Page Updated March 8, 2024

University of Maryland Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center

The University of Maryland’s Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center (UMGCCC) is located on the medical campus of the University of Maryland at Baltimore and is a collaboration of the University School of Medicine and the University of Maryland Medical Center. The Cancer Center, which won National Cancer Institute designation as a comprehensive cancer center in 2016, emphasizes a “bench to bedside” approach that connects its research directly to its clinical practice. Clinicians and scientists work together to generate new ideas and methods for cancer treatment and keep the patient at the center of focus at all times.

UMGCCC specializes in treating and researching many different types of cancers, including brain cancer, endocrine malignancies, gynecologic cancer, and ocular cancer.  Patients diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma, malignant peritoneal mesothelioma, and lung cancer will be treated at the Mesothelioma and Thoracic Oncology Treatment and Research Center, where several physicians with unique expertise in the treatment of the rare and deadly form of cancer collaborate to provide patients with the highest quality treatment.[1] 

Facts about the University of Maryland Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center

UMGCCC was recognized as an NCI-designated Cancer Center in 2008 and was elevated to a comprehensive cancer center in 2016. That designation was renewed in 2021.

The center sees more than 59,000 outpatients each year, as well as more than 1,100 inpatient admissions.

There are currently 280 physicians and researchers at UMGCCC, with many of them actively involved in the 484 innovative clinical trials in process there.

The University of Maryland Medical Center is known as the birthplace of modern trauma care. 

UMGCCC receives $122 million in annual research funding.  

Beyond the care provided by physicians, at the UMGCCC, patients benefit from a top-rated nursing staff specially trained in cancer care, and support services including social work, patient navigators, genetic and nutrition counseling, and palliative care.

History

The College of Medicine of Maryland was founded in 1807 as the fifth medical school in the country. Its first building was constructed in 1812 and is the oldest building in the United States used continuously for medical education.

The University of Maryland Hospital was the first hospital in the nation for medical teaching and training. Founded in 1823 as the Baltimore Infirmary by the clinical teaching faculty of the School of Medicine, by 1850 it had grown to 150 beds and by 1920 it had become part of the University of Maryland. In 1965, the school opened the Baltimore Cancer Research of the National Cancer Institute, and in 1978 it was renamed the Baltimore Cancer Research Program after the two affiliated.  It was again renamed the University of Maryland Cancer Center in 1981.

In 1996, Baltimore-based real estate developer, Stewart Greenebaum, made a $10 million gift to the University of Maryland Medical System with his wife Marlene, in recognition of the Medical Center’s “extraordinary growth and progress.” The Medical System and School of Medicine renamed the University of Maryland Cancer Center after the Greenebaums.

Mesothelioma and Lung Cancer Care at the University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center

The UMGCCC’s Mesothelioma and Thoracic Oncology Treatment and Research Center uses a multidisciplinary treatment approach to identify the most effective treatment plans for patients diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma and other thoracic cancers.  Staffed by experts in oncologic surgery, medical oncology, radiation oncology, and pulmonary and integrative medicine, the team works together to ensure that patients have the highest possible quality of life and best outcomes.[1] 

Treatment services available to patients at the center include:

• Tri-modality therapy of surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy
• State-of-the-art surgical techniques including the lung-sparing procedure called extended pleurectomy-decortication in which the affected lung is spared and the diseased pleura is removed, followed by the surgical site being rinsed with heated povidone iodine to destroy leftover traces of the cancer.
• Chemotherapy
• Radiation therapy
• Proton therapy, a highly targeted form of radiation therapy that localizes the radiation exposure to minimize its impact on healthy surrounding tissue.
• CRS-HIPEC, a combination of cytoreductive surgery with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy for the treatment of malignant peritoneal mesothelioma.

The center also staffs a dedicated mesothelioma nurse to coordinate appointments and treatment with each of its physicians. This compassionate professional also assists patients with health insurance authorizations to minimize stress and inconvenience.[1]

Research

The mesothelioma research being conducted by experts at the Mesothelioma and Thoracic Oncology Treatment and Research Center is built on a foundation of clinical trials that research new drugs, a new way of using existing treatments, or newly developed treatment methods. The center is currently running the following clinical trial:

• Phase I Study of TRC102 in Combination with Cisplatin and Pemetrexed in Patients with Advanced Solid Tumors, with Expansion Cohort in Mesothelioma / Phase II Study of TRC102 with Pemetrexed in Patients Refractory to Cisplatin and Pemetrexed. NCI 9837, PhI-76[2]

Notable Staff and Mesothelioma Specialists

The Mesothelioma and Thoracic Oncology Treatment and Research Center at UMGCCC is staffed by renowned specialists in surgery, medical oncology, radiation oncology, pulmonary medicine, and palliative medicine. Top physicians treating lung cancer patients as well as patients diagnosed with both pleural and peritoneal mesothelioma include thoracic surgeons Dr. Bartley P. Griffith and Dr. Nadere N. Hanna and medical oncologists Dr. Petr F. Hausner and Dr. Katherine A. Scilla.[3]

The University of Maryland Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center’s Mesothelioma and Thoracic Oncology Treatment and Research Center is dedicated to providing the finest care available for mesothelioma and thoracic oncology patients, and to developing better treatments for tomorrow.