The SSO Foundation works in partnership with SSO to improve multidisciplinary patient care by advancing the science, education and practice of cancer surgery worldwide. This year’s Young Investigator Award is supported in part by the funds raised in memory of Donald Morton, MD and supports a melanoma research study. Through these awards, The SSO Foundation hopes to advance the goal of promoting and recognizing clinical/translational research that advances innovative ideas and concepts designed to improve health outcomes through advances in the delivery of cancer-related care. The 2018 Young Investigator Award recipient is Michael Lowe, MD, MA for his project “Evaluation of FcgRIIB as a Novel T-cell Inhibitor in Cutaneous Melanoma.”
The 2018 – 2020 Clinical Investigator Award was presented to Heather Neuman, MD for her research project “Understanding Socioeconomic Disparities in the Receipt of Post-Mastectomy Breast Reconstruction.” SSO and The SSO Foundation gratefully acknowledge Genentech, Inc. for their support of the Clinical Investigator Award program.
A Closer Look at Dr. Heather Neuman’s Research Project “Understanding Socioeconomic Disparities in the Receipt of Post-Mastectomy Breast Reconstruction”
Heather Neuman, MD, MS is a surgical oncologist at the University of Wisconsin, where she has been practicing since 2009. She explains, “We’ve been reporting reconstruction disparities for decades. It is a very complex issue, which may be the primary reason why it hasn’t been fully addressed. The basic ground work to define and understand the barriers by various stakeholders is needed.”
Dr. Neuman’s research will focus on understanding why barriers exist, defining boundaries around the problems and identifying actionable interventions. Drawing on the infrastructure in place throughout the state of Wisconsin, Dr. Neuman will collaborate with approximately 40 multi-specialty centers that are NAPBC-approved programs. These centers are well distributed geographically and patients have access to plastic surgeons. It is anticipated that the geographic diversity within the state will indicate that the drivers of reconstruction disparities vary depending on the setting.
“I believe it touches all of our practices and it is something that we talk about. I like to use the example of a patient who was a waitress and declined reconstruction because she was not able to leave her job for frequent office visits, it just wasn’t an option for her. This socioeconomic example is complex and is a social problem – it is very different than not having insurance,” Dr. Newman said.
Her research plan has several components with the goal of creating a stakeholder group across the state including breast surgeons, plastic surgeons, navigators and patients. The group would discuss reconstruction barriers and map them to potential interventions. A menu of interventions would then be piloted to communities, allowing for customization of recommended approaches.
“It is an incredible honor to receive the Clinical Investigator Award. I’ve known about it for several years and greatly respect the surgical oncologists who have previously received the award,” said Dr. Neuman. Dr. Neuman will present a follow-up to her research at SSO 2020.
Read more about previous Clinical Investigator Award Recipients.