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Wilding named Cancer Center director

January 29, 2004 By Michael Felber

George Wilding has been named director of the UW Comprehensive Cancer Center (UWCCC). Wilding’s appointment, which comes after a national search and is effective immediately, was announced by Philip Farrell, dean of the UW Medical School.

Wilding, 51, was appointed acting director of the UWCCC in November 2002, upon the resignation of John Niederhuber, who served as director from 1997 to 2002.

“Dr. Wilding is nationally known for his research in new drug development focusing on prostate and other cancers,” Farrell said. “We are very pleased that he will be leading our Cancer Center as we pursue newer and more effective cancer treatments for patients. He brings to this position vast experience in Cancer Center leadership roles that will help advance the organization among the nation’s 38 comprehensive cancer centers. He also has an incredible passion for all aspects of our cancer program – patient care, teaching, research and community outreach. ”

Wilding has served as the Cancer Center’s associate director for clinical research programs since 1998. These programs conduct more than 200 clinical research trials each year. From 1995 to 2003, he directed the UWCCC Experimental Therapeutics Program, which seeks to identify new anti-cancer agents in the laboratory and translate them into clinical treatments with human patients. The program’s clinical trial of Endostatin drew international attention and was highlighted on PBS’s “NOVA” special “Cancer Warrior,” which was nominated for an Emmy Award.

The UWCCC holds the unique distinction of being the only comprehensive cancer center in Wisconsin, as designated by the National Cancer Institute, the lead federal agency for cancer research. During Wilding’s tenure as acting director of the UWCCC, annual external research and training support has reached close to $100 million, or approximately one-sixth of all UW–Madison research funding.

Among the several major awards underscoring the Cancer Center’s level of excellence are:

  • In September 2003, Tommy Thompson, Secretary of Health and Human Services, presented a $7 million federal grant for construction of new UWCCC space. Specifically the grant will provide funding to house interdisciplinary prostate cancer research on one of four new Cancer Center floors planned for the Interdisciplinary Research Complex.
  • The UWCCC was chosen as one of eight centers to study the relationship between cancer and aging with a $3 million grant for five years jointly funded by the National Cancer Institute and National Institute on Aging.
  • The UWCCC received a $5 million contract to form a consortium of five universities to conduct multiple Phase I and II clinical trials of cancer chemopreventive agents.
  • A National Institutes of Health grant for more than $4 million over five years was awarded to the UW to fund a George M. O’Brien Urology Research Center.
  • A $10 million grant to fund a “Center for Excellence in Cancer Communications Research” at UW–Madison was announced in August 2003.

Donna Sollenberger, president and CEO of UW Hospital and Clinics, said she “looks forward to working with Dr. Wilding and the Cancer Center faculty and staff in continuing to advance cancer care and discovery. UW Hospital and Clinics is pleased with its long-standing relationship with the UWCCC and the exceptional care our patients receive through this close association.”

A nationally renowned prostate cancer researcher, Wilding is the Donald and Marilyn Anderson Professor of Medicine and serves as head of the Medical Oncology section within the Department of Medicine at the UW Medical School. He has been a UWCCC member since joining the UW faculty in 1988. In his clinical practice, Wilding sees patients with genitourinary cancers, including prostate, kidney, testicular and bladder cancers. He is currently chairman of the Genitourinary Cancer Committee of the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group, a National Cancer Institute-sponsored clinical research group, and serves on numerous NCI, industry and foundation advisory and review boards.

“Cancer will directly affect one of every two men and one of every three women in their lifetime,” Wilding said. “Fortunately, many of those on the front lines in the fight against cancer are conducting their research right here at the UW Comprehensive Cancer Center. I am honored by this appointment and pleased to work with an extraordinary team of faculty and staff that collectively places this organization among the nation’s leading cancer research and treatment facilities.”