City of Hope National Medical
Center is one of 41 NCI-designated Cancer Centers
and is located in the city of Duarte, California
. City of Hope comprises an ambulatory and
in-patient cancer treatment center as well as a biomedical research
facility known as the
Beckman
Research Institute and the
City of Hope
Graduate School of Biological Sciences.
A major non-profit organization, City of Hope was originally
founded in 1913 as a haven for those stricken with tuberculosis, as
the dry, desert-like climate of the
San Gabriel Valley was considered
beneficial for those with the illness. Since then, the institution
has grown to more than 300 physicians and scientists and over 2,500
employees, all of whom are part of City of Hope's work to find the
causes of - and cures for - various forms of
cancer as well as other life-threatening diseases,
including
diabetes and
HIV/
AIDS. The City of Hope campus is
located on over 112 acres, and as of 2006, has 158 licensed beds,
84 of which are devoted to
bone marrow transplantation
patients.
City of Hope is a leader in
translational research, and at any
given time is conducting more than 300
clinical trials involving 30 to 40 percent
of its eligible patients (compared to a national average of less
than 5 percent). Some of the medical and scientific treatments
based on research conducted at City of Hope include the drugs
Herceptin,
Rituxan,
and
Avastin. Additionally, a group of
scientists at City of Hope lead by
Arthur
Riggs and
Keiichi Itakura
pioneered the research that led to the ability to produce synthetic
human
insulin. City of Hope is also an early
pioneer in bone marrow transplantation, and has performed over 8000
bone marrow and stem cell transplants, making it one of the largest
and most successful programs of its kind in the world.
Its primary medical center is the
Helford Clinical Research
Hospital, built in 2005. This 347,000 square foot,
state-of-the-art facility provides immune-compromised patients high
levels of attention and comfort, and is designed to enhance
collaboration between physicians, caregivers, and clinical
researchers. The hospital offers one of the largest units in the
United States for performing
hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT),
including stem cell and bone marrow transplantation (BMT). The
facility’s 144 patient rooms are equipped to accommodate all but
the most critical patients, making possible a high level of daily
care.
The work performed at City of Hope is supported by public and
private grants, fundraising events, as well as gifts from private
donors. Its fundraising efforts are directed by its Development
headquarters in downtown Los Angeles, as well as satellite offices
in Seattle, San Francisco, Phoenix, San Diego, Chicago,
Philadelphia and Ft. Lauderdale. More than 290,000 volunteers and
donors worldwide support City of Hope and nearly 20 percent of its
funding comes from private support through charitable
contributions. A notable charity event is the Spring Luncheon
Spirit of Life held annually in New York City. Recipients of the
Spirit of Life Award include
Alexander Crutchfield. In May 2009,
cancer survivor and fashion designer
Kay
Unger will be presenting a runway show to increase awareness
about leading medical cancer treatments within the fashion
industry.
The hospital is located in Duarte, California. The main Development
Center, is located in downtown Los Angeles.
The City of Hope's most famous patient is Anissa Ayala of Hacienda
Heights, California, who (as a teenager in the early 1990s) was
diagnosed with acute leukemia, so her parents decided to expand
their family by giving Anissa a baby sister, Marissa, and using
Marissa's umbilical cord cells to stop the spread of the leukemia.
The plan was successful, and now Anissa is married and living in
nearby San Bernardino County; her sister Marissa is now a
high-school senior.
Affiliations
City of Hope is affiliated with the following institutions:
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