatest Hits 2013”</a> will be Tuesday, Oct. 8, at 5:30 p.m. at Buckhead Mountain Grill, 707 W. Riverside Dr., Jeffersonville, Ind. This annual event held exclusively for breast cancer survivors kicks off the weeklong celebration leading up to the Komen Louisville Race for the Cure^©.</p>
<p align="left">WHAS11 anchor and “Great Day Live” host <a href="http://www.whas11.com/on-tv/bios/65027052.html">Rachel Platt</a> will emcee this celebration of breast cancer survival with a 1970s theme. Participants are invited to wear clothing, hair styles and accessories of the 1970s, and contests for Best Platform Shoes, Grooviest Outfit, Best ’70s Hair and Widest Bell Bottoms will be held. The Kentucky Cancer Program also will honor area programs receiving grants for cancer awareness, treatment, support and research.</p>
<p align="left">For more information, contact Pam Temple-Jennings, cancer control specialist with the Kentucky Cancer Program at UofL, at 502-852-6318.</p>

<p align="left">Benefactors of a fund to support patients at the <a href="http://browncancercenter.org">James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville</a> are sponsoring a sand volleyball event to raise money for the fund.</p>
<p align="left">Earlier this year, Alex and Tommy Gift established the Mary Jane Gift Quality of Life Fund at the cancer center in honor of their late mother to help patients enjoy life while facing a cancer diagnosis. To benefit the fund, the Gifts are sponsoring “Spike It to Cancer,” a sand volleyball event at Baxter Jack’s sand volleyball complex, 427 Baxter Ave, from noon to 6 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 19.</p>
<p align="left">Admission is $20 per person and includes appetizers, snacks and soft drinks. Payment by cash, check or credit card will be accepted at the door.</p>
<p>“All proceeds from this event go to the Mary Jane Gift Quality of Life Fund that pays for extras provided to patients and caregivers, such as theater tickets or a night out on the town,” Michael Neumann, executive director of development, said. “We invite everyone to get a team together, sponsor a team or come watch the fun while they support a worthy cause.”</p>
<p>For additional details, contact Neumann at 502-562-4642.</p>

<p align="left">Physicians have a fundamental responsibility to treat people in need, to educate their patients about health care reforms and to work with their professional organizations to demand health care for everyone, regardless of their ability to pay.</p>
<p align="left">That is the thrust two University of Louisville physicians, Michael Stillman, M.D., and Monalisa Tailor, M.D., put forth in a “Perspective” for the <i>New England Journal of Medicine.</i> Their article, “<a href="http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1312793?query=featured_home">Dead Man Walking</a>,” will be published in an upcoming print issue of the publication and was posted online Oct. 23.</p>
<p align="left">The two <a href="http://www.louisville.edu/medschool/medicine">Department of Medicine</a> faculty tell the story of a man they call “Tommy Davis” who was chronically uninsured despite being employed full-time. Davis spent a year experiencing severe abdominal pain and constipation. Only when the pain was at its most severe did he come to the emergency room for relief.</p>
<p align="left">The diagnosis? Metastatic colon cancer. Davis will die too soon because he was uninsured.</p>
<p align="left">“If we’d found it sooner,” Davis said to the physicians, “it would have made a difference. But now I’m just a dead man walking.”</p>
<p align="left">Stillman and Tailor say this patient’s circumstances are not unique. “For many of our patients, poverty alone limits access to care,” they write. “… a fair number of our patients – the medical ‘have-nots’ – are denied basic services simply because they lack insurance, and our country’s response to this problem has, at times, seemed toothless.”</p>
<p align="left">While the physicians cite elected officials for bearing the brunt of the blame for the “appalling vulnerability of the 22 percent of American adults who currently lack insurance,” they also point to each physician’s responsibility for improving conditions for the un- and under-insured.</p>
<p align="left">“In discussing and grieving over what has happened to Mr. Davis and our many clinic patients (like him) we have considered our own obligations. First, we can honor our fundamental professional duty to help. … the Hippocratic Oath compels us to treat the sick according to our ability and judgment … .</p>
<p align="left">“Second, we can familiarize ourselves with legislative details and educate our patients” so they can receive the fullest possible benefits due them.</p>
<p align="left">“Finally, we can pressure our professional organizations to demand health care for all. … Lack of insurance can be lethal, and we believe our professional community should treat inaccessible coverage as a public health catastrophe and stand behind people who are at risk.</p>
<p align="left">“We find it terribly and tragically inhumane that Mr. Davis and tens of thousands of other citizens of this wealthy country will die this year for lack of insurance.”</p>

The University of Louisville today announced that researcher Dr. Suzanne Ildstad, representing Regenerex LLC, has entered into a license and research collaboration agreement with Novartis to provide access to stem cell technology that has the potential to help transplant patients avoid taking anti-rejection medicine for life and could serve as a platform for treatment of other diseases.

The University of Louisville and Regenerex LLC announced the research collaboration agreement which will significantly enhance the university’s Institute for Cellular Therapeutics’ ability to carry out cutting edge research related to the Facilitating Cell, a novel cell discovered by Ildstad, a professor of surgery and director of the institute at UofL as well as CEO of Regenerex. Underpinning this collaboration is an exclusive global licensing and research collaboration agreement between Regenerex and Novartis.

Ildstad published results in a March 2012 Science Translational Medicine demonstrating the efficacy of this process, known as Facilitating Cell Therapy, or FCRx which is currently undergoing Phase II trials. Five of eight kidney transplant patients were able to stop taking about a dozen pills a day to suppress their immune systems. It was the first study of its kind where the donor and recipient did not have to be biologically related and did not have to be immunologically matched.

In a standard kidney transplant, the donor agrees to donate a kidney. In the approach being studied, the individual is asked to donate part of their immune system as well. The process begins about one month before the kidney transplant, when bone marrow stem cells are collected from the blood of the kidney donor using a process called apheresis. The donor cells are then processed, where they are enriched for developing “facilitating cells” believed to help transplants succeed. During the same time period, the recipient undergoes pre-transplant “conditioning,” which includes radiation and chemotherapy to suppress the bone marrow so the donor’s stem cells have more space to grow in the recipient’s body.

One day after the kidney is transplanted into the recipient, the donor stem cells engraft in the marrow of the recipient and give rise to other specialized blood cells, like immune cells. The goal is to create an environment where two bone marrow systems co-exist and function in one person. Following transplantation, the recipient takes anti-rejection drugs which are decreased over time with the goal to stop a year after the transplant.

In 1998, Ildstad was one of the first recruits to the University of Louisville under the Commonwealth’s Bucks for Brains initiative, advanced by former Gov. Paul Patton. As the Jewish Hospital Distinguished Chair in Transplantation Research, Ildstad brought a team of 25 families from Philadelphia to join the University of Louisville. In the following years the team has continued to examine the facilitating cell (FCRx) platform technology for the treatment of kidney transplant recipients as well as considering its potential for the treatment of red blood cell disorders, inherited metabolic storage disorders of childhood, and autoimmune disorders.

“Being a transplant recipient is not easy. In order to prevent rejection, current transplant recipients must take multiple pills a day for the rest of their lives. These immunosuppressive medications come with serious side effects with prolonged use including high blood pressure, diabetes, infection, heart disease and cancer, as well as direct damaging effects to the organ transplant,” Ildstad said. “This new approach would potentially offer a better quality of life and fewer health risks for transplant recipients.”

“In 1997, the University of Louisville was given a mandate to become a premier metropolitan research university that transforms the lives of the people of Kentucky and beyond,” said Dr. James Ramsey, president of UofL. “Dr. Ildstad was among the first faculty members hired utilizing seed funds from the state to help us attract highly talented researchers through the Bucks for Brains program. Regenerex demonstrates the potential for that vision to be realized bringing new jobs to the city, adding to the revenue from the Tax Increment Financing district and providing funding to UofL in support of our academic mission.”

The collaboration provides for investments in research, as well as milestones and royalty payments from Regenerex to the University of Louisville in connection with commercialization of the FCRx technology. The therapeutic potential for the technology is wide ranging. The collaboration also involves a sponsored research agreement to support a multi-year collaboration between Regenerex, UofL and the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research to pioneer new applications of the technology.

“The ‘holy grail’ of transplantation is immune tolerance, that is making the body recognize a transplanted organ as ‘self’ and not reject it as foreign tissue, but without the need for immunosuppressive drugs with their numerous serious side effects,” said Dr. David L. Dunn, executive vice president for health affairs at UofL. “Dr. Ildstad and her team may well have solved this puzzle.”

Ramsey noted that in addition to the supreme efforts of the research team, it would not have been possible for the work to move forward without the support of the state, the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Defense, Jewish Hospital Foundation, Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation and the National Stem Cell Foundation.

“It is immensely rewarding for our donors to know they helped move potentially life-changing therapies closer to being available for people in need worldwide,” said Paula Grisanti, chair of the National Stem Cell Foundation.

At The Julep Ball each year, a moment comes when the fun and excitement of the party retreat to the wings, allowing the reason the event exists to take center stage. This year, that moment will again come as the James Graham Brown Cancer Center’s Scientist and Physician of the Year are introduced.

Today, the Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville, a proud partner of KentuckyOne Health, announced that Jonathan "Brad" Chaires is Scientist of the Year and Jeffrey "Jeff" Bumpous is Physician of the Year. The two will be honored at the ball on Friday, May 3, at the KFC Yum! Center.

Known as the "Derby Eve Party with a Purpose," The Julep Ball supports the work of the Brown Cancer Center and its researchers and physicians such as Chaires and Bumpous.

"One of the main goals of the Brown Cancer Center is to have on our faculty excellent physicians like Jeff Bumpous and scientists like Brad Chaires," said Donald Miller, M.D., director of the cancer center. "This allows us to provide the most advanced cancer treatment available anywhere in the world. Jeff and Brad are prime representatives of all the scientists and physicians at the Brown Cancer Center who work every day to make life better for cancer patients in our region."

Both Chaires and Bumpous are "Bucks for Brains" faculty at UofL: Chaires is the James Graham Brown Endowed Chair of Biophysics and professor in the Department of Medicine; and Bumpous is the J. Samuel Bumgardner Professor of Otolaryngologic Surgery and chief of the Division of Otolaryngology in the Department of Surgery. Kentucky’s Research Challenge Trust Fund – created in 1997 and commonly known as Bucks for Brains – matches state funds with private donations providing strategic investment in university scholarship and research.

"Kentucky is a beautiful state, a wonderful state, but we still have a major problem with cancer in Kentucky," Miller said. "Supporters of The Julep Ball help us advance the war on cancer and better meet the needs of our patients and their families. We cannot thank our volunteers and supporters enough for what they help make possible."

At The Julep Ball, local and national business leaders, horse industry professionals and celebrities from sports, music, cinema and television again will be on hand. Entertainment will be provided by the World’s Greatest Party Band, the B-52s, and a celebrity emcee for the evening will be CBS Sports Radio broadcaster and former NFL great Tiki Barber. The celebrity red carpet entrance will return, as will dancing until the wee hours of Saturday morning following the B-52s concert. Special moments of The Julep Ball again will come when the scientists, physicians and patients at the forefront of cancer treatment and delivery are honored and saluted for their efforts.

Three-quarters of the available tickets for the full evening’s entertainment are now sold out, but plenty of dance-only tickets are still available. The full evening’s entertainment is $500 per person while dance-only tickets are $150 per person. For further information and to buy tickets, go to The Julep Ball website, julepball.org.

The Julep Ball is sponsored in part by Brown-Forman, Republic National Distribution Company of Kentucky, Power Creative, Kroger, LG&E, Ingrid Design, Raymond E. and Eleanor H. Loyd, Hilliard Lyons, KentuckyOne Health, Tafel Motors, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, Advanced Electrical Systems, Montgomery Chevrolet, AT&T Kentucky, BKD, Republic Bank, Stites & Harbison, Heuser Clinic and Publishers Printing. Media partners are Louisville Magazine, NFocus, the Voice-Tribune, WHAS11 and 102.3 The Max.

About Brad Chaires, Ph.D., Scientist of the Year

Chaires came to UofL in 2004. In his work, he collaborates closely with other Brown Cancer Center faculty members, and it is this type of collaboration that drew him to Louisville from the University of Mississippi Medical Center. "What the Brown Cancer Center and Don Miller have done in creating a strong structural biology program gave me an instant team for collaborative efforts. This collaborative approach is unique among cancer centers throughout the country," he said.

Chaires’ current research focuses on drug discovery at the basic research level, examining new compounds that interact with nucleic acid structures. "We believe there are specific nucleic acid structures that we can target to shut off the production of proteins early in the development of cancer," he said.

Earlier in his tenure at UofL, Chaires and his research team pioneered the use of calorimetry for characterizing the human plasma proteome as a new tool for the rapid diagnosis of disease. Calorimetry is the technique used to measure the heat produced by chemical reactions or physical changes that occur in organisms. Chaires and his team used differential scanning calorimetry, which enables the collection of data from a very small amount of material, to create a visual map of how blood proteins behave when heated, providing clues to specific diseases.

"It turns out that these maps look pretty much the same for people who are healthy," Chaires said. "However, they look different for people with various diseases. In fact, our research showed that diseases leave a distinctive ‘fingerprint’ on the test result," making a simple blood test a possible new way to spot disease more quickly.

Chaires earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of California, Santa Cruz, a Ph.D. in biophysics from the University of Connecticut and was a National Institutes of Health Postdoctoral Fellow at Yale University. He was on the faculty of the University of Mississippi from 1982 to 2004; during that time, he spent a year on sabbatical as a Visiting Professor at the prestigious Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry

Chaires is co-holder of three U.S. patents for technology developed from his research, and even as federal funding for research has diminished over the past decade, he has won competitive grant funding continuously since 1984 from the National Cancer Institute, other National Institutes of Health agencies, the National Science Foundation and a variety of other agencies and foundations. He has published prolifically in scientific and medical journals as the lead or co-author of more than 150 articles.

About Jeff Bumpous, M.D., Physician of the Year

Bumpous has been at UofL since 1994 and leads a multidisciplinary team of health care providers in treating cancers of the head and neck. These include cancers of the mouth, larynx (voice box), pharynx (throat), nasal cavity, sinuses, salivary glands and thyroid gland.

Kentucky has one of the highest rates of head and neck cancer in the United States, making the work of surgeons such as Bumpous crucial. "In Kentucky, we see a high rate of patients with oropharyngeal cancers, and at the Brown Cancer Center, our patients number in the hundreds each year," he said. The oropharynx is the middle section of the pharynx.

As might be expected, the high rate of oropharyngeal cancers is attributed to Kentucky’s higher-than-average rate of smoking, Bumpous said, but, "we also have seen over the past decade an increase in oropharyngeal ragged cancer that is HPV-related." HPV is the human papillomavirus; in January, the American Cancer Society reported that it has passed tobacco as the most common cause of oral cancer in the United States.

To treat cancer, Bumpous said, an inclusive approach is paramount. "I am a big believer in the multidisciplinary approach, and am proud that our clinic was one of the first multidisciplinary clinics at the Brown Cancer Center," he said. Multidisciplinary care involves a complete treatment team of medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, surgeons and other medical professionals along with support staff such as social workers, palliative care providers and other caregivers.

"We put the patient first and the cancer second," Bumpous said. "The entire team develops the plan with the patient, and my fundamental role is to serve the patient through the best evidence-based medicine we can provide."

Bumpous earned his bachelor’s degree from Morehead State University and his medical degree from UofL. He completed his internship and residency in general surgery, otolaryngology and head and neck surgery at Saint Louis University and a post-graduate fellowship in advanced head and neck and cranial base surgery at the University of Pittsburgh. He is board-certified in otolaryngology and is lead or co-author of more than 60 journal articles and scientific book chapters.

NFL great Tiki Barber has been selected as an Official Celebrity Emcee of the 2013 Julep Ball, set for Derby Eve, May 3, at the KFC Yum! Center.

Barber co-hosts the daily national morning show "TBD In The AM" on the CBS Sports Radio network. He spent a decade with the New York Football Giants and holds almost every Giants' rushing record – first in total yards, rushing yards and rushing attempts and second in rushing touchdowns.

"I am thrilled to be part of The Julep Ball and lend my support to the fight against cancer being waged in Kentucky at the James Graham Brown Cancer Center," Barber said. "I am looking forward to a great ‘party with a purpose' as The Julep Ball is known."

Fulfilling that purpose is carried out every day at the Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville. The mission of the cancer center is to generate new knowledge relating to the nature of cancer, and to create new and more effective approaches to prevention, diagnosis and therapy, while delivering medical advances with compassion and respect to cancer patients throughout the state and region.

In addition to participating with The Julep Ball, Barber also is scheduled to attend the Kentucky Oaks Pink Friday on Friday, May 3 and the 139th Kentucky Derby on Saturday, May 4.

At The Julep Ball, Barber will join other local and national business leaders, horse industry professionals and celebrities from sports, music, cinema and television. Entertainment will be provided by the World's Greatest Party Band, the B-52s. The celebrity red carpet entrance will return, as will dancing until the wee hours of Saturday morning following the B-52s concert. Special moments of The Julep Ball again will come when the scientists and patients at the forefront of cancer treatment and delivery are honored and saluted for their efforts.

The event is already more than halfway sold out so party-goers should get their tickets now. The full evening's entertainment is $500 per person while dance-only tickets are $150 per person. For further information and to buy tickets, go to The Julep Ball website, julepball.org.

The Julep Ball is sponsored in part by Brown-Forman, Republic National Distribution Company of Kentucky, Power Creative, Kroger, LG&E, Ingrid Design, Raymond E. and Eleanor H. Loyd, Hilliard Lyons, KentuckyOne Health, Tafel Motors, Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, Advanced Electrical Systems, Montgomery Chevrolet, AT&T Kentucky, BKD, Republic Bank, Stites & Harbison, Heuser Clinic and Publishers Printing. Media partners are Louisville Magazine, NFocus, the Voice-Tribune, WHAS11 and 102.3 The Max.

About Tiki Barber

Barber joins Marshall Faulk and Marcus Allen as the only players in NFL history with at least 10,000 yards rushing and 5,000 yards receiving in a career. He retired ranking third all-time in yards per carry with 4.7 and 10th all-time in total yards from scrimmage with 15,632.

Prior to being drafted by the Giants in 1997, Barber excelled both academically and athletically at the University of Virginia. He graduated in from UVa's McIntire School of Commerce with a concentration in management information systems and was named to the Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society. On the football field, Barber left the Cavaliers as their all-time leading rusher. UVa retired his jersey, No. 21, in 2007.

Barber has been active in media and journalism for most of his professional life. In 1999, he began his broadcasting career working for WFAN radio, which led to stints at WCBS-TV, Sirius Satellite Radio, the YES Network, Fox News, NBC News and Sports and MSNBC. In January 2013, he began his latest media endeavor as co-host of CBS Sports Radio's new national morning show, "TBD In The AM," available on more than 250 stations across the country with in excess of 10 million listeners.

Barber is also an entrepreneur, co-founding Thuzio.com, an e-commerce marketplace that facilitates transactions between local athletes, and other public individuals, with consumers looking to book various experiences.

Active in the community, Barber is a board member of the Fresh Air Fund, the Federal Law Enforcement Foundation, the Advisory Board for the Hospital for Special Surgery and the Board of Managers of the University of Virginia Alumni Association. He also is a member of the Leadership Council for the Robin Hood Foundation.

Barber has long been an advocate for the underserved and is a staunch supporter of literacy campaigns. He released his memoir, "Tiki: My Life in the Game and Beyond," in September 2007. He also has co-authored, with his twin brother, Ronde, three successful children's books and six young-adult novels.

About the James Graham Brown Cancer Center:

The James Graham Brown Cancer Center is a key component of the University of Louisville Health Sciences Center. As part of the region's leading academic, research and teaching health center, the cancer center provides the latest medical advances to patients, often long before they become available in non-teaching settings. The JGBCC is affiliated with the Kentucky Cancer Program and the University of Louisville Hospital. It is the only cancer center in the region to use a unified approach to cancer care, with multidisciplinary teams of physicians working together to guide patients through diagnosis, treatment and recovery. For more information, visit our web site, www.browncancercenter.org.

For decades the University of Louisville and Kosair Charities have partnered to help meet the health care needs of children throughout the state. What may surprise some people is that these efforts go beyond the delivery of care and research of new treatments to include advocacy efforts for children.

For more than five years, Kosair Charities has helped support the UofL Department of Pediatrics' child abuse pediatricians. In recognition of that support and the ongoing commitment to ensure that children are free of abuse and neglect, the child abuse prevention program now will be known as the Kosair Charities Division of Pediatric Forensic Medicine.

"The professionals in this program fight every day to end child abuse and neglect," said Gerard Rabalais, M.D., chair of the UofL Department of Pediatrics. "Through partnerships with community organizations, law enforcement agencies, health care providers, Child Protective Services and the Department of Justice, suspected cases of abuse and/or neglect are aggressively investigated so that the tragedy of child abuse is eliminated from Kentucky."

"More than five years ago, Dr. Rabalais brought forward the idea of a partnership with Kosair Charities to create a program designed to eliminate child abuse and neglect," said Jerry Ward, chairman of the board of Kosair Charities. "With a mission of protecting the health and well-being of children in Kentucky and Southern Indiana, we immediately agreed. The importance of this program cannot be understated and all of us at Kosair Charities are honored that the University of Louisville would recognize our contribution to the cause in such a significant manner."

The Kosair Charities Division of Pediatric Forensic Medicine is the state's only physical abuse and neglect assessment program. The formal consultation service provides medical expertise on the diagnosis, documentation and follow-up of suspected cases of child physical abuse and neglect.

The division director, Melissa Currie, M.D., is nationally recognized for her expertise in the field. She serves on Gov. Steve Beshear's review panel that investigates fatalities and near-fatalities found to be the result of abuse or neglect. Currie was among the first group of pediatricians nationwide to be board-certified in child abuse pediatrics and Kentucky's first board-certified child abuse pediatrician.

"Without understanding the underlying signs that point toward abuse or neglect, there are cases that can go undetected," Currie said. "Our partnership with Kosair Charities allows us to have the resources we need to see that doesn't happen. It is such an honor to be affiliated with a group with such a strong commitment to the well-being of children.

"In addition to their support for our program and many others, Kosair Charities has recently assembled a coalition of community leaders who are working on a multi-faceted, comprehensive effort to address child abuse. Their vision is that by 2023 all children in Kentucky will be free from abuse and neglect. Great things happen when we all work together, and particularly when we have the unwavering support of a Kosair Charities—a fixture in Louisville for 90 years."

"Our combined efforts to fight child abuse and neglect again demonstrate the strength of the alliance between Kosair Charities and the University of Louisville as we work to enhance the health and well-being of children," said David L. Dunn, M.D., Ph.D., UofL executive vice president for health affairs.

One day each year, Cardinal fans can shed their red for a worthy cause.

On Friday, March 1, the Kentucky Cancer Program at the University of Louisville will again sponsor Dress In Blue Day for colon cancer screening awareness.

This year's celebration, dubbed "Blue of L Day," will feature UofL basketball legend Darrell Griffith along with Madeline Abramson, honorary chair of Dress in Blue Day for Kentucky and wife of Lt. Gov. Jerry Abramson. The event will be held at the Kentucky Science Center, 727 W. Main St., from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

A highlight of the day's activities will be Abramson and Griffith's appearance from noon to 1 p.m. They will meet participants and discuss the importance of colon cancer screening.

Participants also will see the "Incredible Colon," a 20-foot long, 10-foot tall, walk-through replica of the human colon that provides images to educate the public about colorectal cancer. The first 200 participants wearing blue who tour the Incredible Colon between noon and 1 p.m. will receive free Dress in Blue t-shirts.

Also on display at the Kentucky Science Center is the Body Worlds Vital exhibit that includes whole-body plastinates, a large arrangement of individual organs, organ and arterial configurations and translucent slices that give a complete picture of how the human body works. The exhibit shows how to best fight, manage and prevent life-threatening diseases – such as cancer, diabetes, and heart ailments – through healthy choices and life style changes.

Early diagnosis and treatment is the goal of Dress in Blue Day, said Dr. Donald Miller, director of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at UofL. "Colon cancer screening can save lives. Most colon cancers can be prevented or cured if detected early," he said.

"I've been screened for colon cancer twice," UofL President James R. Ramsey said, "and I join Dr. Miller in encouraging everyone age 50 and over to schedule a screening appointment – and to go blue for colon cancer on March 1."

The Kentucky Capitol Dome in Frankfort will be lit in blue for colon cancer awareness beginning March 1 through March 10, also. The Kentucky Cancer Program will sponsor a colon cancer display in the Capital Annex Hall March 4-8 for legislators and visitors to learn about the importance of colon cancer screening.

Admission to the event varies with several options for the Body Worlds Vital exhibition available; for details, visit the Kentucky Science Center web site at kysciencecenter.org. The first 100 UofL employees attending the event can receive a $5 discount with their UofL ID.

Two exclusive auction packages guaranteed to appeal to the connoisseur of fine spirits will be offered this year at The Julep Ball, set for Derby Eve, May 3, at the KFC Yum! Center.

Woodford Reserve Distiller's Select bourbon and Jack Daniel's Single Barrel whiskey are each providing a barrel of their product in personalized, individually labeled bottles bearing the winning bidder's name. The winning bidder also receives a personalized barrel head, distillery tour and other exclusive benefits.

"We are excited to offer these two auction packages exclusively to our guests as part of the full evening of entertainment at The Julep Ball. Both are designed for the person who understands and appreciates the nuances of small-batch distilling and wants a unique experience," said Michael Neumann, director of The Julep Ball and major gifts officer at the University of Louisville. The Julep Ball supports the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at UofL.

Woodford Reserve, billed as the Official Bourbon of the Kentucky Derby(R), is offering the "Personal Selection Experience." The package provides 180 one-liter bottles of Woodford Reserve Distiller's Select bourbon in bottles labeled with the winning bidder's name. The winning bidder will consult with Woodford Reserve craftsmen to select his or her own barrels. Also included are a personalized barrel head; one used Woodford Reserve barrel; a private tour of the Woodford Reserve distillery in Versailles, Ky.; lunch for up to six people in the tasting group; and the winning bidder's name engraved on a permanent plaque at the distillery.

Jack Daniel's wants bidders to know, "Your barrel is waiting." This package offers 42 cases or 252 bottles of Jack Daniel's Single Barrel whiskey and personalized medallions, barrel head, nameplate and brick with the winning bidder's name on display in the Single Barrel Society Room at the Jack Daniel's Distillery. The package includes whiskey selection at the distillery in Lynchburg, Tenn., two coach air tickets and two nights' hotel accommodation in Nashville, transportation to and from the distillery and lunch for two at Miss Mary Bobo's in Lynchburg.

Three-quarters of the available tickets for the full evening's entertainment, which includes the opportunity to bid on these exclusive auction packages, are now sold out, but plenty of dance-only tickets are still available. The full evening's entertainment is $500 per person while dance-only tickets are $150 per person. For further information and to buy tickets, go to The Julep Ball website, julepball.org.

At The Julep Ball, party-goers can mingle with local and national business leaders, horse industry professionals and celebrities from sports, music, cinema and television and enjoy entertainment provided by the World's Greatest Party Band, the B-52s. A celebrity emcee for the evening will be CBS Sports Radio broadcaster and former NFL great Tiki Barber. The crowd can watch celebrities make their entrance on the red carpet entrance and dance until the wee hours of Saturday morning following the B-52s concert. Special moments of The Julep Ball again will come when the scientists, physicians and patients at the forefront of cancer treatment and delivery are honored and saluted for their efforts.

The Julep Ball is a 21-and-older event, and the winning bidders and their guests taking part in the small-batch packages' activities must be age 21 or older as well. Woodford Reserve and Jack Daniel's join with The Julep Ball in advocating for responsible drinking.

The Julep Ball is sponsored in part by Brown-Forman, Republic National Distribution Company of Kentucky, Power Creative, Kroger, LG&E, The Event Company, Ingrid Design, Raymond E. and Eleanor H. Loyd, Hilliard Lyons, KentuckyOne Health, Tafel Motors, Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, Advanced Electrical Systems, Montgomery Chevrolet, AT&T Kentucky, BKD, Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Republic Bank, Stites & Harbison, Heuser Clinic and Publishers Printing. Media partners are Louisville Magazine, NFocus, the Voice-Tribune, WHAS11 and 102.3 The Max.

Improving oral health literacy is one goal of a University of Louisville health fair aimed at serving residents of Bullitt, Henry and Shelby Counties who are at-risk for diabetes or have been diagnosed with the disease.

The oral health fair will be held Tuesday, March 19, from 10 a.m.-noon at the UofL School of Dentistry, 501 S. Preston St. University of Louisville dental and nursing school faculty and students will provide oral exams, blood pressure screenings, diabetes risk assessments and oral health education.

Dental care is one of the most unmet health needs in the United States. Oral disease can affect general health, and it can be easy to overlook the implications of poor oral health. Diabetes, for example, can increase the incidence and progression of gum disease; likewise gum disease can affect glucose control in people with diabestes.

UofL is a partner of the Kentuckiana Regional Planning and Development Agency (KIPDA) Diabetes Coalition, which serves residents of Bullitt, Henry and Shelby Counties who are over age 50 and at-risk for Type 2 diabetes.

The tri-county region has been identified as having high incidence of diabetes. The coalition effort is aimed at reducing diabetes-related inequalities in vulnerable populations such as older adults, minorities and low-income residents.

In 2011, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention awarded KIPDA and UofL a five-year grant to help reduce the prevalence of the disease within the three counties.

The University of Louisville's Autism Center at Kosair Charities will kick off a statewide program April 1 to help parents, teachers and caregivers recognize the early signs of autism.

The ongoing campaign, "Learn the Signs. Act Early In Kentucky," steps up outreach efforts during April's National Autism Awareness Month with free, public workshops, webinars and print materials that can be downloaded from a website.

"We want our message to reach anyone and everyone who spends time with children," said Scott Tomchek, co-clinical director for UofL's autism center and Kentucky ambassador for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Act Early program.

Autism is a complex developmental disability that typically appears during the first three years of life and affects a person's ability to communicate and interact with others. Autism is defined by a certain set of behaviors and is what is known as a "spectrum disorder," meaning that it affects individuals differently and to varying degrees.

According to the Autism Society, 1 percent of all children in the United States ages 3-17 have an autism spectrum disorder. It is estimated that 1 of every 88 babies born will develop an autism spectrum disorder, and that up to 1.5 million Americans are currently living with the condition.

The campaign is a partnership that includes the autism center, University of Kentucky Human Development Institute, the Kentucky Department of Education, the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services and autism support groups.

Harold Kleinert, executive director of UK's Human Development Institute, said the statewide push to increase the public's understanding of autism and related disorders can have a big impact.

"Doctors rely, in part, on a parent's observations when it comes to assessing a child's developmental progress," Kleinert said. "So educating the public helps the doctor who, in turn, can find ways to help children who aren't reaching developmental milestones when they should."

To learn more about the campaign or download materials, see louisville.edu/education/kyautismtraining/actearly or contact Rebecca Grau, assistant director of UofL's Autism Center at Kosair Charities, at 502-852-7799.

Sony Music Nashville recording artist and songwriter Angie Johnson will bring her powerful voice and country sounds to Louisville's Derby Eve Party with a Purpose, The Julep Ball, Friday, May 3, at the KFC Yum! Center.

The evening kicks off with a 6:30 p.m. cocktail reception, followed by dinner and a live auction at 8 p.m. Johnson will then open the evening's entertainment at 9 p.m., followed by the World's Greatest Party Band, the B-52s. Dancing to deejay music follows.

The event supports the work of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville.

A Missouri native who performed at the Kentucky Derby in 2012, Johnson has ties to Kentucky, describing herself as "‘Kentuckanese' – my father's from Kentucky and met my mother while stationed in Okinawa, Japan," she said. She's no stranger to active military service herself, having served as an intelligence analyst and Air Force Band vocalist with the U.S. Air Force in Afghanistan. She continues that service today, serving one weekend each month with the Air National Guard.

A YouTube video of Johnson singing Adele's "Rolling in the Deep" during a performance for active-duty troops launched her civilian singing career. Now viewed more than 3 million times, the video was seen by the host of NBC-TV's "The Voice," Carson Daly. He Tweeted Johnson, encouraging her to audition for "The Voice" while she was still stationed in the Middle East.

"When I first read Carson Daly's Tweet inviting me to audition for ‘The Voice,' I instantly felt like there was some huge shift in the cosmos," she said. "There I was, sitting in a tent in Afghanistan, and I was communicating with Carson Daly on the other side of the planet…THE Carson Daly. I couldn't wrap my head around it for days."

Johnson was chosen by then-judge CeeLo Green for his team on "The Voice," and his guidance has proven invaluable, she said. "The most important thing I learned from CeeLo is to know who you are and be confident in that. Another great thing I learned from him is to always keep educating yourself about music. (And) he taught me that you really have to love what you do. The moment you stop loving it, or stop being passionate about it, is the moment your creativity starts to die. I never want to be like that."

Since her stint on "The Voice," Johnson has toured throughout the country and signed with Sony Music Nashville. "I'm working on a recording project. I want to write, write, write until my fingers fall off. I'm performing all over the country, (and) I plan on continuing my service in the Air National Guard as long as I can."

Most tickets for The Julep Ball's full evening of entertainment are now sold out, but some are still available as are plenty of dance-only tickets. The full evening's entertainment is $500 per person while dance-only tickets are $150 per person. For further information and to buy tickets, go to The Julep Ball website, julepball.org.

At The Julep Ball, party-goers can mingle with local and national business leaders, horse industry professionals and celebrities from sports, music, cinema and television while enjoying the entertainment provided by Johnson and the B-52s. A celebrity emcee for the evening will be CBS Sports Radio broadcaster and former NFL great Tiki Barber. The crowd can watch celebrities make their entrance on the red carpet and dance until the wee hours of Saturday morning. Special moments of The Julep Ball again will come when Brown Cancer Center scientists, physicians and patients are honored and saluted for their efforts.

The Julep Ball is sponsored in part by Brown-Forman, Republic National Distribution Company of Kentucky, Power Creative, Kroger, LG&E, The Event Company, Ingrid Design, Raymond E. and Eleanor H. Loyd, Blue Grass Motorsport, Hilliard Lyons, KentuckyOne Health, Tafel Motors, Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, Advanced Electrical Systems, Montgomery Chevrolet, AT&T Kentucky, BKD, Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Republic Bank, Stites & Harbison, Heuser Clinic and Publishers Printing. Media partners are Louisville Magazine, NFocus, the Voice-Tribune, WHAS11 and 102.3 The Max.

Don’t have enough University of Louisville Cardinal NCAA National Championship memorabilia yet? Here’s your chance for more. A basketball signed by the players of the NCAA National Champion Cardinals will be among the items auctioned this Friday at Bluegrass Brewing Company East in St. Matthews, 3929 Shelbyville Rd.

Proceeds will help fund medical mission trips this summer to Kenya and Ecuador by medical students of the University of Louisville School of Medicine. The live and silent auction events get underway at 6 p.m., and first-year medical student Ahmed Farag said a variety of items will be available to bidders. “We’ll auction off tickets for several individual Cardinal football games next season, gift baskets from a number of area vendors, gift cards from companies such as Best Buy and more, and a lot of other items,” Farag said.

“We worked to get as much variety as possible in the auction items so we could appeal to all tastes. “But, speaking as both a current student and UofL alum” – Farag earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in engineering from UofL – “I believe the autographed basketball will be the top draw of the auction.” Funds raised by the auction will help pay for medications and supplies that UofL students will need to treat patients while on mission trips to Kenya and Ecuador in the summer.

Each year, UofL medical students volunteer their time – and pay their own way – to medically underserved nations to provide care under the supervision of a volunteer physician and other professionals. No tax dollars are utilized for these trips; all other expenses associated with the trips are covered by the organizations that sponsor them along with donations and gifts. During the trips, the students will see upwards of 1,000 patients, many of whom travel a great distance to receive the care they provide.

Most of the diseases and conditions they encounter are easily preventable in the United States, but because of poverty and lack of access to medical care, many people in these regions die from diarrhea, malaria, untreated wounds, upper respiratory tract infections and more. In many cases, the care provided by the UofL medical student team is the only health care patients receive, making it crucial for those who receive it. In return, students say they get valuable clinical experience and a new perspective on and compassion for patients. “I know I will have a chance to get first-hand experience in treating conditions there that I won’t see here (in Louisville),” Farag said.

Tickets to the family-friendly event are $5 in advance and $6 at the door. Live music and food and drink specials also will be featured. Auction items and cash donations are still being accepted, Farag said; to donate items, contact Shannon Hallinan at 937-609-4542 or schall05@louisville.edu; to donate cash to the mission trip effort, visit the group’s PayPal link at https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=MPC77Z3SD4DA4.

Grapefruits have long been known for their health benefits, and the subtropical fruit may revolutionize how medical therapies like anti-cancer drugs are delivered to specific tumor cells.

University of Louisville researchers have uncovered how to create nanoparticles using natural lipids derived from grapefruit, and have discovered how to use them as drug delivery vehicles. UofL scientists Huang-Ge Zhang, D.V.M., Ph.D., Qilong Wang, Ph.D., and their team today (May 21, 2013), published their findings in Nature Communications.

“These nanoparticles, which we’ve named grapefruit-derived nanovectors (GNVs), are derived from an edible plant, and we believe they are less toxic for patients, result in less biohazardous waste for the environment, and are much cheaper to produce at large scale than nanoparticles made from synthetic materials,” Zhang said.

The researchers demonstrated that GNVs can transport various therapeutic agents, including anti-cancer drugs, DNA/RNA and proteins such as antibodies. Treatment of animals with GNVs seemed to cause less adverse effects than treatment with drugs encapsulated in synthetic lipids.

“Our GNVs can be modified to target specific cells – we can use them like missiles to carry a variety of therapeutic agents for the purpose of destroying diseased cells,” he said. “Furthermore, we can do this at an affordable price.”

The therapeutic potential of grapefruit derived nanoparticles was further validated through a Phase 1 clinical trial for treatment of colon cancer patients. So far, researchers have observed no toxicity in the patients who orally took the anti-inflammatory agent curcumin encapsulated in grapefruit nanoparticles.

The UofL scientists also plan to test whether this technology can be applied in the treatment of inflammation related autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis.

A Common Sense Approach
Zhang said he began this research by considering how our ancestors selected food to eat.

“The fruits and vegetables we buy from the grocery today were passed down from generation to generation as favorable and nutritious for the human body. On the flip side, outcomes were not favorable for our ancestors who ate poisonous mushrooms, for example,” he said. “It made sense for us to consider eatable plants as a mechanism to create medical nanoparticles as a potential non-toxic therapeutic delivery vehicle.”

In addition to grapefruit, Zhang and his team analyzed the nanoparticles from tomatoes and grapes. Grapefruits were chosen for further exploration because a larger quantity of lipids can be derived from this fruit.

Primping for a date with that special someone on Valentine’s Day usually doesn’t include choosing to go bald.

Yet that is what 13 University of Louisville School of Medicine students will do the day before, on Feb. 13, to show their support for kids with cancer and raise funds for pediatric cancer research.

The students will hold a St. Baldrick’s head-shaving event Thursday, Feb. 13, at noon in the Health Sciences Center Auditorium, located on Preston Street between East Chestnut Street and East Muhammad Ali Boulevard. This is the third year that UofL medical students have hosted a St. Baldrick’s event.

In exchange for donations, the students will have their heads shaved completely or will cut their ponytails to donate hair to make wigs for children who have lost their hair as a result of cancer treatment. The foundation has matched each participant with a child battling cancer to honor at the event.

The students hope to raise at least $10,000 and are currently taking donations for the event on their website, http://www.stbaldricks.org/events/ULSOM2014.

Other giveaways are planned as well. The students are raffling off gift cards and other prizes donated by area merchants. Drawings for each prize will be held at the Feb. 13^th event and winners do not need to be present to win.

Donating items to the raffle are A Reader's Corner, Bardstown Road Bicycle Co., Baxter's 942 Bar and Grill, Belle of Louisville, Bluegrass Burgers, Buffalo Wild Wings, Carrabba's, Day's Espresso & Coffee, Gordon Biersch, Guestroom Records, Hard Rock Café, Highland Cleaners, Jack Fry's, LIFEbar, Molly Malone's-Baxter Avenue, Molly Malone's-Shelbyville Road, Palermo Viejo, Parkside Bikes, Potbelly Sandwich Shop, Salsarita's, Seviche, Sol Azteca's Grill & Cantina, The Sport and Social Club, Tin Roof, Vic's Classic Bikes, Vincenzo's, Wild and Woolly Video and Za's Pizza Pub.

“We are grateful to our raffle sponsors for their support,” said Tony Simms, assistant director for medical student affairs at UofL who is assisting the students in holding the St. Baldrick’s event. “Our students are passionate about the cause and want to make a difference, and with everyone’s help, we will do just that.”

The effort is organized nationally each year by the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, founded by three reinsurance industry executives, Tim Kenny, John Bender and Enda McDonnell, in New York. The first St. Baldrick’s event in a Manhattan pub was timed with St. Patrick’s Day 2000 and generated $104,000 in donations.

Today, St. Baldrick’s is believed to be the largest volunteer fundraiser for childhood cancer research and second only to the federal government in the amount of funding provided to pediatric cancer researchers. Since 2005, St. Baldrick’s donors and volunteers have enabled the foundation to provide more than $127 million to grant recipients.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. –The University of Louisville and Kosair Charities have entered a new partnership, opening general pediatrics and pediatric dentistry practices at the Sam Swope Kosair Charities Centre, where children with disabilities and chronic health conditions and children from the community can get expert care from UofL pediatricians and pediatric dentists.

“In 2011 we opened the UofL Autism Center here on the Kosair Charities campus. Now their clients will have easy access to pediatricians and pediatric dentists practicing in offices designed for children with sensory problems and physical challenges,” said James Ramsey, president of the University of Louisville. “We are so grateful to Kosair Charities for helping us create a medical/dental home that is welcoming to all children—from the toddler whose autism makes dental care a challenge, to the teen who needs a sports physical to play volleyball at a neighborhood school.”

Kosair Charities has donated the rent amount over a five-year period, providing a combined 12,500 square feet of renovated space in the Kosair Charities headquarters building for the two clinics: University of Louisville Department of Pediatrics at Kosair Charities and University of Louisville School of Dentistry at Kosair Charities. The university may opt to renew the lease for two additional five-year terms, bringing the estimated value of this agreement to $3.7 million over 15 years.

“This year Kosair Charities celebrates 90 years of caring for children. Since 1923, the University of Louisville has been a primary partner in meeting the health and wellness needs of Kosair Kids®. This new collaborative project builds on 90 years of working together and positions UofL and Kosair Charities for decades of service to future generations of Kosair Kids®,” said Jerry Ward, chairman of the board for Kosair Charities.

The patient mix for both practices will include children receiving services elsewhere on the Kosair Charities campus, children from surrounding neighborhoods, children whose families participate in the Family Scholar House program and children who are uninsured or under-insured.

The UofL Department of Pediatrics at Kosair Charities office has nine exam rooms, a laboratory and separate sick- and well-child reception areas. Pediatrician Erica Labar, MD, began seeing patients in the Eastern Parkway office on July 1. A second physician will join Labar in 2014. Medical students and pediatric residents will also rotate through the clinic.

“What could be more fitting than to provide a medical/dental home on the grounds of the former Kosair Crippled Children Hospital, where thousands of children were once treated for disabling diseases such as polio and smallpox,” said Gerard Rabalais, MD, MHA, chairman, UofL Department of Pediatrics. “I’m confident that Dr. Labar and her team will continue the tradition of compassion and excellence long associated with this historic location.”

The UofL School of Dentistry at Kosair Charities pediatric office will open in the fall, under the leadership of Ann Greenwell, DMD, MSD. The clinical space will be outfitted with six dental chairs and equipped to meet the special needs of autistic and physically-challenged children.

“We know good oral health is integral to overall health and wellness. Coordination of care is the future of health care in this country, and we are removing many of the logistical barriers for the children of the community,” said John Sauk, DDS, MS, dean of the UofL School of Dentistry.

The dental clinic will provide comprehensive dental care– including routine exams, fillings, treatment for trauma, mouth guards for athletes and orthodontic care.

About Kosair Charities:

Since 1923 Kosair Charities has had one primary mission – helping children in need.Kosair Charities knows that the quality of a child’s tomorrow depends largely on the quality of health, medical treatment, and support a child receives today.That’s why over the years Kosair Charities has given more than $335 million to serve thousands of children and provide them a second chance at life. Kosair Charities is also the largest private benefactor to Kosair Children's Hospital.For more information please visit http://kosair.org or call 502.637.7696.

It seems logical now but it was quite the novel idea back in 1974: Provide funding to bring health care education services, providers and students to rural and other medically underserved areas of the Commonwealth. The program would give people of those areas access to health care they might otherwise not have, while students would receive medical training they might otherwise not receive.

These principles have been the foundation of the Kentucky Area Health Education Centers program since its predecessor program began in 1974. As the program reaches its 40^th anniversary, KY AHEC, as it is known, continues to serve a vital role in all corners of the state.

“AHEC has impacted many lives and will continue to do so for many more years,” said former state AHEC director and now UofL Assistant Vice President for Health Affairs V. Faye Jones, M.D., Ph.D. “The need is there for AHEC. Kentucky communities know AHECs provide vital health education and clinical services.”

UofL Senior Associate Dean for State Initiatives and Outreach Kelli Dunn, M.D., was named KY AHEC director this month. She stresses the role AHEC plays in access to health training and health care delivery across the commonwealth. “In addition to training medical students” Dunn said, “our AHEC sites train a variety of other health care professionals, including nursing and nurse practitioner students as well as emergency medical technicians and others. The AHECs also provide critical educational services and outreach within our communities.”

Program began nationwide in 1971, in Kentucky in 1974

KY AHEC is part of a national AHEC program. Funded by the Kentucky Legislature, along with foundations and other sources, KY AHEC is jointly administered by the University of Louisville and the University of Kentucky.

The national AHEC program began in 1971. Kentucky did not qualify for the initial program, but in 1974, the state formed the Kentucky Area Health Education System (AHES) to support health-student rotations throughout the state.

Severe challenges to the state budget in the late 1970s forced the closure of many AHES centers, however. The uncertainty of the AHES program led UofL and UK to partner on a new federal AHEC grant application, originally awarded in 1985 to the state with funding distributed to the two universities to administer the program.

The funding has continued uninterrupted since that time, providing continuity of community education, training and care through eight AHEC regions in Kentucky. UofL oversees the four AHEC regions in the western half of the state while UK oversees the other four regions in the eastern half.

KY AHEC fulfills triple mission

KY AHEC focuses on three goals. First, its mission is to help train health professions students in underserved health care settings. Second, AHEC partners with communities statewide to provide health care and career education. Third, and perhaps most importantly, AHEC encourages medical, dental, nursing, allied health and other health professions students to practice in underserved areas in Kentucky after graduation.

Judging by the UofL School of Medicine Class of 2013, the program is working: 31 percent of class members said they plan to practice in an underserved area, and 83 percent will volunteer in free clinics for the underserved.

The program also reaches out to the future health professions workforce. In the Purchase Area AHEC alone, for example, almost 2,700 middle and high school students received hands-on health careers programming in their schools. And in the West AHEC region, Outbreak Camp is a week-long program for middle and high school students, taught by area math and science teachers to connect their students to future health careers.

Community education also is a cornerstone of KY AHEC. The Northwest AHEC region provides the GRACE Project, a training program for faith communities to become well-informed lay health workers for their congregations, as well as the Veterans Behavioral/Mental Health for Veterans/Service Members and Families Project to educate civilian health care providers on issues affecting veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. The South Central AHEC provides Child Passenger Safety Technician Training, a 30-hour program from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to train people in the community how to travel safely with everyone properly buckled up.

The economic impact of the UofL AHEC program also shows the program’s impact: Faculty, students and residents in the four AHEC regions served by UofL provided almost $3.48 million in donated health care services last year.

Physicians, patients show program’s effect

Amelia Kiser, M.D., was a member of UofL’s medical class of 1996 who was born and raised in the Glasgow, Ky., area and credits her AHEC rotation as one reason she returned to southern Kentucky to practice. Today, she sees patients and mentors trainees and AHEC students at UofL’s Glasgow/Barren County Family Medicine Residency program

“The AHEC rotations were the best, because if you’re in the city, it’s a completely different atmosphere,” Kiser said. “You don’t approach things in the city the way you do here. I could be in an urban setting; I just choose to be in a rural setting.”

Kiser contends that practicing in an underserved area actually furthers a physician’s career. “Regardless (of where you train), you understand and can solve medical issues, but here, you are friend and counselor also,” she said. “Your job does not stop when you leave here. You run into people at Walmart, at the ball game, at church. And they will pull you aside and say, ‘Dr. Kiser, I just need to ask you one thing… .’ But, I love it, I wouldn’t practice anywhere else.”

Another UofL alumnus, R. Brent Wright, M.D., had his pick of metropolitan locations to establish his medical career. The 1998 School of Medicine graduate was his high school’s valedictorian and a top medical school student at UofL. But, instead of heading toward large hospital environments or bustling cities, he chose Glasgow.

Wright, the current Glasgow/Barren County Family Medicine Residency Director and UofL associate dean for Rural Health Innovation, came to Glasgow as part of the first class of residents there in 1998. He was recruited to stay on as an educator and fell in love with the area.

As a student, Wright’s AHEC rotation was in Munfordville, Ky. “(I was) with the quintessential, colorful, old country doctor,” Wright said. “Every day with that practice was just fun. I saw myself being in a similar community. I knew I’d return to a smaller city to practice medicine.”

Years later, the student has become the professor. Wright’s energy is focused now not only on his patients, but also on his residents and AHEC students. “You see young students come in and how they progress over three years is amazing,” he said. “It’s a great deal of pride for me, because you become so close to the residents and see how much they contribute to these patients.”

Two of those patients are Ray and Joyce Pennington. They drive more than an hour from their home in Summershade, Ky., to the Glasgow clinic. “We’ve been coming here 13 years, and it’s worth the drive to get here,” the elderly Pennington said. “We’re real thankful to have doctors who we know care about us personally. We’re older and need someone to watch out for us. These folks are like a part of our family.”

Continuing the program for all Kentuckians

Kelli Dunn and Faye Jones know that it is people such as the Penningtons that need AHEC to continue for the next 40 years – and beyond. “The funding for KY AHEC connects us with our communities,” Dunn said. “Without the funding, the program, education and activities tailored to these communities simply would not exist.”

“AHEC has served and continues to serve such a vital need,” added Jones. “The communities rely on AHEC for their community health education needs. As a university, we rely on the AHEC to provide the educational experiences for our professional students. It’s so simple and so important to continue the work and grow it.

“Our focus is on the reality that drives us every day: We are here to improve the health care status of Kentucky.”

Patrick J. Murphy Jr., M.D., director of the University of Louisville Home Call Program and professor of geriatrics in the Department of Family and Geriatric Medicine, has been named one of six finalists for a national award recognizing leadership in long-term care.

Murphy has been nominated for the 2014 Medical Director of the Year award, presented by AMDA-Dedicated to Long Term Care. Formerly called the American Medical Directors Association, AMDA is a professional association of medical directors, attending physicians and other professionals practicing in long-term care and provides education, advocacy, information and professional development to promote the delivery of quality long-term care medicine.

The award will be presented Feb. 28 at the AMDA annual meeting in Nashville, Tenn.

Murphy is the only award nominee who is board-certified as a fellow of the American Academy of Family Practice and the only nominee on the faculty of an academic health center. He also has earned certification from AMDA as a medical director.

Murphy founded the UofL Home Care Program, which allows elderly patients to have better accessibility to and coordination of their health care. He also instituted the Palliative Care Committee and the Behavioral Committee at area nursing homes to improve coordination of palliative care, behavioral management and overall quality of care.

As a member of the Greater Louisville Medical Society’s Transitions of Care Committee, Murphy worked with local emergency department physicians to improve the documentation of patient transfers and led an effort to implement a standardized form for nursing home care transfers.

He has instituted changes in medical student and resident training as well to better prepare future physicians in caring for geriatric patients. He regularly brings medical students with him on home care visits to augment their learning. He also began a program at UofL where medical residents follow three nursing home patients for two years and conduct monthly rounds with him.

Murphy practices with University of Louisville Physicians-Geriatrics.

The remaining five nominees for the award are David Barthold, M.D., Bessemer, Ala.; Gregory James, D.O., Oldsmar, Fla.; David LeVine, M.D., St. Petersburg, Fla.; S. Liliana Oakes, M.D., San Antonio; and Neelofer Sohall, M.D., Lancaster, Penn.

See video interviews with the faculty who made it happen here.

A 14-month-old boy in need of life-saving heart surgery is the beneficiary of a collaboration among University of Louisville engineers, physicians and Kosair Children’s Hospital.

Roland Lian Cung Bawi of Owensboro was born with four congenital heart defects and his doctors were looking for greater insights into his condition prior to a Feb. 10 operation.

Dr. Philip Dydynski, chief of radiology at Kosair Children’s Hospital, recently had toured the Rapid Prototyping Center at the University of Louisville’s J.B. Speed School of Engineering and became impressed with the 3D printing capabilities available there.

He asked the center’s operations manager, Tim Gornet, if a 3D model of the child’s heart could be constructed using a template created by images from a CT scan to allow doctors to better plan and prepare for his surgery. No problem, Gornet said.

The result of the Rapid Prototyping Center’s work was a model heart 1.5 times the size of the child’s. It was built in three pieces using a flexible filament and required about 20 machine hours – and only about $600 -- to make, Gornet said.

Once the model was built, Dr. Erle Austin III, cardiothoracic surgeon with University of Louisville Physicians, was able to develop a surgical plan and complete the heart repair with only one operation.

“I found the model to be a game changer in planning to do surgery on a complex congenital heart defect,” he said.

Roland was released from Kosair Children’s Hospital Feb. 14 and returned Feb. 21 for checkups with his doctors. His prognosis is good.

That’s good news for Gornet, whose work at the Rapid Prototyping Center routinely benefits manufacturers and heavy industry. Helping surgeons save a life was new territory for him.

“Knowing we can make somebody’s life better is exciting,” he said.

Most often seen walking the sidelines, University of Louisville Head Football Coach Bobby Petrino will be walking the red carpet instead on May 2.

Petrino and wife Becky will be celebrity guests at The Julep Ball, the premier Derby Eve Party with a Purpose. Held annually on the evening before the Kentucky Derby, The Julep Ball supports the work of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville. The event on May 2 at the KFC Yum! Center kicks off with a 6:30 p.m. cocktail reception, followed by dinner and a live auction at 8 p.m.

An Official Event of the 140^th Kentucky Derby®, The Julep Ball provides a celebrity-studded night to remember with a multi-course seated dinner, a knock-your-socks-off auction, multiple open specialty bars, complimentary valet parking, and dancing until the wee hours of Derby morning. Tickets to The Julep Ball sell out in advance each year. The full evening’s entertainment is $600 per person, $5,000 for a table of 10, and $100 per person for dance-only tickets. For further information and to buy tickets, go to The Julep Ball website, julepball.org.

About Bobby Petrino

One of the nation's best offensive minds returned home to Louisville in January when UofL Vice President/Director of Athletics Tom Jurich announced Petrino as the Cardinals' football coach. The Cardinals’ head coach from 2003-06, Petrino led UofL to an unprecedented 41-9 record in four seasons on the sidelines and currently boasts an 83-30 record at the collegiate level.

During his time at Louisville, Petrino directed the program to a bowl game each year, but more significantly, guided the school to its first BCS victory – a 24-13 win over Wake Forest in the FedEx Orange Bowl. The 41 wins over that four-year span are the most in school history and featured an average margin of victory of 26.0.

He also showed the ability to develop players, as Petrino had 14 selected in the NFL Draft, including Amobi Okoye, who was the 10th overall selection in 2007 by the Houston Texans. Eric Wood, who was recruited by Petrino, was the 28th selection by the Buffalo Bills in 2009. Michael Bush, a fourth-round pick by the Oakland Raiders, amassed 2,514 rushing yards in three-plus seasons with the Cardinals.

Coupling his success at Louisville and Arkansas, Petrino has led his teams to seven bowl games in nine years, including both Louisville’s and Arkansas’ first BCS bowl games. His programs have achieved four 10-win seasons along with top-10 finishes nationally three times. His 2006 Louisville squad and 2011 Arkansas team concluded with No. 5 rankings in the Associated Press polls.

During Petrino’s time at Louisville, he coached the Bronko Nagurski and Ted Hendricks Award winner Elvis Dumervil, who led the nation in sacks (20) and forced fumbles (10) on his way to earning All-America honors in 2006. During that same season, Bush scored 24 touchdowns and became the school's first 1,000-yard rusher since 1999.

While the head coach of three different programs, Petrino’s offenses have compiled a 100-yard rusher on 99 occasions and a 300-yard passer 66 times over the last 15 seasons.

Prior to returning to Louisville, Petrino spent one season as head coach at Western Kentucky, where he helped WKU finish the regular season with an FBS school record eight wins while closing the season on a four-game winning streak. The team also set a new school record for total offense (5,502 yards) and passing first downs (141) in a season.

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About the James Graham Brown Cancer Center:

The James Graham Brown Cancer Center is a key component of the University of Louisville Health Sciences Center. As part of the region's leading academic, research and teaching health center, the cancer center provides the latest medical advances to patients, often long before they become available in non-teaching settings. The JGBCC is a part of KentuckyOne Health and is affiliated with the Kentucky Cancer Program. It is the only cancer center in the region to use a unified approach to cancer care, with multidisciplinary teams of physicians working together to guide patients through diagnosis, treatment and recovery. For more information, visit our web site, www.browncancercenter.org.

The Julep Ball is sponsored in part by Advanced Cancer Therapeutics, Ashton Advertising, Bob Montgomery Dixie Honda, Boutique Serendipity, The Dahlem Company, Dillards, Enterprise, Headz Salon, Heaven Hill, Hubbuch & Co., InGrid Design, Jaust Consulting Partners, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, KentuckyOne Health, Kroger, Louisville Magazine, Maker’s Mark, Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company, Morgan Stanley, MPI Printing, Nfocus, Old 502 Winery, Power Creative, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, WAKY and WHAS11.

Movie and television actress Josie Davis joins “Voice of the Cards” Sean Moth and WHAS11 morning anchor Brooke Katz in emceeing The Julep Ball.

Katz will interview celebrities as they make their red carpet entrances, while Davis and Moth will keep the evening moving as emcees.

The premier Derby Eve Party with a Purpose, The Julep Ball is held annually on the evening before the Kentucky Derby and supports the work of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville. The event on May 2 at the KFC Yum! Center kicks off with a 6:30 p.m. cocktail reception, followed by dinner and a live auction at 8 p.m.

An Official Event of the 140^th Kentucky Derby®, The Julep Ball provides a celebrity-studded night to remember with a multi-course seated dinner, a knock-your-socks-off auction, multiple open specialty bars, complimentary valet parking, and dancing until the wee hours of Derby morning. Tickets to The Julep Ball sell out early each year. The full evening’s entertainment is $600 per person, $5,000 for a table of 10, and $100 per person for dance-only tickets. For further information and to buy tickets, go to The Julep Ball website, julepball.org.

About Josie Davis

Josie Davis is best remembered as a series regular on the hit television series Charles in Charge opposite Scott Baio, which she began when she was 12 years old. After the show wrapped, Josie transitioned into series regular roles on Beverly Hills 90210 and then the television series Titans with Victoria Principal.

Davis’ feature film credits include a lead role in Nicholas Cage’s directorial debut Sonny, opposite James Franco and Scott Caan. She also starred in Carolina Moon, opposite Claire Forlani and Oliver Hudson, The Perfect Assistant, Seduced by Lies, and The Perfect Student, Blind Injustice, Past Obsessions, and Dirty Teacher, all for Lifetime.

Davis next can be seen in the indie film Mantervention, coming to theatres in Summer 2014, and also in Stealing Roses opposite John Heard and Wizardream opposite Malcolm McDowell.

Her television credits include a recurring role on CSI: NY and guest starring roles on Two and a Half Men, The Mentalist, Chuck, Bones, Rules of Engagement, Navy NCIS, Burn Notice,Breakout Kings and many more. Josie is a lifetime member of The Actors Studio being run by Martin Landau and Mark Rydell. For more information, visit: www.JosieDavis.com.

About Brooke Katz

Brooke Katz came to WHAS11 and Louisville from her hometown of Charleston, S.C. She anchors the 4:30 a.m. edition of Good Morning Kentuckiana as well as the noon newscast. She also does traffic reports for the 5 a.m. and 6 a.m. shows.

Brooke started her career in journalism at Charleston’s WCBD-TV in 2008, working as a reporter and a producer. On the streets, she covered a wide range of stories from hard news to special health and fitness segments. Since coming to Louisville, Brooke has worked as a multimedia journalist, a general assignments reporter and a feature reporter.

In her spare time, Brooke is an exercise enthusiast. She’s been teaching aerobics classes since her senior year in high school. Brooke received her degree in journalism and media studies and a certificate in criminology from Rutgers University in New Jersey.

About Sean Moth

Enjoying his 15th season at the University of Louisville, Moth has been the “Voice of the Cardinals Athletic Department” during that span as the arena and stadium announcer for the football, volleyball and men’s and women’s basketball teams. In addition, he has been the radio voice of the Louisville Cardinals baseball team for the past 12 seasons.

As associate director of creative services, he works with video and social media and has emceed banquets and events at UofL and around the City of Louisville. The teams he works with have carried him on their coattails to 12 bowl games, five Final Fours and two College World Series.

Moth lives in Louisville with his wife of 20 years, Angie and their 16-year-old son Erik who attends Youth Performing Arts School. When Moth “used to have spare time,” as he phrases it, he enjoyed cooking, good music, fly-fishing and photography.

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About the James Graham Brown Cancer Center:

The James Graham Brown Cancer Center is a key component of the University of Louisville Health Sciences Center. As part of the region's leading academic, research and teaching health center, the cancer center provides the latest medical advances to patients, often long before they become available in non-teaching settings. The JGBCC is a part of KentuckyOne Health and is affiliated with the Kentucky Cancer Program. It is the only cancer center in the region to use a unified approach to cancer care, with multidisciplinary teams of physicians working together to guide patients through diagnosis, treatment and recovery. For more information, visit our web site, www.browncancercenter.org.

The Julep Ball is sponsored in part by Advanced Cancer Therapeutics, Ashton Advertising, Bob Montgomery Dixie Honda, Boutique Serendipity, The Dahlem Company, Dillards, Enterprise, Headz Salon, Heaven Hill, Hubbuch & Co., InGrid Design, Jaust Consulting Partners, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, KentuckyOne Health, Kroger, Louisville Magazine, Maker’s Mark, Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company, Morgan Stanley, MPI Printing, Nfocus, Old 502 Winery, Power Creative, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, WAKY and WHAS11.

Gregory Barnes, M.D., Ph.D., is the inaugural permanent director of the University of Louisville Autism Center. Barnes comes to UofL from Vanderbilt University. Barnes also will hold the Spafford Ackerly Chair for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and faculty positions in the departments of Neurology and Pediatrics.

“Dr. Barnes is a national leader in providing care for people who are affected by autism,” said David L. Dunn, M.D., Ph.D., executive vice president for health affairs at UofL. “His emphasis on evidence-based treatment, teamed with his research into potential genetic influences into the development of the disorder, as well as the potential influence in epilepsy, make him a perfect fit for our program.”

In 2008, Barnes was appointed national neurology co-leader for the Autism Treatment Network. In 2012 he was appointed to the external scientific advisory committee for the Preclinical Autism Consortium for Therapeutics (PACT). He also has served as a reviewer for the Autism Speaks special grant program for preclinical translational research and the Autism Speaks translational postdoctoral fellowship grant program.

Barnes, who will hold the academic title of associate professor of neurology and pediatrics, has held academic appointments at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Harvard Medical School, Duke University Medical School, the University of Kentucky College of Medicine and Vanderbilt School of Medicine.

He earned his bachelor of science degree in molecular biology from Vanderbilt University before earning his doctorate in biochemistry from the University of Kentucky. He also earned his medical degree from UK. He served his pediatric residency at St. Louis Children’s Hospital in affiliation with Washington University School of Medicine. He served as a clinical fellow in pediatrics, neurology and epilepsy at Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School. He completed an epilepsy research fellowship from the Duke University Center for the Advanced Study of Epilepsy.

The UofL Autism Center at Kosair Charities, located at 1405 Burnett Ave., offers children, parents and community partners a single source for expert treatment, referral and information. It is a joint effort by the UofL departments of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Pediatrics and the College of Education and Human Development that will eventually incorporate resources from other university programs. The university-based partnership serves as the focus for collaboration with other community-based autism services and advocacy groups.

Some of America’s most popular reality stars will join bright talents from the world of music, television and film at the 2014 Julep Ball.

The premier Derby Eve Party with a Purpose, The Julep Ball is held annually on the evening before the Kentucky Derby and supports the work of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville. The event on May 2 at the KFC Yum! Center kicks off with a 6:30 p.m. cocktail reception, followed by dinner and a live auction at 8 p.m.

An Official Event of the 140^th Kentucky Derby®, The Julep Ball provides a celebrity-studded night to remember with a multi-course seated dinner, a knock-your-socks-off auction, multiple open specialty bars, complimentary valet parking, and dancing until the wee hours of Derby morning. Tickets to The Julep Ball sell out early each year. The full evening’s entertainment is $600 per person, $5,000 for a table of 10, and $100 per person for dance-only tickets. For further information and to buy tickets, go to The Julep Ball website, julepball.org.

This year’s celebrity guests from the world of entertainment include:

DANIELLE GREGORIO: STAR OF 'THE REAL HOUSEWIVES OF ORANGE COUNTY’

Danielle Gregorio is a wife and mother to three beautiful children, residing in Villa Park, Calif. She is the co-owner and principal designer of Danielle Kaye Design Studio, a boutique interior design firm located in Orange County, California. Interior design has always been a passion for Gregorio, so she is now able to re-create her visions in both residential and commercial design projects, living her dream of owning her own business and doing what she loves.  Gregorio also has always had a special talent and vision for planning and hosting the most amazing events. When partnering with Jimmy Choo in May 2012 to support and raise money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society® Man of the Year, the event was such a success that she was asked to host a yearly event. When she accepted this task, she knew it was a perfect fit to become a founding member of Heels2Heal Orange County. Most recently, Gregorio joined the seasoned cast of Bravo’s The Real Housewives of Orange County. Though new to the reality TV world, she was excited to show the world that a full-time mom, businesswoman and philanthropist can have it all.

MARK AND MATTHEW HARRIS: TASTEMAKERS ON ‘STORAGE WARS’

Mark and Matthew Harris are nationally known as starring in A&E’s hit series Storage Wars, where they are the newest bidders on the show viewed by 5 million viewers weekly.  In addition to being radio personalities in Los Angeles hosting their weekly radio show, The Tastemakers, the Harris brothers are regular judges at Miss USA pageants, including Miss California USA, Miss Illinois USA, Miss Nevada USA, Miss New Jersey USA and Miss Maryland USA. The Harris brothers are also known as “The Kings of Swag” as they own and operate the biggest celebrity marketing agency in Hollywood, WOW! CREATIONS, providing celebrity gift bags and hosting celebrity gift lounges around the world from the Cannes Film Festival, Sundance Film Festival, Oscars, Emmys, Grammys and many more events. The Harris brothers are also luxury life style consultants who have a daily blog and can be seen in upcoming Independent feature films playing wealthy investors and are currently shopping their new reality show, The Kings of Swag.

KYM JOHNSON: WINNING ‘DANCING WITH THE STARS’ FANS FROM AUSTRALIA TO THE U.S.

Aussie native Kym Johnson has made the transition from ballroom to judging panel and is currently one of four judges on Dancing with the Stars, Australia. Johnson holds three mirror-ball trophies (two in the United States and one in Australia) and she is the only professional dancer in the world to hold trophies on two different continents. In 2006, she arrived in the United States when she was asked to join the U.S. version of DWTS. Her first partner was talk show host Jerry Springer during season three, where she won the hearts of Americans. Her other partners have included some of the most popular celebrities on the show: David Hasselhoff, Joey Fatone, Jaleel White, Mark Cuban, Penn Jillette, Warren Sapp, Ingo Radamacher and David Arquette.  Johnson has been runner-up twice on the American syndicated DWTS. In November 2009, Johnson won the prestigious mirror-ball trophy with entertainer Donny Osmond, and followed up the win with another first place in 2011 with Pittsburgh Steeler Hines Ward. Johnson has been involved in 13 seasons of DWTS U.S.A.

CARSON KRESSLEY: EMMY WINNER, STYLE MAKER, FAN FAVORITE

Carson Kressley was most recently a “fan-favorite” on ABC’s world-wide hit, Dancing With The Stars and recently headlined as the host of Dancing With The Stars Live in Las Vegas. In 2011, Kressley starred in Carson-Nation, a one-hour reality show that premiered on OWN, The Oprah Winfrey Network. In Carson-Nation, he travelled to small towns throughout the United States, transforming lives one person at a time with his signature heart, humor and style. Previously, Kressley helmed Lifetime's critically acclaimed show How To Look Good Naked and earned a primetime Emmy for his role on Bravo's breakout hit series Queer Eye for the Straight Guy. He was a frequent style contributor on The Oprah Winfrey Show where millions of viewers accessed his expertise, style, and wit. He can also be seen as a style contributor on ABC’s Good Morning America,Live With Kelly and Michael!, The Queen Latifah Show, Bethenny and The Wendy Williams Show. Kressley recently debuted his signature line of women’s sportswear and accessories, "Love, Carson," which is known for its easy, instant, affordable glamour and is available exclusively at ShopHQ.

KEITH ROBINSON: KENTUCKY BRED, OSCAR NOMINATED

Before he made his way to Tinseltown, the Kentucky native set his sights on music and attended the University of Georgia. Shortly after traveling to Los Angeles and upon a chance meeting with a film and television manager, Robinson jump-started his career performing in more than 50 television and film projects and still counting while still pursuing his music career. Robinson is best known for his role as C.C. White in the Academy Award-winning film Dreamgirls, which earned him an Oscar nomination for best song that he performed at the Academy Awards. He can also be seen in such films as Dear John, Fat Albert, 35 & Ticking, This Christmas, CRU (August 2014) and the soon-to-be released James Brown biopic, Get on Up due out Aug. 1. `Robinson also is slated to release brand-new music later this year.

ELIZABETH (LIZZIE) ROVSEK: KENTUCKIAN STAR OF ‘REAL HOUSEWIVES OF ORANGE COUNTY’

Elizabeth (Lizzie) Rovsek is a swimsuit designer and stay-at-home mother of two. Lizzie is the newest Housewife on Bravo's The Real Housewives of Orange County and joined the cast in its ninth season. Elizabeth hails from the Bluegrass state, is a former Miss Kentucky USA, and is now owner and designer of her own swimsuit company, Sun Kitten Swimwear. She’s married to Christian, CEO of Service First Restoration, an emergency service construction company handling properties damaged by flood, fire, mold and more, and they have two children, 3-year-old Preston and 2-year-old Kingston. They live in Orange County, California, and plan on growing their family in 2015.

JON SEDA: CURRENTLY HEATING UP  ‘CHICAGO PD’

His television credits include series regular roles on Kevin Hill and Close to Home and recurring roles in Ghost Whisperer and Oz. Seda also guest starred on Hawaii Five-0, The Closer, Burn Notice, House, M.D, CSI: Miami, NYPD Blue, Las Vegas and Law and Order, among many others. In 2010, Seda was seen in the award-winning HBO World War II miniseries The Pacific, playing the starring role of legendary marine Jon Basilone, and joined the cast of the acclaimed HBO series Treme as a series regular. Seda can currently be seen starring as Detective Antonio Dawson on Chicago PD. The show, created by Emmy Award-winning executive producer Dick Wolf, is a spin-off of Chicago Fire and airs on NBC.

MISS AMERICA 2014 NINA DAVULURI: WORKING FOR SCIENCE, MEDICINE, ENGINEERING, TECHNOLOGY

In 2013, Nina Davuluri became the first contestant of Indian descent to win the Miss America competition. The Syracuse, N.Y., native was educated at the University of Michigan and plans to attend medical school. During her year as Miss America, Davuluri will serve as spokesperson for increasing enrollment in the STEM fields – Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics – working with the U.S. Department of Education. Along with the coveted title of Miss America 2014, the 24-year-old won a $50,000 scholarship provided in part by Joseph Ribkoff Inc. and the Miss America Organization to continue her education. For the talent portion of the competition, Davuluri returned to her roots and performed a Classical Bollywood Fusion dance.

2014 JULEP BALL ENTERTAINMENT

BOB HARDWICK: BRINGING HIS SOUND HOME TO LOUISVILLE

Growing up in a banking family in Louisville, Hardwick started to play the piano and compose at age four with the gift of perfect pitch. He went on to win numerous national talent competitions including the Coca-Cola Talent Contest and was accepted for private study by the University of Louisville School of Music at age 12. After earning a BA in business from Centre College and completing graduate music studies at the University of North Texas (classical and jazz), he studied composition with Hall Overton at the Juilliard School of Music. He also received a DownBeat magazine award scholarship to Berklee College of Music in Boston. "The Bob Hardwick Sound" is now one of the leading dance orchestras in the country, with an average of over 200 engagements per year in the United States, in addition to England, France, Italy, Ireland and Bermuda and the Caribbean. With Bob's dazzling piano artistry, the orchestra's irresistible beat, and a repertoire that delights all ages, Hardwick's music makes every party a success, including Presidential inaugurals, private parties, benefit galas, corporate events, debutante balls and weddings of all sizes. Recently, Hardwick played for his fifth Inaugural Ball and seventh U.S. president by performing at the prestigious Illinois Presidential Inaugural Ball in Washington, D.C., for President Barack Obama.

J.D. SHELBURNE: KENTUCKY NATIVE WITH HITS ‘FARMBOY’ AND ‘GRANDMA & GARTH’

Country artist J.D. Shelburne grew up on a tobacco farm in Taylorsville, Ky., a tiny town southeast of the Ohio River near Louisville. At age 19, he found a guitar after the death of his grandmother and began learning to play and sing on his own. By his sophomore year of college, he had found a few gigs at some local bars in the Louisville and Lexington areas and developed a fan base that eventually landed him on some of the biggest stages in the business, opening for some of the nation's hottest stars. Eventually, Shelburne was adding original songs into the set mix, in addition to producing songs of his own material. Twelve years later he is soaking up country music, touring cities, building a fan base and celebrating a decade of success playing venues all across the southeast trying to get his big break. Today he’s among the most hardworking and relevant country singers in the business, with the hits “Farmboy” and “Grandma & Garth.” They say Nashville doesn’t work that way anymore – that talented musicians with very few connections don’t stand a chance, but J.D. Shelburne proved that Music City’s engine still runs off talent and persistence. Critics find him credible. Fans pack his shows. Venues strive to book him. There are very few new artists recording songs today about whom that can be said.

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About the James Graham Brown Cancer Center:

The James Graham Brown Cancer Center is a key component of the University of Louisville Health Sciences Center. As part of the region's leading academic, research and teaching health center, the cancer center provides the latest medical advances to patients, often long before they become available in non-teaching settings. The JGBCC is a part of KentuckyOne Health and is affiliated with the Kentucky Cancer Program. It is the only cancer center in the region to use a unified approach to cancer care, with multidisciplinary teams of physicians working together to guide patients through diagnosis, treatment and recovery. For more information, visit our web site, www.browncancercenter.org.

The Julep Ball is sponsored in part by Advanced Cancer Therapeutics, Ashton Advertising, Bob Montgomery Dixie Honda, Boutique Serendipity, The Dahlem Company, Dillards, Enterprise, Headz Salon, Heaven Hill, Hubbuch & Co., InGrid Design, Jaust Consulting Partners, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, KentuckyOne Health, Kroger, Louisville Magazine, Maker’s Mark, Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company, Morgan Stanley, MPI Printing, Nfocus, Old 502 Winery, Power Creative, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, WAKY and WHAS11.

Four of the NFL’s finest will join University of Louisville Head Football Coach Bobby Petrinoon the red carpet at The Julep Ball.

The premier Derby Eve Party with a Purpose, The Julep Ball is held annually on the evening before the Kentucky Derby and supports the work of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville. The event on May 2 at the KFC Yum! Center kicks off with a 6:30 p.m. cocktail reception, followed by dinner and a live auction at 8 p.m.

An Official Event of the 140^th Kentucky Derby®, The Julep Ball provides a celebrity-studded night to remember with a multi-course seated dinner, a knock-your-socks-off auction, multiple open specialty bars, complimentary valet parking, and dancing until the wee hours of Derby morning. Tickets to The Julep Ball sell out early each year. The full evening’s entertainment is $600 per person, $5,000 for a table of 10, and $100 per person for dance-only tickets. For further information and to buy tickets, go to The Julep Ball website, julepball.org.

Two former UofL Cardinals now in the NFL – Eric Wood and Joe Johnson – will join EJ Manuel and Kyle Rudolph at The Julep Ball:

Joe Johnson

Joe Johnson attended the University of Louisville for four years where he was a full time starter for three years and was honored as a first team “All American” in his last year as a Cardinal.  He chose to forgo his senior year in college and was drafted 13^th overall in the 1994 NFL draft by the New Orleans Saints. Joe received a number of honors during his 10-year NFL career, including: Pro Bowl (1998 and 2000), All Madden Team (1998 and 2000), Comeback Player of the Year (2000) and All Rookie Team (1994). He was named to the New Orleans Saints Hall Of Fame in 2007.

EJ Manuel

EJ Manuel is the starting quarterback for the Buffalo Bills. He was the 16^th overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft out of Florida State University, where he led the Seminoles to their first 12-win season since the 1990’s.  He was named the MVP of the Gator Bowl in 2009 and the MVP of the Senior Bowl in 2013. Off the field, EJ is National Ambassador for Camp Kesem, an organization dedicated to helping children whose parents suffer from cancer and is an advocate for Breast Cancer Awareness and Research in honor of his mother who is a breast cancer survivor

Kyle Rudolph

Kyle Rudolph is a tight end in his fourth season with the Minnesota Vikings. A graduate of Notre Dame and the first tight end to start every game as a freshman, Kyle was the first tight end drafted in the 2011 rookie class. After his breakout year in 2012, earning Pro Bowl MVP honors, he is now regarded as one of the league’s best. Kyle joined his teammates in community outreach activities as a rookie, planting trees as part of Planet Purple Week and visiting University of Minnesota Amplatz Children’s Hospital when the Vikings were part of the Adopt-A-Room program.

Eric Wood

Eric Wood is a University of Louisville alumnus who played for Coach Bobby Petrino at UofL and is the starting center and team captain for the Buffalo Bills. He was the team's second pick in the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft (28th overall). As a Cardinal, he earned Freshman All-American honors, All-Big East honors and Academic All-Big East accolades. Eric finished his collegiate career with 49 consecutive starts at center, the second-longest streak in school history behind Travis Leffew. Today, he is one of the five highest-paid centers in the NFL.

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About the James Graham Brown Cancer Center:

The James Graham Brown Cancer Center is a key component of the University of Louisville Health Sciences Center. As part of the region's leading academic, research and teaching health center, the cancer center provides the latest medical advances to patients, often long before they become available in non-teaching settings. The JGBCC is a part of KentuckyOne Health and is affiliated with the Kentucky Cancer Program. It is the only cancer center in the region to use a unified approach to cancer care, with multidisciplinary teams of physicians working together to guide patients through diagnosis, treatment and recovery. For more information, visit our web site, www.browncancercenter.org.

The Julep Ball is sponsored in part by Advanced Cancer Therapeutics, Ashton Advertising, Bob Montgomery Dixie Honda, Boutique Serendipity, The Dahlem Company, Dillards, Enterprise, Headz Salon, Heaven Hill, Hubbuch & Co., InGrid Design, Jaust Consulting Partners, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, KentuckyOne Health, Kroger, Louisville Magazine, Maker’s Mark, Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company, Morgan Stanley, MPI Printing, Nfocus, Old 502 Winery, Power Creative, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, WAKY and WHAS11.

Jeff Walz, head coach of the University of Louisville women’s basketball team, will walk the red carpet at The Julep Ball.

The premier Derby Eve Party with a Purpose, The Julep Ball is held annually on the evening before the Kentucky Derby and supports the work of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville. The event on May 2 at the KFC Yum! Center kicks off with a 6:30 p.m. cocktail reception, followed by dinner and a live auction at 8 p.m.

An Official Event of the 140^th Kentucky Derby®, The Julep Ball provides a celebrity-studded night to remember with a multi-course seated dinner, a knock-your-socks-off auction, multiple open specialty bars, complimentary valet parking, and dancing until the wee hours of Derby morning. Tickets to The Julep Ball sell out early each year. The full evening’s entertainment is $600 per person, $5,000 for a table of 10, and $100 per person for dance-only tickets. For further information and to buy tickets, go to The Julep Ball website, julepball.org.

About Jeff Walz

Considered by many to be the best young coach in women's basketball, Jeff Walz has made a career out of building successful programs. Walz has lived up to that reputation since taking over the helm at Louisville, taking the program to new heights. In his first six seasons, he has guided the Cardinals to two Final Four appearances and National Runner-up finishes in 2009 and 2013 along with four Sweet 16 appearances.

Walz's success can be traced back to recruiting. He is known as a tireless recruiter and has not let up since becoming a head coach. In just his first season, Walz and his staff brought in the highest ranked recruiting class in Cardinal history. He has since followed it up with three consecutive Top 10 classes, with the 2010 class ranked fifth in the nation. The 2011 class made school history with two McDonald's All-Americans.

He was named the sixth head coach at the University Louisville on March 27, 2007. Walz, a Kentucky native, returned to the bluegrass state after serving as an associate head coach at Maryland.

In the 2012-2013 season, Walz led the Cardinals to the biggest upset in women's basketball history by defeating the No. 1 overall seed Baylor in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. The Cardinals went on to defeat the No. 2 seeded Tennessee Lady Vols in the Elite Eight to reach their second Final Four appearance in four years.

Louisville went on to defeat No. 2 seed California in the national semifinal, advancing to the National Championship for the second time in Walz's career as a head coach. Entering the NCAA Tournament the Cardinals were ranked No. 16 but finished the year ranked third with a 29-9 overall record and another miraculous run in the NCAA Tournament.

During the 2012 season Walz had his most talented team in four seasons but lost two of his top three scorers early in the season. Despite the adversity, Walz led the team to a 23-10 record. The Cardinals advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and ended the season with a final ranking of 16th in the nation.

Walz began his coaching career at the middle and high school levels in 1992 and was an AAU coach in 1995-96. During his career, he has guided such players as 1996 National High School Player of the Year Jaime Walz, his sister, who now coaches the girls' high school team at their alma mater, Highlands High School. He also coached 1999 NCAA champion and WNBA standout Ukari Figgs, the University of Tennessee's Kyra Elzy, and Ohio State standout Louisville native, Marita Porter.

He attended Northern Kentucky University on a basketball scholarship, graduating with a bachelor of science in secondary education in May 1995. Walz earned his master's in education in August of 1997 from Western Kentucky.

Walz has three children, daughter Kaeley, son Jacob, and daughter Lola. He married to the former Lauren Lueders and the couple reside in Louisville.

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About the James Graham Brown Cancer Center:

The James Graham Brown Cancer Center is a key component of the University of Louisville Health Sciences Center. As part of the region's leading academic, research and teaching health center, the cancer center provides the latest medical advances to patients, often long before they become available in non-teaching settings. The JGBCC is a part of KentuckyOne Health and is affiliated with the Kentucky Cancer Program. It is the only cancer center in the region to use a unified approach to cancer care, with multidisciplinary teams of physicians working together to guide patients through diagnosis, treatment and recovery. For more information, visit our web site, www.browncancercenter.org.

The Julep Ball is sponsored in part by Advanced Cancer Therapeutics, Ashton Advertising, Bob Montgomery Dixie Honda, Boutique Serendipity, The Dahlem Company, Dillards, Enterprise, Headz Salon, Heaven Hill, Hubbuch & Co., InGrid Design, Jaust Consulting Partners, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, KentuckyOne Health, Kroger, Louisville Magazine, Maker’s Mark, Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company, Morgan Stanley, MPI Printing, Nfocus, Old 502 Winery, Power Creative, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, WAKY and WHAS11.

Two of the hottest acts making names for themselves in country music have just been added to the lineup of performers at The Julep Ball.

The duo Brothers Osborne, who recently dropped their latest single “Rum,”and Hart of Dixie and Anger Management star Laura Bell Bundy, whose country single “Giddy On Up” garnered over 4 million streams, will join J.D. Shelburne and the Bob Hardwick Sound on The Julep Ball stage.

The premier Derby Eve Party with a Purpose, The Julep Ball is held annually on the evening before the Kentucky Derby and supports the work of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville. The event on May 2 at the KFC Yum! Center kicks off with a 6:30 p.m. cocktail reception, followed by dinner and a live auction at 8 p.m.

An Official Event of the 140^th Kentucky Derby®, The Julep Ball provides a celebrity-studded night to remember with a multi-course seated dinner, a knock-your-socks-off auction, multiple open specialty bars, complimentary valet parking, and dancing until the wee hours of Derby morning. A limited number of tickets to The Julep Ball are still available. The full evening’s entertainment is $600 per person, $5,000 for a table of 10, and $100 per person for dance-only tickets. For further information and to buy tickets, go to The Julep Ball website, julepball.org.

About Brothers Osborne:

One of 15 acts chosen by Country Weeklyas “Ones to Watch in 2014,” Brothers Osborne were chosen this month to open for Eric Church in his upcoming tour that includes a stop in Louisville at the KFC Yum! Center on Sept. 25.

The current Rolling Stone(April 24) hails the duo’s current single “Rum”: “There are plenty of drinking songs coming out of Nashville these days, but this twangy party anthem by a rising sibling duo from Maryland takes the genre to a whole new level of catchy fun. Sounds like a hit to us!”

For John and TJ Osborne, getting into music was unavoidable. Growing up in the water town of Deale, Md., their close-knit-family of seven spent most nights not in front of the television, but writing and playing songs.

John (guitar) moved to Nashville first to play in other bands before TJ (vocals/guitar) joined him. It was then they formed Brothers Osborne and began playing as many writer rounds as they could. In April 2011, Warner Chappell/King Pen Music offered them a publishing deal. A year later, Capitol Records offered them a record deal. The Brothers Osborne are currently in the studio finishing their debut album, an album they describe as “aggressive, bold and fragile at times.” For more information, visit www.brothersosborne.com.

About Laura Bell Bundy:

A Kentucky native, Laura Bell Bundy is a performer who has done it all: from appearing on the Broadway stage as Elle Woods in Legally Blonde – a role that garnered her a Tony Award nomination – Glinda in Wicked, and Amber Von Tussle in the original cast of Hairspray, to the launch of her country music career with a captivating performance on the nationally televised Academy of Country Music Awards, to acting in various film and TV roles including Dreamgirls, Jumanji, The Adventures of Huck Finn, MTV’s smash telecast of Legally Blonde, Guiding Light, CBS’s How I Met Your Mother, Malibu Country, Home Improvement and Cold Case. Bundy’s screen success has followed her to the web, where she has attracted a worldwide audience with her hit comedic web series, Cooter County, which she created, produced and directed.

Bundy released her debut country music album, Achin’ and Shakin’, in 2010, featuring her hit single “Giddy On Up,” which has since garnered over 4 million streams and has been certified gold in Norway. Her most recent singles, “Two Step” and “Kentucky Dirty,” push music boundaries and answer the question of what happens when you combine hot country, dance tracks and hip-hop beats.

Bundy currently can be seen on the CW’s hit television program Hart of Dixie and FX’s Anger Management, both of which are aired throughout the world. Her latest song release, “Kentucky Dirty” hit iTunes in November of 2013. The track references the singer’s good ole Kentucky roots. For more information, visit www.laurabellbundy.com.

About the James Graham Brown Cancer Center:

The James Graham Brown Cancer Center is a key component of the University of Louisville Health Sciences Center. As part of the region's leading academic, research and teaching health center, the cancer center provides the latest medical advances to patients, often long before they become available in non-teaching settings. The JGBCC is a part of KentuckyOne Health and is affiliated with the Kentucky Cancer Program. It is the only cancer center in the region to use a unified approach to cancer care, with multidisciplinary teams of physicians working together to guide patients through diagnosis, treatment and recovery. For more information, visit our web site, www.browncancercenter.org.

The Julep Ball is sponsored in part by Advanced Cancer Therapeutics, Ashton Advertising, Bob Montgomery Dixie Honda, Boutique Serendipity, The Dahlem Company, Dillards, Enterprise, Headz Salon, Heaven Hill, Hubbuch & Co., InGrid Design, Jaust Consulting Partners, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, KentuckyOne Health, Kroger, Louisville Magazine, Maker’s Mark, Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company, Morgan Stanley, MPI Printing, Nfocus, Old 502 Winery, Power Creative, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, WAKY and WHAS11.

Five of University of Louisville Head Coach Rick Pitino’s key assistants will walk the red carpet at The Julep Ball.

Mike Balado, Kenny Johnson, Wyking Jones,Kevin Keatts and David Padgett will be among the stars from the sports and entertainment worlds at the May 2 gala.

The premier Derby Eve Party with a Purpose, The Julep Ball is held annually on the evening before the Kentucky Derby and supports the work of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville. The event on May 2 at the KFC Yum! Center kicks off with a 6:30 p.m. cocktail reception, followed by dinner and a live auction at 8 p.m.

An Official Event of the 140^th Kentucky Derby®, The Julep Ball provides a celebrity-studded night to remember with a multi-course seated dinner, a knock-your-socks-off auction, multiple open specialty bars, complimentary valet parking, and dancing until the wee hours of Derby morning. A limited number of tickets to The Julep Ball are still available. The full evening’s entertainment is $600 per person, $5,000 for a table of 10, and $100 per person for dance-only tickets. For further information and to buy tickets, go to The Julep Ball website, julepball.org.

About Balado, Johnson, Jones, Keatts and Padgett:

Mike Balado (pronounced bah-LAW-doe) joined the University of Louisville men's basketball staff as an assistant coach in April 2013 after serving in a similar capacity at Florida International from 2012-13.

Balado helped FIU to quickly achieve success when the 18-14 Panthers produced their first winning season in 13 years, the fourth-highest win total in school history and the most Sun Belt Conference victories (11) since joining the league in 1998-99. He was an assistant under Richard Pitino, the son of UofL head coach Rick Pitino, who is now the head coach at Minnesota.

"Mike brings a wealth of experience in both the recruiting world and in coaching," said Pitino. "An important factor in adding him to our staff was his knowledge of what we do defensively and in scouting, after working with Richard (Pitino) for a year. It should not take a great deal of time in acclimating him to our program. He's a tireless worker and he should fit like a glove. He also brings another facet to our recruiting efforts, as he speaks fluent Spanish and has connections throughout Latin America."

Prior to his year at FIU, Balado worked three seasons at High Point University (2009-12), where he assisted in all areas of the Panther basketball program with a heavy concentration on recruiting. He spent the 2008-09 season on the Miami (Fla.) basketball staff where he helped the Hurricanes compile a 19-13 record and a berth in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) while working on player development, scouting and game preparation.

Balado played collegiate basketball at St. Thomas University in Miami, where he was a two-year starter and captain while helping his team win the regular season conference title in 1997. Recipient of a student-athlete leadership award as a senior, he earned a bachelor's degree in psychology from St. Thomas in 1998 and a master's of education in exercise and sport science from Augusta State in 2000. A native of Miami, Fla.,

Balado is married to the former Alicia Nigro and the couple had twins, Aiden and Addy, in June 2009.

Kenny Johnson, assistant men's basketball coach and recruiting coordinator at Indiana for the past two years, joined the Louisville men's basketball staff as an assistant coach under head coach Rick Pitino in April 2014.

"We're very excited to have Kenny in our program," said Pitino. "The first thing I did when Kevin Keatts left to become the head coach at UNC Wilmington was to ask my son Richard (Pitino, head coach at Minnesota) to find the best rising assistant coach in the business. He spoke to a lot of people and they led directly to Kenny Johnson and others think he is outstanding as well. He is extremely bright, having studied cell, molecular biology and genetics in college."

While at Indiana, Johnson helped the Hoosiers assemble top 20 recruiting classes each of the past two seasons. On the court, Indiana produced a combined 46-22 record in his two seasons there, winning the Big Ten Championship, earning a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and reaching the NCAA Sweet 16 in 2013.

ESPN.com's Jeff Goodman, after surveying more than 200 collegiate coaches, named Johnson as the nation's 11th most respected/feared assistant coach in a July 2013 listing after just two seasons as a collegiate assistant.

Johnson was an assistant coach at Towson in 2011-12, helping assemble a top five mid-major recruiting class. He began his coaching career in 2002 as the associate head coach at Eleanor Roosevelt High School before moving to Dr. Henry Wise High School in 2006 for one year. He was associate head coach at Paul IV High school for four years (2007-11) before advancing to the collegiate ranks.

As a senior at Oxon Hill (Md.) High School in 1994, he was named Science and Technology Student of the Year. He earned his bachelor's degree in cell, molecular biology and genetics in 1999 at the University of Maryland, where he was a Benjamin Banneker Scholarship recipient. He worked as a protein chemist/molecular biologist at Human Genome Sciences in Rockville, Md. after graduation.

A native of Oxon Hill, Johnson and his wife, Doreen, have two sons, Amare (11) and Mekai (8).

Wyking Jones (pronounced WHY-king) is in his third season as an assistant basketball coach for the University of Louisville after serving in a similar capacity two seasons at the University of New Mexico. He joined the Cardinals in April 2011.

"Wyking has the experience necessary to help us recruit top-notch student-athletes from all 50 states," said Pitino. "He is highly regarded in all circles as a tireless worker and an outstanding communicator with young people. I had asked Richard (Pitino) to provide me the top five assistant coaching candidates in the country and I would interview them. Immediately he had Wyking at the top of the list. After considerable research, it was apparent that he had all of the characteristics necessary to bring to Cardinal Basketball."

In Jones' two seasons, the Cardinals reached the NCAA Final Four twice - including winning the 2013 NCAA Championship -- and have a combined 65-15 record. He has helped the Cardinals assemble two straight top 10 recruiting classes.

During Jones' two years at New Mexico under head coach Steve Alford, the Lobos produced a combined 52-18 record. The 2009-10 New Mexico team won a school-record 30 games (30-5 record), won the Mountain West Conference Championship and was ranked eighth in the final AP poll.

Before joining the New Mexico staff, Jones spent two years as a basketball travel team manager with Nike Elite Youth Basketball. There he managed all 45 travel teams and the tournaments that Nike sponsored in its grassroots youth program while he built key relationships across the nation.

Jones lettered four years at Loyola Marymount for head coach John Olive (1991-95). He emerged as a junior through a staunch work ethic and unassuming manner to earn all-West Coast Conference honors and the Lions’ Student Athlete of the Year in 1993-94.

Jones earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from Loyola Marymount in 1995. He served as a Lions' assistant coach during the 1996-97 season. He and his wife, Estrella, have a son, Jameel, and a daughter, Zoe.

Kevin Keatts, who won two national prep championships and was runner-up on three occasions as head coach at Hargrave Military Academy over eight seasons, just wrapped up his final year on the University of Louisville men's basketball staff.

In March, Keatts was named head coach at University of North Carolina-Wilmington, joining 10 other former assistants under Pitino now serving as college head coaches.

"Kevin has been one of the best assistant coaches with which I have had the good fortune to work, and I've had a lot of them," Pitino said. "He is a terrific person, coach, scout, family man and recruiter. He possesses all of the variables to build a successful program. We are really going to miss his upbeat personality … ."

Keatts was promoted to associate head coach in January 2014 after serving as an assistant coach under head coach Rick Pitino since joining the Cardinals in April 2011 and helped the Cardinals assemble two straight top ten recruiting classes. In his two seasons at UofL, the Cardinals reached the NCAA Final Four twice -- including winning the 2013 NCAA Championship -- won two Big East Conference championships, and have a combined 65-15 record.

ESPN.com's Jeff Goodman, after surveying more than 200 collegiate coaches, named Keatts as the nation's third most respected/feared assistant coach in a July 2013 listing.

Keatts' success as a prep coach is staggering. In 10 seasons in two separate stints as the head coach at Hargrave (1999-2001, 2003-2011), he compiled an incredible 263-17 record with two national prep titles (2004, 2008), three runner-up finishes (2005, 2006, 2009) and two additional appearances among the final four prep teams (2007, 2010).

Keatts coached nine players at the prep level that reached the NBA: Joe Alexander, Jordan Crawford, Josh Howard, Vernon Macklin, Mike Scott, Marreese Speights, Sam Young, David West and Korleone Young.

Keatts was a two sport standout in basketball and football at Heritage High School in Lynchburg, Va., and also excelled in basketball at Ferrum College. He and his wife Georgette have two sons, Kevin (9) and Kaden (5).

David Padgett, a former three-year starting center for the Cardinals, is in his first year on the UofL men’s basketball staff as assistant video coordinator.

Padgett spent three years as an assistant basketball coach at IUPUI (2011-14) after a year with UofL as an assistant strength coach (2010-11). He played professional basketball for UB LaPalma in the Canary Islands for two years following his graduation from UofL. He had reached the final preseason cut of the Miami Heat before his playing career in Spain.

A three-year starter and captain at center for the Cards (2005-08), Padgett was a unanimous first-team All-BIG EAST Conference selection as a senior and also earned USBWA All-District IV honors.  He averaged a team-leading 11.2 points and grabbed 4.8 rebounds his senior year in 2007-08 when the Cardinals reached the NCAA Elite Eight.

Padgett ranks second in career field goal percentage at UofL, hitting 61.3 percent of his shots (332-542). His .667 field goal percentage as a senior was the second best ever at UofL. He set a BIG EAST Conference field goal percentage record for league games as a senior, hitting 68.3 percent of his shots in 18 games (86-of-126). He was a second team All-BIG EAST pick as a junior.

Padgett’s basketball bloodlines run deep as his father played at the University of Nevada and his uncle played at New Mexico. His grandfather Jim played for Oregon State and his sister played for the University of San Diego.

Padgett and his wife, Megan, welcomed their first child Nolan in August 2013.

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About the James Graham Brown Cancer Center:

The James Graham Brown Cancer Center is a key component of the University of Louisville Health Sciences Center. As part of the region's leading academic, research and teaching health center, the cancer center provides the latest medical advances to patients, often long before they become available in non-teaching settings. The JGBCC is a part of KentuckyOne Health and is affiliated with the Kentucky Cancer Program. It is the only cancer center in the region to use a unified approach to cancer care, with multidisciplinary teams of physicians working together to guide patients through diagnosis, treatment and recovery. For more information, visit our web site, www.browncancercenter.org.

The Julep Ball is sponsored in part by Advanced Cancer Therapeutics, Ashton Advertising, Bob Montgomery Dixie Honda, Boutique Serendipity, The Dahlem Company, Dillards, Enterprise, Headz Salon, Heaven Hill, Hubbuch & Co., InGrid Design, Jaust Consulting Partners, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, KentuckyOne Health, Kroger, Louisville Magazine, Maker’s Mark, Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company, Morgan Stanley, MPI Printing, Nfocus, Old 502 Winery, Power Creative, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, WAKY and WHAS11.

The singer-songwriter of 2007’s country hit “Stealing Cinderella” and the currently-rising-up-the-charts “Us Again,” Chuck Wicks, will walk the red carpet at The Julep Ball.

The premier Derby Eve Party with a Purpose, The Julep Ball is held annually on the evening before the Kentucky Derby and supports the work of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville. The event on May 2 at the KFC Yum! Center kicks off with a 6:30 p.m. cocktail reception, followed by dinner and a live auction at 8 p.m.

An Official Event of the 140^th Kentucky Derby®, The Julep Ball provides a celebrity-studded night to remember with a multi-course seated dinner, a knock-your-socks-off auction, multiple open specialty bars, complimentary valet parking, and dancing until the wee hours of Derby morning. Tickets for the full evening of entertainment are sold out but a limited number of dance-only tickets at $100 per person are still available. For further information and to buy tickets, go to The Julep Ball website, julepball.org.

About Chuck Wicks:

On his new single that is rising the charts, “Us Again,” Chuck Wicks is clearly in the zone. The story of a couple who long to return to a time when loving each other was easy, the song also marks the return to the country charts for the Delaware farm boy.

“It’s a unique love song,” says Wicks, who co-wrote the hit with Andy Dodd and Tiffany Vartanyan. “It’s one of those things we all go through. When you first meet that someone who is really special, the first three to four months are flawless. Every day is a honeymoon. But as time goes on and life starts to happen, you can forget what it’s like and lose that spark.”

Now signed to Blaster Records, Wicks, who moonlights as a morning personality on NASH-FM’s popular America’s Morning Show (“I love speaking the language of country music and this gives me the chance to do that every day,” he says), has discovered his own creative fire.

After the breakout success of his 2007 debut single “Stealing Cinderella,” which hit the Top 5 on the Billboard country chart and marked the biggest single for any new country artist in 2007, the pristine-voiced singer actively took a step back and committed himself to songwriting. Freshly inspired, he’s readying his latest album, the follow-up to 2008’s Starting Now, which peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard country albums chart.

“I’m a lot more comfortable with who I am,” he says. “I feel like I’ve figured out who I am as a songwriter, as a singer, as an artist. I know where my pocket is.”

The upcoming album, co-produced by Chuck, will include all of the tracks from his EP Rough, a recent collection of songs that showcased Chuck’s lived-in sound.

“From Starting Now to today, I’ve grown so much as a writer and a performer,” says Wicks, who has performed in every state in the continental United States. “Releasing your first single on a major label is a lot to navigate, especially if you’ve never done it. I got thrown out on a huge tour with Brad Paisley and went from playing conference rooms with two guitar players to playing Denver, Colorado, my first big show in an arena.

“Grow up, have a family and work 9 to 5: That’s what most everybody sees in their future,” Wicks says. “I feel so lucky to do something different and special.”

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About the James Graham Brown Cancer Center:

The James Graham Brown Cancer Center is a key component of the University of Louisville Health Sciences Center. As part of the region's leading academic, research and teaching health center, the cancer center provides the latest medical advances to patients, often long before they become available in non-teaching settings. The JGBCC is a part of KentuckyOne Health and is affiliated with the Kentucky Cancer Program. It is the only cancer center in the region to use a unified approach to cancer care, with multidisciplinary teams of physicians working together to guide patients through diagnosis, treatment and recovery. For more information, visit our web site, www.browncancercenter.org.

The Julep Ball is sponsored in part by Advanced Cancer Therapeutics, Ashton Advertising, Bob Montgomery Dixie Honda, Boutique Serendipity, The Dahlem Company, Dillards, Enterprise, Headz Salon, Heaven Hill, Hubbuch & Co., InGrid Design, Jaust Consulting Partners, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, KentuckyOne Health, Kroger, Louisville Magazine, Maker’s Mark, Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company, Morgan Stanley, MPI Printing, Nfocus, Old 502 Winery, Power Creative, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, WAKY and WHAS11.

Darrell A. Griffith has been named the new associate vice president for health affairs/finance and administration for the University of Louisville Health Sciences Center. He also will assume the position of vice president/CFO for University of Louisville Physicians. Griffith comes from the University of Kentucky/UK Healthcare, where he was the executive director for the faculty practice organization.

David L. Dunn, M.D., Ph.D., UofL executive vice president for health affairs, highlighted Griffith’s extensive financial experience within academic medicine and physician practices.

“I am very pleased to welcome Darrell to the UofL Health Sciences Center,” Dunn said. “He understands the complexity of an academic health center and the role of the faculty practice plan. His experience is critical as we begin the next steps in the transformation of the health sciences center.”

Griffith has spent the past 11 years at the University of Kentucky, initially as a senior manager of business development and decision support. He served two years as the interim associate dean for administration and finance for the College of Medicine before taking his current role in 2006. He was instrumental in developing the UK Healthcare strategic plan that saw unprecedented growth in revenues and outpatient care.

Prior to joining UK, Griffith was a senior consultant with Avalon Management Consulting LLC, in Knoxville, Tenn. He also has been with Promina-Dekalb Regional Healthcare System in Atlanta, Erlanger Health System in Chattanooga, Tenn., and Healthcare Resources Inc. in Somerset, Ky.

Griffith earned his bachelor of science in business administration and his master of public health/health care administration from the University of Tennessee. He is a certified medical practice executive from the American College of Medical Practice Executives. He is a member of the Academic Practice Plan Directors under the University Health Consortium.

Researchers at the University of Louisville are launching a clinical research study to develop an objective approach to discharge patients with heart failure from the hospital with the goal of decreasing their possible readmission.

Saeed A. Jortani, Ph.D., clinical associate professor of pathology and laboratory medicine, will lead a team of investigators including cardiologists, emergency medicine physicians, nurses and clinical coordinators in the “Congestive Heart Failure Readmission (CHFR) Trial.” It is now open for enrollment.

The team’s goal is to enroll 600 patients with symptoms of congestive heart failure who are admitted to the emergency departments at two KentuckyOne Health hospitals, University of Louisville Hospital and Jewish Hospital. Blood samples will be collected from patients at the time they are admitted and again when they are discharged. These samples will be analyzed for a variety of cardiac and kidney biomarkers.

The patients then will be surveyed twice, at 30 days and 6 months after discharge, to learn if their condition required readmission to the hospital.

The team will use the data obtained from the blood samples to develop an evidence-based approach that could be used in determining the optimal timing for discharging patients with heart failure and ultimately prevent readmission.

“We believe that using an objective, clinically verified approach to discharging heart failure patients initially could reduce the need for future readmission,” Jortani said. “Our thinking is that patients’ biomarkers will indicate when they are ready for discharge from the hospital with hopefully less chance of being readmitted later on.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, heart failure affects about 5 million people in the United States, with 550,000 new patients diagnosed each year. Patients with heart failure also have a high incidence of other life-threatening diseases and conditions, such as renal failure, hypertension, diabetes and others.

Each year, more than 1 million people are admitted to an inpatient facility for heart failure, and 27 percent of patients with heart failure who are on Medicare are readmitted within 30 days.

New guidelines established by the Affordable Care Act limits put limits on readmitting patients within a 30-day time period for the same diagnosis.

“Finding the right ‘formula’ for discharge and reducing readmission rates will help us improve the ultimate health outcome for the patient as well as realize significant cost savings in the long run,” Jortani said.

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About the CHFR Trial:

Principal investigator of the CHFR Trial is Saeed Jortani. The research team includes cardiologists Andrew DeFilippis, Shahab Ghafghazi and Jesse Adams; emergency medicine physicians George Bosse, Salvator Vicario and Tadd Roberts; nurses Ashlee Melendez, Kristen Young and Cynthia Lawrence; clinical coordinators Stanislava Prather, Anna Mains, Keivan Hosseinnegad and Louise Isaacs; and biostatistician Richard Baumgartner. Blood sample analysis will be conducted at the Kentucky Clinical Trials Laboratory. The study is funded in part by Roche Diagnostics USA. For information about the trial, contact 502-852-8835 or sjortani@louisville.edu.

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death among women, striking one in three. About every 60 seconds, a woman dies from heart disease.

With this as a backdrop, the University of Louisville School of Medicine, Department of Cardiovascular & Thoracic Surgery, in conjunction with KentuckyOne Health and University of Louisville Physicians, is hosting a one-day conference in Louisville to help educate patients and health care professionals about the prevention, recognition and treatment of the disease in women.

Heart disease is more deadly for women than all forms of cancer combined, according to the American Heart Association, and 90 percent of women have one or more risk factors, and more than one in three have some form of cardiovascular disease. Yet, women don’t recognize that heart disease is their biggest health threat.

“Although heart disease is a multi-factored, complex disorder, it is preventable, but education about the disease in women is essential,” said Kendra Grubb, M.D., assistant professor of cardiovascular and thoracic surgery at UofL.

To help in this educational effort, Grubb has organized the 2014 Louisville Symposium on Heart Disease in Women, the first of what is planned to be an annual event.

The conference will be held Saturday, June 28, at the Jewish Hospital Rudd Heart & Lung Center, 16th Floor Conference Center, 201 Abraham Flexner Way in Louisville. It is designed to provide physicians, nurses, allied health professional and the community with up-to-date information pertaining to the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease in women.

Two dozen doctors and health professionals are scheduled to speak including Toni Ganzel, M.D., dean of the UofL School of Medicine, and Ruth Brinkley, CEO of KentuckyOne Health.

The conference begins at 7 a.m. with registration and a continental breakfast, with the program starting at 8 a.m. The event ends at 5 p.m., with a reception to follow.

Continuing medical education (CME) credit is available. For more information on CME credit, click http://www.louisvilleheartdiseasewomen.com/about.html.

To see the agenda, click http://www.louisvilleheartdiseasewomen.com/agenda.html.

All are welcome at the conference, but registration is required. Costs are:

• Physicians: $100
• Allied health professionals/nurses: $50
• Community: $25
• Students/residents/fellows: Free with registration before June 2

To register, click http://www.louisvilleheartdiseasewomen.com/registration-contact.html.

For more about the conference, go to http://www.louisvilleheartdiseasewomen.com/home.html or call 502-561-2180.

An institute at the University of Louisville and the physician-director of UofL’s James Graham Brown Cancer Center won two MediStar awards presented Tuesday (May 13) at the Hyatt Regency Louisville.

The Institute of Molecular Cardiology, under the leadership of Director Roberto Bolli, M.D., received the Healthcare Innovation Award and Donald Miller, M.D., Ph.D., director of the cancer center, a part of KentuckyOne Health, was named the XLerateHealth Physician of the Year.

The Healthcare Innovation Award is presented to an organization that has developed a new procedure, device, service program or treatment that improves the delivery of medical care. Under Bolli’s leadership, the Institute of Molecular Cardiology (IMC) has become recognized worldwide as a leading cardiovascular research program for its contributions in ischemic heart disease, heart failure, diabetes and obesity and adult stem cell therapy for cardiac repair and regeneration. Established in 2001, the IMC consistently brings more than $13 million annually in federal funding to the Louisville Metro region in developing novel treatments and future cures for the nation’s No. 1 killer, cardiovascular disease.

The XLerateHealth Physician of the Year Award is conferred upon a physician who has shown outstanding leadership and vision and has contributed to his or her workplace, leaving a lasting legacy. Named director of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center (JGBCC) in 1999, Miller also is the James Graham Brown Foundation Chair and Professor of Oncology and Associate Vice President for Health Affairs at UofL. Under his leadership, the JGBCC developed a nationally recognized leadership program in cancer drug development with more than two dozen novel treatments being studied and three entering early phase clinical trials. Miller’s own laboratory is currently studying short DNA sequences which are believed to cause cancer cell death; it is expected that treatments from his lab will enter clinical trials within the next two years.

Since 2007 IGE Media, publisher of Medical News and Medical News For You, has recognized excellence at the annual MediStar Awards, honoring professionals, volunteers and programs for their impact on health care. Also named finalists for MediStar Awards from UofL were:

• BOK Financial Aging Care Award: UofL Physicians-Geriatrics
• Facility Design Award: Nucleus Innovation Park Downtown and School of Dentistry and Department of Pediatrics at the Sam Swope Kosair Charities Centre
• Hall Render Leadership in Healthcare Award: Gerard Rabalais, M.D., Chair, Department of Pediatrics
• Middleton Reutlinger Nurse of the Year Award: Stephanie Jensen, R.N., Diabetes Nurse Educator, UofL Physicians-Pediatric Endocrinology
• Seven Counties Services Healthcare Advocacy Award: Stephen Wright, M.D., Professor, Department of Pediatrics
• A.O. Sullivan Award for Excellence in Education: Department of Pediatrics Medical Education Program
• XLerateHealth Physician of the Year Award: Toni Ganzel, M.D., Dean, School of Medicine

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Noting the significant progress in drug and vaccine development over the past three years, the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust, has provided a three-year, $5.5 million grant to the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville to develop new treatments and vaccines for various forms of cancer.

“Seven years ago, we partnered with Owensboro Health to explore the novel idea of plant-based pharmaceuticals and vaccines in the treatment and prevention of cancer,” said Dr. James R. Ramsey, president of the University of Louisville. “Our team showed enough promise that the Helmsley Charitable Trust provided more than $3 million in research support in 2010. Today’s grant, with Dr. Donald Miller, director of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center, as the principal investigator, demonstrates the confidence the leaders of the trust have in the work that is being accomplished. We are extremely grateful to the trust for its support and we look forward to further opportunities to partner.”

The new funding will help UofL researchers move into clinical trials vaccines for cervical and colon cancer. Additionally, researchers will further develop plant-based drug delivery systems to allow for higher concentrations of anticancer drugs to be transported directly to human tumors, as well as to increase a tumor’s sensitivity to anticancer treatment. The plants involved in the research range from tobacco to soybeans to colored berries.

“The work of Dr. Miller and his team has the potential to significantly impact health around the world,” said John Codey, a trustee with the Helmsley Charitable Trust. “They are focusing on finding much less expensive methods for delivering vaccines and medications so that these treatments are accessible to even the poorest of countries. We are pleased to continue to support efforts that have the potential to relieve suffering for a significant segment of people around the world.”

The Helmsley Charitable Trust also has funded research at UofL focused on helping people with spinal cord injuries regain function. To date, the Helmsley Charitable Trust has provided UofL with nearly $15 million in research funding.

“Federal funding for research continues to be more and more competitive, with fewer researchers receiving funds each year,” said Dr. David L. Dunn, executive vice president for health affairs at UofL. “The resources the Helmsley Charitable Trust provides enables our internationally renowned researchers to continue with their groundbreaking work that has the potential to transform the lives of people worldwide. It is through these significant partnerships that innovative health care approaches are possible.”

“Owensboro Health’s cancer research partnership with the University of Louisville has allowed us to help lead the charge with groundbreaking projects in the fight against cancer. This grant has been key in allowing us to work toward taking solutions from the laboratory bench to the patient bedside,” said Philip Patterson, president and CEO of Owensboro Health. “Since its creation in 2007, the team at the Owensboro Cancer Research Program at our Mitchell Memorial Cancer Center has made tremendous strides. We are grateful for the renewed support from the Helmsley Charitable Trust.”

Under Miller’s leadership, researchers will move an oral cervical cancer vaccine from preclinical trials into pre-investigational new drug studies. These studies reduce the amount of time it takes to move a vaccine from the laboratory to use in people. The vaccine uses a specific protein (L2 minor capsid) to create a broad response to attack HPV, the virus responsible for the vast majority of cervical cancer, and should be ready to enter clinical trials by early 2015. This project is being led by Dr. Kenneth Palmer.

A second cervical cancer vaccine is being developed by two researchers who were part of the team that created the world’s first cervical cancer vaccine. Drs. Bennett Jenson and Shin-Je Ghim are working on a vaccine that is biosimilar to the original vaccine, but produced in tobacco plants. This effort also will enter into the pre-IND phase over the next two years.

Drs. Nobuyuki Matoba and Palmer are developing an oral cholera vaccine that may prove to be a way to prevent colon cancer. The gastrointestinal issues associated with cholera create a favorable environment for the development of colon cancer, thus, preventing cholera can also prevent colon cancer. The goal is for this vaccine to enter clinical trials in late 2014.

For several years, Dr. Huang-Ge Zhang has been exploring the anticancer properties of tiny particles called plant exosomes. Animal studies suggest that exosomes may be able to play a role in the treatment or prevention of colon, breast and lung cancer. Zhang was the first to demonstrate that exosomes existed in plants and plans to demonstrate that they could be used to deliver higher concentrations of anticancer drugs directly to human tumors.

Dr. Ramesh Gupta has uncovered that certain compounds within colored berries increase the anticancer effect of chemotherapy drugs. This has the potential to enable smaller amounts of the drugs to be used, but with the same or more beneficial effects.

“Our goal is to cure cancer in people, not in mice,” Miller said. “The Owensboro Cancer Research Program is a tremendous tool for reaching that goal, not just locally or regionally, but worldwide. Through plant-based pharmaceuticals, we will be able to provide low-cost vaccines and anticancer medications that make them accessible to even the poorest of nations. To have an organization like the Helmsley Charitable Trust partner with us will enable us to move toward our goal at a much quicker pace.”

UofL’s comprehensive campaign is scheduled to wrap up June 30 after already surpassing its $1 billion goal. Charting our Course formally launched in 2010 with the funds raised designated for academic support, scholarships and programs for students; faculty recruitment, research and professional development; infrastructure enhancements and upkeep of athletic facilities; and support of the university's academic units and libraries. More than 75,000 donors throughout the world have invested in the future of the University of Louisville. 

About the Helmsley Charitable Trust

The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust aspires to improve lives by supporting effective nonprofits in health, place-based initiatives, and education and human services.Since 2008, when the Trust began its active grantmaking, it has committed more than $1 billion to a wide range of charitable organizations.For more information on the Trust and its programs, visit www.helmsleytrust.org.

Promising early preclinical research currently underway at the University of Louisville could lead to the elimination of a second surgery now commonly needed after retinal surgery.

Shlomit Schaal, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, and director of Retina, the Retina Fellowship Program in Vitreo-Retinal Diseases and Surgery and the Diabetic Retinopathy Service, Kentucky Lions Eye Center, is working with Martin O’Toole, Ph.D., assistant professor, Department of Bioengineering, on the project which is funded by the Coulter Translational Research Partnership at UofL.

The two are studying a new way for patients undergoing retinal surgery – known as “vitrectomy” – to avoid the need to have subsequent surgery to remove cataracts that develop. During vitrectomy surgery, vitreous gel is removed from the eye; it is this gel that protects the natural crystalline lens from damage caused by free radicals of oxygen.

With the gel loss during surgery, free radicals are diffused onto the lens and cause cataracts, and almost all patients undergoing vitrectomy surgery then are forced to undergo a second surgery to remove the cataracts.

Schaal and O’Toole have developed an artificial gel that is biocompatible to the vitreous gel present in the eye. Using animal models, Schaal has successfully used the biocompatible gel to create an oxygen barrier next to the lens during retinal vitrectomy surgery.

“The biocompatible gel appears to be working as well as the eye’s natural vitreous gel in blocking oxygen damage to the natural lens,” Schaal said.

The team hopes to be able to move the research into clinical trials within the next year. “The funding we’ve received from the UofL-Coulter Partnership has been invaluable in enabling us to prove our concept thus far,” Schaal said. “We are excited at the prospect of one day being able to help patients avoid the burden of cataract surgery after retinal surgery.”

The five-year, $5 million Coulter Translational Research Partnership in Bioengineering grant awarded in 2011 to UofL fosters the translation of research through successful collaboration between engineers and clinicians, supporting promising technologies.  The partnership funds promising projects in order to move innovative technologies to clinical application with the ultimate goal of accelerating the introduction of new technologies to improve the treatment and diagnosis of disease or reduce health care costs.

Benefactors of a fund to support patients at the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville are sponsoring their second annual sand volleyball event to raise money for the fund.

In 2013, Alex and Tommy Gift established the Mary Jane Gift Quality of Life Fund at the cancer center in honor of their late mother. The fund helps patients and their families enjoy life while facing a cancer diagnosis.

To benefit the fund, the Gifts are sponsoring The Second Annual Spike It to Cancer Sand Volleyball Tournament at Baxter Jack’s sand volleyball complex, 427 Baxter Ave. on Saturday, June 7. Registration will be held from 1-2:30 p.m., and games will begin at 3 p.m.

Admission is $20 per person. Payment by cash or check will be accepted at the door, or participants can pay by credit card at the cancer center’s secure online link.

“All proceeds from this event go to the Mary Jane Gift Quality of Life Fund that pays for extras provided to our patients and caregivers,” Michael Neumann, executive director of development, said. “Additionally, The Brewery on Baxter Avenue directly across the street from Baxter Jack’s has agreed to donate a portion of all food and beverage sales to us during the event.

“These gifts go a long way in bringing cheer to our patients and their families. For example, the fund provided Thanksgiving turkeys to many of our patients and their families last November. Also, one of our physicians, Dr. Cesar Rodriguez, used funds raised by the 2013 Spike It to Cancer to give picnic baskets to 26 patients on Easter morning.”

For additional details, contact Neumann at 502-562-4642.

Experts in the use of comprehensive geriatric assessment for hospitalized elders and immunizations in older adults, and the author of the 2012 Beers Criteria – a guide to medication use in elders – will be featured at the 14^th Annual University of Louisville Geriatrics Healthcare Symposium.

The conference will be held Friday, Sept. 19, at the Seelbach Hilton Hotel, 500 S. Fourth St. in Downtown Louisville.

The conference is sponsored by the Division of Geriatrics in the Department of Family and Geriatric Medicine at the University of Louisville and provides information on the latest research and best practices in care for people age 65 and older. Plenary speakers include:

• Michael Malone, M.D., Center for Senior Health & Longevity, Aurora Sinai Medical Center, Milwaukee, addressing the acute care of elderly hospitalized patients.
• Kenneth Schmader, M.D., Geriatrics Division Chief, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, N.C., providing information on immunizations for elders
• Todd Semla, Pharm.D., Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, speaking on polypharmacy, the overuse or misuse of medications in older adults

Other sessions will be held on POLST: Physician’s Orders for Life, disease screening and prevention, caregiver burnout, injury prevention, exercise, elder abuse, dementia and enhancing independence in the older adult.

The conference is open to health care professionals and students and the public alike. CE credit will be available for physicians, nurses, social workers and other professionals working in the field of geriatrics.

For details, contact the UofL Division of Geriatrics, 502-852-3480 or awburk02@louisville.edu.

UofL Geriatrics in the Department of Family and Geriatric Medicine at the University of Louisville is calling for nominations for the fourth annual Gold Standard Award for Optimal Aging.

The deadline to submit nominations is 5 p.m., July 15. The award will be presented Sept. 25 at the Annual UofL Geriatrics Gold Standard Award for Optimal Aging Luncheon at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, 830 Phillips Lane.

The Gold Standard Award for Optimal Aging is presented to someone 85 years old or older as of Oct. 1 who is an outstanding model for optimal aging in all areas of life.

“We are seeking people 85-plus who are making the most of whatever their later years bring and who continue to demonstrate great zest for life,” said Christian Davis Furman, M.D., vice chair for geriatric medicine. “The award is presented for optimal aging across the full spectrum of physical health, mental health, social health and spiritual health.”

The nomination process includes submitting information on the nomination form that describes why the nominee qualifies for the award. Nomination forms and information about the luncheon can be found online or obtained by calling (502) 588-4260 or emailing UofLGeriatrics@louisville.edu.

Advanced Cancer Therapeutics (ACT), a privately held company dedicated to bringing new anti-cancer therapies to market, announced June 4 that it has begun clinical trials of PFK-158, a small molecule therapeutic candidate that inactivates a novel cancer metabolism target never before examined in human clinical trials. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Phase 1 dose escalation study is evaluating the safety, tolerability and anti-tumor activity of PFK-158 in cancer patients with solid tumors such as melanoma, lung, colon, breast and pancreatic cancer.

PFK-158 is the first 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6-biphosphatase 3 (PFKFB3) inhibitor to undergo clinical trial testing in cancer patients. The target, PFKFB3, is activated by oncogenes and the low oxygen state in cancers, stimulates glucose metabolism and is required for the growth of cancer cells as tumors in mice. PFK-158, which has been licensed by ACT from the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville, inhibits the substrate binding domain of PFKFB3 causing a marked reduction in the glucose uptake and growth of multiple cancer types in mice.

PFK-158 human clinical trials began recruiting patients in May with the first clinical trial site located at the James Graham Brown Cancer Center, a part of KentuckyOne Health. Within weeks of opening the first clinical trial site, ACT was able to open the second clinical trial site at Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington, also in May.

According to Jason A. Chesney, M.D., Ph.D., deputy director of the Brown Cancer Center and a global thought leader and researcher in cancer metabolism, “PFK-158 is not only a first-in-class cancer drug but also the first to target glucose metabolism by inhibiting PFKFB3. This unique mechanism of action has resulted in efficacy against a broad spectrum of human cancers caused by common mutations as well as synergy with targeted agents that are FDA approved for several cancer types.

“As a researcher, it is incredibly rewarding to witness your group's studies move into clinical trials and potentially save the lives of cancer patients,” Chesney said.

“This is a significant milestone for ACT and it supports our dedication to develop significant treatment advancements for cancer patients with first-in-class, potential breakthrough therapeutics like PFK-158,” said Randall B. Riggs, president & CEO of ACT.

About Advanced Cancer Therapeutics (ACT):

ACT is a privately held company dedicated to advancing novel therapeutics for the prevention and treatment of cancer. ACT has successfully established a unique and innovative business model with the University of Louisville’s James Graham Brown Cancer Center whereby ACT is able to obtain exclusive worldwide licenses to novel cancer therapeutics discovered at Brown Cancer Center under preset business terms. ACT then fast-tracks these discoveries, including the selection process for partnership, commercialization and manufacture, to the pharmaceutical industry, and ultimately to the patients who need them. Led by Donald M. Miller, M.D., Ph.D., the Brown Cancer Center employs more than 50 scientists focused on the discovery and advancement of breakthrough cancer therapeutics for patients suffering from cancer. For more information, please visit www.advancedcancertherapeutics.com.

About the James Graham Brown Cancer Center:

The James Graham Brown Cancer Center is a key component of the University of Louisville Health Sciences Center. As part of the region's leading academic, research and teaching health center, the cancer center provides the latest medical advances to patients, often long before they become available in non-teaching settings. The JGBCC is a part of KentuckyOne Health and is affiliated with the Kentucky Cancer Program. It is the only cancer center in the region to use a unified approach to cancer care, with multidisciplinary teams of physicians working together to guide patients through diagnosis, treatment and recovery. For more information, visit our web site, www.browncancercenter.org.

Attention, shopaholics: Here’s your chance to be among the very first to shop The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass.

The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass is teaming with the University of Louisville’s James Graham Brown Cancer Center for an Opening Night VIP Preview from 6-9 p.m., Wednesday, July 30, the evening before the facility opens to the general public.

Patrons will be able to get the jump on the rest of Kentuckiana in shopping at choice retail outlets such as Coach, Brook Brothers, Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5^th, Michael Kors, J Crew, Banana Republic, Nike, Talbots, Under Armour and more. They also will receive a free coupon book with over $300 in savings at many of the 80-plus retailers that make up The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass.

Cost is $50 per person with 100 percent of the proceeds going to the James Graham Brown Cancer Center, the only cancer center in the region to use a unified approach to cancer care, with multidisciplinary teams of physicians working together to guide patients through diagnosis, treatment and recovery.

“We are thrilled to partner with The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass,” Michael Neumann, executive director of development for the cancer center, said. “The pairing of Kentucky’s new premier shopping center with the region’s premier cancer research and treatment center is a great fit.”

Only 3,000 tickets to the event are available and are expected to go fast, Neumann said. Tickets are sold online only at www.shoppingforacure.org. Up to 10 tickets may be purchased per transaction.

The Veritas Curat Foundation is handling ticket sales on behalf of the cancer center, and receipts will be provided via email. The email receipt serves as the ticket to the event, and to be admitted, ticket buyers must bring both a printout of the email receipt and identification that matches the name on the ticket.

A silent auction of packages donated by Shoppes retailers also will be held the night of the VIP Preview, Neumann said. Items up for auction will be posted in advance on the website starting July 28, and online bidding will be available until July 30. On-site bidding on the night of the event will be conducted via smartphone only, he added.

The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass is located at Exit 28 on Interstate 64. For additional information on the Opening Night VIP Preview or the James Graham Brown Cancer Center, contact Neumann at 502-562-4642.

Researchers at the University of Louisville have uncovered a cadre of small molecules that tell certain proteins to kill lung cancer cells. The team, led by Chi Li, Ph.D., assistant professor of medicine, published its finding in the April 2014 issue of Molecular and Cellular Biology.

One of the characteristics of lung cancer is the dysregulation of apoptosis, or regulated cell death. Cancer cells are able to survive in the unnatural state.

Proteins from the Bcl-2 family are major regulators of apoptosis. One of them, Bax, sometimes becomes erratic and loses its ability to maintain its killer function, which leads to lung tumor development. The researchers realized that this meant Bax potentially could be part of the cure as well.

The researchers used virtual screening in their study, a process where they ran through a computer program all the possible combinations of molecules that could bind with the Bax proteins to find the best combination. After trying more than 10 million molecules, they found the right one. This Bax-activating small molecule compound kills lung cancer cells as well as inhibits the growth of lung tumors transplanted into mice.

The scientific finding of Li and his team showed it is possible to identify small molecules capable of binding and activating Bax proteins that in turn induce apoptosis in cancerous cells. In the study, published in Molecular and Cellular Biology in April of 2014, Li and his team were able to specifically induce tumor cell death while avoiding normal cell death.

The compound also shows synergy with the widely used chemotherapeutic drug carboplatin. This means that the potential application for this compound in cancer treatment is very broad.

The scientific discovery could form the basis for advanced therapeutic agents for cancer in patients, specifically lung cancer, which is especially prevalent in Kentucky.

The high mortality rate of lung cancer is partially attributed to ineffective therapeutic treatments. This makes it very important for scientists to develop new chemotherapeutic drugs for lung cancer.

Li says it could pave the way for new treatment for other types of cancer as well. “Lung cancer is a really big issue for us. We have a large mortality rate, and that’s one of the reasons we wanted to go after lung cancer,” he said. “We are in the process of trying to expand the application of our discovery onto different types of cancer.”

Li and his team will have the opportunity for that expansion very soon. The National Institutes of Health recently awarded them a grant of $1.5 million to continue their groundbreaking research.

Mariusz Ratajczak, M.D., Ph.D., D.Sci., has been selected to receive the prestigious Karl Landsteiner Prize from the German Society for Transfusion Medicine and Immunohematology. Ratajczak holds the Henry M. and Stella M. Hoenig Endowed Chair at the University of Louisville.

The Landsteiner Prize is given by the society to a doctor for outstanding achievements and research in the fields of transfusion and/or immunology. The prize is named after Karl Landsteiner, an Austrian biologist and physician. In addition to distinguishing the main blood groups, Landsteiner also discovered polio along with several other researchers and received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1930. Landsteiner is recognized as the father of transfusion medicine. Previous recipients of the Karl Landsteiner Prize include Nobel Prize laureate Rolf Zinkernagel (Basel), Karl Blume (Seattle) and Stephanie Dimmeler (Frankfurt).

Ratajczak was honored for his outstanding achievements in the characterization of mechanisms involved in the mobilization of hematopoietic stem cells and the discovery of very small embryonic like stem cells in the adult tissue.

An internationally known specialist in the field of adult stem cell biology, his 2005 discovery of embryonic-like stem cells in adult bone marrow has potential to revolutionize the field of regenerative medicine. The discovery may lead to new treatments for heart disease, eye disease, diabetes and neurodegenerative disorders, as well as provide insight into the development of many forms of leukemia.

In addition to his endowed position, Ratajczak is a professor in the Department of Medicine and the director of the Developmental Biology Research Program and of the Research Flow and Sorting Core Facility at the University of Louisville's James Graham Brown Cancer Center.

In addition to receiving the Karl Landsteiner Prize, Ratajczak has also been invited to deliver an opening lecture on Sept. 9 during the society’s annual meeting in Dresden, Germany.

Andrea L. Behrman, Ph.D., was selected to give the Maley Lecture at the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) in Charlotte, N.C., on June 13. The lecture honors a physical therapist that has made distinguished contributions to the profession of physical therapy in clinical practice.

Behrman is a professor in the Department of Neurological Surgery and Kentucky Spinal Cord Injury Research Center at the University of Louisville and is currently examining neuromuscular recovery in children with spinal cord injuries via both research and clinical practice. She also is a licensed physical therapist and is a Fellow of the American Physical Therapy Association.

Behrman’s lecture was titled, “I never thought that I would need to child-proof my home!” and focused on a paradigm shift for rehabilitation from the traditional view that “paralysis cannot be resolved” to an evidence-based physiological perspective that, with training, “paralysis can be resolved” and recovery is possible – to what degree has yet to be determined. As the mother whose comments inspired the lecture’s title said, “after locomotor training, my child became so mobile that I needed to child-proof my home” – something she never thought she would need to be concerned about.

Researchers have demonstrated that the spinal cord is in fact smart and that it can learn, Behrman said. By providing specific sensory input via intense training, therapists can activate the spinal circuitry and the neuromuscular system below and across the level of the injury.

Using a method known as “activity-based locomotor training,” therapists provide specific sensory information while patients are standing and walking on a treadmill with partial body weight support. Trainers also provide manual cues to promote muscle activation. Behrman demonstrated the benefits of locomotor training for developing trunk control and stepping in children who suffered a spinal cord injury when they were as young as 5 months and were paralyzed for nearly three years.

As director of the University of Louisville Kosair Charities Center for Pediatric Neurorecovery, Behrman and her fellow researchers and clinical partners work to change outcomes for children recovering from paralysis while undergoing locomotor training.

More information about Behrman’s lecture and work at UofL is available on the American Physical Therapy Association website.

Telemedicine is an effective strategy to screen for the potentially blinding disease known as retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), according to a study funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI). The investigators say that the approach, if adopted broadly, could help ease the strain on hospitals with limited access to ophthalmologists and lead to better care for infants in underserved areas of the country. NEI is a part of the National Institutes of Health.

The telemedicine strategy consisted of electronically sending photos of babies’ eyes to a distant image reading center for evaluation. Staff at the image reading center, who were trained to recognize signs of severe ROP, identified whether infants should be referred to an ophthalmologist for evaluation and potential treatment. The study tested how accurately the telemedicine approach reproduced the conclusions of ophthalmologists who examined the babies onsite.

“This study provides validation for a telemedicine approach to ROP screening and could help save thousands of infants from going blind,” said Graham E. Quinn, M.D., professor of ophthalmology at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the lead investigator for the study, which is reported today in JAMA Ophthalmology.

The study was conducted by the e-ROP Cooperative Group, a collaboration that includes 12 facilities in the United States and one in Canada. The University of Louisville was the only site in Kentucky among the collaborative group. In addition to UofL, study sites were Johns Hopkins University, Boston Children’s Hospital, Vanderbilt University, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Nationwide Children’s Hospital/Ohio State University Hospital, Duke University, University of Minnesota, University of Oklahoma, University of Pennsylvania, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, University of Utah and Hospital of the Foothills Medical Center (Calgary, Canada).

Some degree of ROP appears in more than half of all infants born at 30 weeks pregnancy or younger—a full-term pregnancy is 40 weeks—but only about 5 to 8 percent of cases become severe enough to require treatment. In ROP, blood vessels in the tissue in the back of the eye called the retina begin to grow abnormally, which can lead to scarring and detachment of the retina. Treatment involves destroying the abnormal blood vessels with lasers or freezing them using a technique called cryoablation. Early diagnosis and prompt treatment is the best prevention for vision loss from ROP, which is why the American Academy of Ophthalmology recommends routine screening for all babies who are born at gestational age 30 weeks or younger or who weigh less than 3.3 pounds at birth.

The study evaluated telemedicine for ROP screening during the usual care of 1,257 premature infants who were born, on average, 13 weeks early. About every nine days, each infant underwent screening by an ophthalmologist, who assessed whether referral for treatment was warranted. Those who were referred were designated as having referral-warranted ROP (RW-ROP). Either immediately before or after the exam, a non-physician staff member in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) took images of the infant’s retinas and uploaded them to a secure server at the University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma City. Trained non-physician image readers at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, then downloaded the photos, independently evaluated them following a standard protocol, and reported the presence or absence of RW-ROP.

Through the telemedicine approach, non-physician image readers correctly identified 90 percent of the infants deemed to have RW-ROP based on examination by an ophthalmologist. And they were correct 87 percent of the time when presented with images from infants who lacked RW-ROP. The examining ophthalmologists documented 244 infants with RW-ROP on exam. After referral, 162 infants were treated. Of these, non-physician image readers identified RW-ROP in all but three infants (98 percent).

“This is the first large clinical investigation of telemedicine to test the ability of non-physicians to recognize ROP at high risk of causing vision loss,” said Eleanor Schron, Ph.D., group leader of NEI Clinical Applications. “The results suggest that telemedicine could improve detection and treatment of ROP for millions of at-risk babies worldwide who lack immediate in-person access to an ophthalmologist,” she said.

About 450,000, or 12 percent,  of the 3.9 million babies born each year in the United States are premature. The number of preterm infants who survive has surged in middle income countries in Latin America, Asia and Eastern Europe. In these parts of the world, rates of childhood blindness from ROP are estimated at 15 to 30 percent—compared to 13 percent in the United States.

One advantage of telemedicine ROP screening is that it can be done more frequently than screening by an ophthalmologist. “It’s much easier to examine the retina when not dealing with a wiggling baby,” said Quinn said. “If a baby is too fussy or otherwise unavailable when the ophthalmologist visits the NICU, the exam may be delayed until the ophthalmologist returns—sometimes up to a week later.”

Weekly ROP screening—or even more frequently for high-risk babies—is a realistic goal for telemedicine and could help catch all cases needing treatment, according to the report. In the study, imaging was restricted to occasions when an ophthalmologist examined the baby. In practice, hospital staff could implement an imaging schedule based on the baby’s weight, age at birth and other risk factors. “With telemedicine, NICU staff can take photos at the convenience of the baby,” Quinn said.

Telemedicine for evaluating ROP offers several other advantages:

• Telemedicine may help detect RW-ROP earlier. In the study, about 43 percent of advanced ROP cases were identified by telemedicine before they were detected by an ophthalmologist—on average, about 15 days earlier.
• Telemedicine could save babies and their families the hardship and hazards of being unnecessarily transferred to larger nurseries with greater resources and more on-site ophthalmologists. “Telemedicine potentially gives every hospital access to excellent ROP screening,” Dr. Quinn said.
• Telemedicine might also bring down the costs of routine ROP screening by reducing the demands on ophthalmologists, whose time is better allocated to babies who need their attention and expertise. In a separate analysis, the study found that non-physicians and physicians had similar success in assessing photos for RW-ROP. Three physicians evaluated image sets from a random sample of 200 babies (100 with RW-ROP based on the eye exam findings; 100 without) using the standard grading protocol. On average, the physicians correctly identified about 86 percent of RW-ROP cases; the non-physicians were correct 91 percent of the time. The physicians correctly identified about 57 percent of babies without RW-ROP; non-physicians were correct 73 percent of the time.

The cost of establishing a telemedicine ROP screening program includes acquisition of a special camera for taking pictures of the retina, training of NICU personnel to take and transmit quality photos, and establishment and maintenance of an image reading center. “As we move along this road, advances in imaging and grading of images may streamline the process even more,” Dr. Quinn said.

For more information about ROP, visit http://www.nei.nih.gov/health/rop/.

To view a video about e-ROP, visit the NEI YouTube channel at http://youtu.be/7l_CqjV3NMA.

A national publication for health care executives and managers has ranked the University of Louisville’s College of Business as one of the top business graduate schools for physician-executives.

UofL appears on a list Modern Healthcare compiled in May of the top graduate schools awarding advanced degrees in health care business administration in 2013-14. The ranking is based on how many full-time students are pursuing the degree at each school.

UofL placed at the 20^th spot with 45 students, just under Yale School of Management’s 48 students. Rice University’s graduate business school topped the list with 231 students.

UofL’s business school has offered an MBA degree with a health care focus since 2011. Students in the 20-month program take weekend courses preparing them for executive positions in hospital administration, senior care, health insurance, biomedicine and related areas.

For more details, see http://business.louisville.edu/wptest/images/Ranked20.pdf

Kentucky’s Horses and Hope is going international. Champion equestrian and Horses and Hope Pink Stable member Misdee Wrigley Miller will spread the message of breast cancer awareness as she competes next week in two European Equestrian World Cup qualifying events.

In 2008, the office of Kentucky First Lady Jane Beshear partnered with the Kentucky Cancer Program to create Horses and Hope. The program’s mission is to increase breast cancer awareness, education, screening and treatment referral among Kentucky’s horse industry workers and their families.

The University of Louisville and the University of Kentucky operate the Kentucky Cancer Program and staff Horses and Hope programs and events. UofL’s James Graham Brown Cancer Center, a part of KentuckyOne Health, manages the Kentucky Cancer Program for the western half of the Commonwealth.

On Thursday, July 3, Miller will compete in CAI3* horse driving competitions in Lähden and Riesenbeck, Germany, in the four-in-hand combined driving competition. Both competitions are FEI World Equestrian Game qualifying events. While there, she will spread awareness about the importance of breast cancer screening, early detection and education through the Horses and Hope program—sharing the program’s best practices and encouraging international participation.

Since 2009, she has served as a member of the Pink Stable, a committee of Kentucky horse owners, riders, trainers, farm owners and jockeys that support the Horses and Hope initiative.

“I have been grateful to serve as member of First Lady Jane Beshear's Horses and Hope Pink Stable committee, and even more honored to serve as an ambassador for this important initiative as I compete in Europe,” Miller said. “Women are traditionally care givers, especially so in the horse business; often they take care of their horses before they think of themselves. I have friends and family who have been touched by breast cancer, so I am aware of the importance of early detection. If I accomplish anything here, I want every woman, especially those with high risk, who hear my message to practice self-examination and get screened.”

Miller is a fourth-generation horsewoman and has been involved in the horse business her entire life. She is an accomplished rider and has competed as a United States team member twice in the FEI Pair Horse World Championships, was the 2013 USEF National Champion in Pairs and the 2014 USEF Reserve National Champion in 4-In Hands.

Horses and Hopehas hosted several breast cancer race days at Kentucky racetracks in the past six years, reaching nearly 1 million race track and horse show fans and educating nearly 16,000 equine employees. The program has screened close to 700 workers and detected breast cancer in two individuals, both of whom have received treatment.

The next Horses and Hope Race Day will be at Ellis Park in Henderson, Ky., on Aug. 2. For more information about Horses and Hope and all upcoming events, please visit www.horsesandhope.org.

For more information on breast cancer, please contact the Kentucky Cancer Program at UofL at http://kycancerprogram.org/kcp-west/.

The University of Louisville Department of Pediatrics is reorganizing its general pediatrics division, positioning itself to respond better to the needs of the community’s children and to the changing health care enrivonment.

The division provides primary care services to children in Louisville and Campbellsville, Ky., and helps train students and residents in medicine, nursing, dentistry, psychology and social work.. In 2013, its 22 pediatricians were responsible for more than 22,000 patients. Approximately 12 percent of the children in metro Louisville sees a UofL pediatrician as their primary care provider.

“Health care reform has placed a greater emphasis on primary care, where providers can promote health and safety,” said Gerard Rabalais, M.D., MHA, chair of the UofL Department of Pediatrics. “Pediatric programs like ours may be the best place to achieve success with health care reform since we have the ‘longest runway’ to influence attitudes about prevention and healthy lifestyle.”

A number of changes are planned for the coming months.

Consolidating offices, redeploying physicians

The department created a single, expanded practice site in Downtown Louisville, moving the office formerly located on Broadway at Floyd Street a few blocks north  of the Children & Youth Project (C&Y) at 555 S. Floyd St.

C&Y will offer all of the services previously offered at the Broadway office, and the expanded downtown clinic will serve as a medical home with a wider array of on-site ancillary services: social work, psychology, dental care, home health, speech therapy, WIC nutrition services and legal counseling.

“This practice demonstrates the power of a university to bring multiple disciplines together to provide comprehensive health care for children,” Rabalais said.

Patients may see a UofL pediatrician at C&Y or one of the department’s other general pediatrics practices: the Stonestreet location at 9702 Stonestreet Road; or the Sam Swope Kosair Charities Centre at 982 Eastern Parkway.

Families who want a Spanish-speaking provider will have three office locations to choose from in Downtown Louisville, Germantown and South Louisville.

“Consolidating these two offices and deploying our physicians to different locations lays the groundwork for increasing access and building partnerships in the communities we serve,” said Gil Liu, M.D., chief of the UofL general pediatrics division. “Increasingly, we want to be able to say, ‘Our pediatricians are coming to a neighborhood near you.’”

Adding pediatric practices

This summer, the UofL Department of Pediatrics will partner with an East Louisville pediatric practice, bringing the number of general pediatricians and nurse practitioners in the department to 36.

The department will also expand its Campbellsville, Ky., practice – located at 73 Kingswood Dr. – later this summer, partnering with Taylor Regional Hospital to open a satellite office in Columbia, Ky.

Plans also are underway to provide general pediatric care in the West End of Louisville.

“We see these additions as opportunities to expand availability to patients and support community practitioners, who don’t have the resources to support multiple disciplines or the buying power and advantage in contract negotiations that we do,” Rabalais said.

Creating a network

All of the Louisville pediatric practices will soon operate as a network. That means patients will have a medical home for routine visits as well as access to urgent care at any of the other Louisville general pediatric practices. The network also will enable families to access ancillary services headquartered at C&Y and specialty care by UofL pediatric specialists.

“We think an arrangement that offers ‘one-stop shopping’ for multiple health care providers will be good for all our patients,” Dr. Liu said.

Creating additional learning opportunities for trainees

The department’s reorganization also ensures that residents, medical students and trainees from other programs will have places to learn primary care pediatrics. Historically, trainees have spent time in community pediatric practices but these practices may struggle to continue hosting students because of changes in the health care landscape.

“It is part of our educational mission to expand primary care opportunities,” Rabalais said.

University of Louisville President James R. Ramsey, Ph.D., and Donald Miller, M.D., Ph.D., director of UofL’s James Graham Brown Cancer Center, issue the following statements on the death July 2 from cancer of Asia Ludlow of Louisville:

“Asia Ludlow possessed great courage and an attitude that was so uplifting to all who came in contact with her. Her zest for life was an inspiration to all of us.

“Asia will always remain a driving force for everyone at UofL who work in the field of cancer to find the cures and preventions so that one day, no more lives are lost to this terrible disease.

“Cancer can be an all-encompassing experience, affecting every aspect of a person’s life. Asia dealt with cancer head-on with hope and optimism. The disease was in her body, never in her spirit.

“To her daughters and other loved ones, we express our deepest sympathies. As we grieve for her loss, we hope that memories of Asia will provide some comfort to all who knew and loved her.

James R. Ramsey, President

“It is with great sadness that all of us at the James Graham Brown Cancer Center, KentuckyOne Health and the University of Louisville mourn the loss of Asia Ludlow.

“Asia was a 2013 Survivor Ambassador at the Julep Ball, and the true champion that she was, she joined us again at the 2014 Julep Ball to share her story. We were honored again when she began volunteering at our M. Krista Loyd Cancer Resource Center, helping other patients with her unmatched spirit of hope and compassion.

“Asia first fought breast cancer and kept fighting as it spread throughout her body. She was strong and committed, keeping faithfully to the treatment regimen prescribed for her – but her experience reminds us again that cancer is still a formidable enemy despite all we have at our disposal to combat it.

“Her odyssey as a patient with cancer began in 2008 and ended all too soon this week in mid-2014. Her life, however, serves as a legacy to show how one person’s grace, courage and caring heart can and does make a difference for others.”

Donald Miller, M.D., Ph.D., Director, James Graham Brown Cancer Center

To see and hear Asia’s message of hope in her own words, visit the James Graham Brown Cancer Center video here, her profile on Jean West’s Medical Digest here and her interview with Urban Lifestylez here.

The next Beer with a Scientist program will shed light on the “incurable” condition of aging.

Leah Siskind, Ph.D., associate professor of pharmacology and toxicology at the University of Louisville, will present “Everyone is Aging: So Why Haven’t We Found a Scientific Cure?” from 8-9 p.m., Wednesday, July 16, at Against the Grain Brewery, 401 E. Main St.

Admission is free. Purchase of beer, other beverages or menu items is not required but is encouraged.

The Beer with a Scientist program is now in its third month and is the brainchild of University of Louisville cancer researcher Levi Beverly, Ph.D. Once a month, the public is invited to Louisville’s Against the Grain brewpub for exactly what the title promises: beer and science.

Beverly created the monthly series as a way to connect with people who don’t have scientific backgrounds but want to know about scientific topics. “We lose sight of the fact that most people have never even met a Ph.D., never talked to one,” he said. “(However) whenever I go someplace, if I strike up a conversation at a bar and I tell someone what I do for a living, they always have questions. It leads to a whole conversation.”

Against the Grain’s Sam Cruz believes Beer with a Scientist bridges what he sees as a disconnect between scientists and the general public. “If you don’t know about something, it’s hard to care,” he said. “I think that’s why this works; what we’re doing with these talks is letting people take the time to think about these things.”

Organizers add that they encourage Beer with a Scientist patrons to drink responsibly.

For more information and to suggest future Beer with a Scientist topics, follow Louisville Underground Science on Facebook.

The University of Louisville James Graham Brown Cancer Center is teaming up with Lite 106.9 to give away tickets to the Opening Night VIP Preview Shopping Event at The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass.

Five pairs of tickets to the preview event are being given away this week by the radio station. To win, listen to Lite 106.9 with Vicki Rogers during the noon hour for the call for entries, and then phone 502-571-1069 for a chance to win.

The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass is holding the event to benefit the cancer center from 6-9 p.m., Wednesday, July 30, the evening before the facility opens to the general public.

Patrons will be able to get the jump on the rest of Kentuckiana in shopping at choice retail outlets such as Coach, Brooks Brothers, Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5^th, Michael Kors, J Crew, Banana Republic, Nike, Talbots, Under Armour and more. They also will receive a goody bag of items that includes a free coupon book with over $300 in savings good for an entire year at many of the 80-plus retailers that make up The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass. VIP preview event guests will also enjoy live music, light passed hors d’oeuvres, and the opportunity to bid on silent auction packages valued at $50 to $500 donated by Shoppes merchants.

Tickets are valued at $50 each, and for those not lucky enough to win, tickets can be purchased at www.shoppingforacure.org. Only patrons with tickets will be able to enter The Outlet Shoppes on opening night.

All proceeds from the VIP Preview go to the James Graham Brown Cancer Center, a part of KentuckyOne Health and the only cancer center in the region to use a unified approach to cancer care, with multidisciplinary teams of physicians working together to guide patients through diagnosis, treatment and recovery.

The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass is located at Exit 28 on Interstate 64. For additional information on the Opening Night VIP Preview or the James Graham Brown Cancer Center, contact 502-562-4642.

Craig McClain, M.D., has been named the Associate Vice President for Health Affairs/Research at the University of Louisville. McClain also serves as Distinguished University Scholar, UofL Associate Vice President for Translational Research, Director of the UofL Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute, Director of Research Affairs, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, and Director of Gastroenterology at the Louisville VAMC.

“Dr. McClain brings a wealth of research experience to this position. I am confident that in this new position, which bridges research activities across the university and acts as a liaison between the Offices of the EVPHA and the Executive Vice President for Research and Innovation, he will continue to provide outstanding research leadership on behalf of the Health Sciences Center,” said David L. Dunn, M.D., Ph.D., executive vice president for health affairs.

McClain is a widely recognized expert in alcohol abuse, nutrition, and cytokine research, as well as hepatic drug metabolism. In 1980, he described the deleterious interactions in the liver between alcohol and acetaminophen, and he was the first to describe dysregulated cytokines in alcoholic hepatitis.

His laboratory currently focuses on nutrition and the gut: liver axis, especially as it relates to alcoholic liver disease. He has published more than 340 peer-reviewed articles and 100 book chapters/reviews, and he has mentored more than 100 medical students, residents, GI fellows, graduate students and post-doctoral fellows.

He has received multiple awards, such as the American Gastroenterology Association Foundation Research Mentoring Award, the Elizabeth Hurlock Beckman award for mentoring,  the Grace A Goldsmith Award in Nutrition, the University of Louisville Distinguished Faculty Award in Research for Basic and Applied Sciences, and teaching awards such as Outstanding Gastroenterology Education at UofL.

McClain also has been prominent nationally, serving as president of the American College of Nutrition. He also has served on several NIH and VA Study Sections. He was the first physician member of the NIH Peer Review Advisory Committee (PRAC) and currently serves on the NIAAA National External Advisory Council and on the NIH Council of Councils.

The president of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies will present the 2014 Leonard Leight Lecture at the University of Louisville.

Victor J. Dzau, M.D., will speak at noon, Wednesday, Dec. 10, at Kornhauser Library Auditorium on the UofL Health Sciences Campus. Admission is free.

Dzau assumed the presidency of the IOM July 1 after having served as chancellor for health affairs at Duke University, president and CEO for Duke University Health System, and James B. Duke Professor, Duke University School of Medicine. He was elected to the IOM in 1988 and served on several leadership committees prior to being named president.

He has made a significant impact on medicine through his seminal research in cardiovascular medicine and genetics, his pioneering work in the discipline of vascular medicine, and recently his leadership in health care innovation. His work on the renin angiotensin system (RAS) – a hormonal system that regulates blood pressure and fluid balance – paved the way for the contemporary understanding of RAS in cardiovascular disease and the development of RAS inhibitors as therapeutics. Dzau also helped pioneer gene therapy for vascular disease. His most recent work provides novel insight into stem cell biology and regenerative medicine.

The Leonard Leight Lecture is presented annually by the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine in the Department of Medicine at the University of Louisville School of Medicine. For 30 years until 1996, Leight was a practicing cardiologist in Louisville and played a major role in developing cardiology services and bringing innovative treatment modalities in heart disease to Louisville.

The Leonard Leight Lecture series was established in 1994 and is made possible by gifts from Dr. and Mrs. Kurt Ackermann and Medical Center Cardiologists to the Jewish Hospital & St. Mary’s Foundation.

More than a dozen silent auction items valued at $50 to $500 from The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass will be available for bidding online beginning Friday, July 25, at 5 p.m. at www.shoppingforacure.org. Bidding online continues until 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 30, during the Opening Night VIP Preview Shopping Event.

The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass is holding the event from 6-9 p.m. to benefit the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville. The by-ticket-only VIP Preview is being held on the evening before the facility opens to the general public.

Patrons are encouraged to bring smart phones or tablets to the event to continue bidding until the silent auction closes. Among the merchants and items available are:

• Saks Fifth Avenue OFF FIFTH: $100 gift card
• Polo Ralph Lauren: 5 $100 gift cards
• Columbia: $500 gift card
• J Crew: $200 gift card
• Wilson’s Leather: ladies handbag
• Crabtree & Evelyn: $50 gift card and 2 gift sets
• Converse All Star: $100 gift card
• Auntie Anne’s: $150 in VISA gift cards and 3 At-Home Pretzel Kits
• Gold Toe, Hanes & Jockey: $250 in gift cards to Hanes Brands, $100 in gift cards to Jockey and a tote bag filled with Gold Toe socks

Patrons also will be able to beat the huge crowds expected for opening weekend and get the jump on the rest of Kentuckiana in shopping at the facility. Other retail outlets that will be open on the night of the VIP Preview include Coach, Brooks Brothers, Michael Kors, Banana Republic, Nike, Talbots, Under Armour and more. Patrons also will receive an exclusive goody bag of items that includes a free coupon book with over $300 in savings good for an entire year at many of the 80-plus retailers that make up The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass.

Tickets to the event are $50 each and also can be purchased at www.shoppingforacure.org. Only patrons with tickets will be able to enter The Outlet Shoppes on VIP Preview night.

Proceeds from the VIP Preview go to the James Graham Brown Cancer Center, a part of KentuckyOne Health and the only cancer center in the region to use a unified approach to cancer care, with multidisciplinary teams of physicians working together to guide patients through diagnosis, treatment and recovery.

The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass is located at 1155 Buck Creek Road, Exit 28 on Interstate 64. For additional information on the Opening Night VIP Preview or the James Graham Brown Cancer Center, contact 502-562-4642.

Researchers from the University of Louisville will lead an international effort to utilize tobacco plants to develop a gel containing a specific protein that will prevent the transmission of HIV. The project is being funded by a five-year, $14.7 million grant from the National Institutes of Health.

“Our researchers are looking to solve problems that affect the world,” said James R. Ramsey, Ph.D., president of the University of Louisville. “Globally, more than 34 million people are HIV positive. The development of a low-cost method to prevent transmission of HIV certainly is something that is desperately needed and the use of tobacco plants as a method of carrying the vaccine appears to be key in the process.”

“Approximately seven years ago, UofL and Owensboro Health created a joint venture to develop a world-class plant pharmaceutical program that would have an impact globally,” said David L. Dunn, M.D., Ph.D., executive vice president for health affairs at UofL. “Today’s announcement, coupled with the announcement we made in May about the Helmsley Charitable Trust providing funding to our research into two other cancer vaccines utilizing tobacco plants, demonstrates that the vision is becoming a reality.”

Kenneth Palmer, Ph.D., professor of pharmacology and toxicology and director of the Owensboro Cancer Research Program of UofL’s James Graham Brown Cancer Center, is leading a team of researchers from the University of Pittsburgh, the Magee-Women’s Research Institute in Pittsburgh, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden, the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada, the University of Maryland, Baltimore and Kentucky Bioprocessing Inc. and Intrucept Biomedicine LLC in Owensboro.

The team is working with the carbohydrate combining protein Griffithsin (GRFT), which is found in red algae. In laboratory work, the protein has shown to have broad-spectrum activity against HIV. GRFT binds to the dense shield of sugars that surrounds HIV cells and prevents these cells from entering other non-HIV cells. The team plans to develop a gel containing the protein for use during sexual intercourse by people at risk for HIV transmission.

To develop the microbicide, Palmer’s team takes a synthetic copy of the protein and injects it into a tobacco mosaic virus, which carries the protein into the tobacco leaves. After 12 days, the researchers harvest the leaves and extract the mass-produced protein for development into the vaccine.

“Our goal is to optimize the delivery system of the protective agent, which in this case is a gel, and determine its safety and estimates of its efficacy, leading to a first-in-humans clinical trial,” Palmer said.

“People may question why a cancer program is conducting research into HIV prevention,” said Donald Miller, M.D., Ph.D., director of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center, a part of KentuckyOne Health. “In fact, cancer can be a result of every major disease that we know about, and HIV infection is no exception.”

Overall, the grant contains three significant projects – The Critical Path Project; Preclinical Testing Project; and Clinical Trial Project.

The critical path project involves manufacturing the microbicide active ingredient, ensuring quality of the microbicide and the formulated gel product and production for actual use. This process is in collaboration with two Owensboro-based biotechnology companies (Kentucky Bioprocessing Inc. and Intrucept Biomedicine LLC), and Lisa Rohan, Ph.D., at the University of Pittsburgh and Magee-Women’s Research Institute. Rohan has significant experience developing delivery systems for similar medications.

The preclinical testing project is a collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta to use an animal model to ensure that the vaccine is safe and to determine that it actually provides protection from infection.

The clinical trial project involves developing the application to conduct a clinical trial for the Food and Drug Administration, as well as conducting the first-in-humans testing.

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Editor’s note: Palmer is one of the founders and principal partners in Intrucept Biomedicine LLC.