Facts and Figures

The University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center serves 2.5 million people in southern and central Wisconsin and adjoining portions of Illinois.

Carbone Cancer Center members:

• Total more than 280 faculty from 55 departments and nine schools
• Have access to 16 shared services and laboratories that offer cost-efficient, state-of-the-art technology for researchers 

• Developed tomotherapy - a specialized form of radiation therapy targeting cancer cells, avoiding other cells and organs
• Instrumental in Wisconsin law improving patient access to clinical trials
• Leading developer of virtual colonoscopy
• Two $7 million federal grants received to fund housing for interdisciplinary prostate and breast cancer research
• Established a palliative care unit at UW Hospital and Clinics
• Chosen to lead a consortium of five institutions to conduct multiple Phase I and II clinical trials of cancer chemopreventive agents
• Developed tamoxifen, one of the best therapies for treating and preventing breast cancer
• Introduced 5-flourouracil, widely used to treat breast, ovarian, stomach and colon cancers
• Developed the conceptual basis for combination drug therapy
• Led the first clinical trials with DFMO, a potential cancer-preventing agent that slows an enzyme involved in tumor growth
• Launched the world's first test of "gene gun" technology in cancer patients
• One of three centers to participate in the national endostatin Phase I clinical trial
• Sponsored the nation's first telephone-based cancer helpline, which has now become the National Cancer Institute's Cancer Information Service
• First radiation oncology department in country to have CT/PET scanning for treatment planning
• Led the development of the Wisconsin Cancer Council and Wisconsin Cancer Pain Initiative