Wilmot Cancer Institute

Rochester scientists discover that long-lived bats resist cancer thanks to strong immune systems and protective genes—findings that could offer new insights into human aging and disease prevention.

“It’s an extraordinary moment in the history of the cancer center,” says Wilmot Cancer Institute director Jonathan Friedberg.

The new classification places Rochester among the top 4 percent of cancer centers in the United States.

At a May meeting, the University Board of Trustees elected two new members, and recognized three members on becoming life trustees.

The new imaging system developed by Michael Giacomelli, an assistant professor of biomedical engineering and of optics, uses two-photon fluorescence microscopy (TPFM).

An internal funding program, plus the close proximity of the University’s engineering and medical facilities, promotes progress in a potential treatment for acute myeloid leukemia.

Rochester biomedical engineer Michael Giacomelli is pursuing a quicker way to detect skin cancer.

Thu Le, professor of medicine; Paula Vertino, professor of biomedical genetics; and David Herrmann, professor of neurology; have each been recently appointed to named professorships.

Through this network, Wilmot Cancer Institute and Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo — the state’s two largest cancer care and research institutions outside New York City — will collaborate and expand genomic testing for cancer across the Finger Lakes and western New York region.