St. Jude Marks 25th Year of Cancer Survivors Clinic

Adults who survived childhood cancer return to St. Jude Children's Research
Hospital to celebrate victory over disease, mark clinic's 25th anniversary

MEMPHIS, Tenn., Oct. 5 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Treatment advances in recent
decades mean that the ranks of childhood cancer survivors have swelled to
about 325,000 individuals nationwide. St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
has led the field in developing major research programs that follow survivors'
progress for decades after their treatment. The centerpiece of efforts to
maintain the long-term health of cancer survivors is the After Completion of
Therapy (ACT) Clinic which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year.

As cancer treatments have become more successful, gathering long-term data on
cancer survivors has become more important to improve their quality of life.
Such data are invaluable because they yield basic scientific insights and new
treatments that help future generations of patients. They also improve the
quality of life of today's survivors.

"The ACT Clinic anticipates survivors' needs based on their unique cancer
history, assuring that they have access to appropriate screenings and
community resources, and partnering with local health care providers to
streamline the transition from pediatric to adult care," said Melissa Hudson,
M.D., director of the Cancer Survivorship Division and co-leader of the Cancer
Prevention and Control Program.

St. Jude patients can transfer to the ACT Clinic when they maintain remission
for at least two years after completing therapy and are at least five years
from diagnosis. They then go to the clinic every year until they are 18 years
of age or until 10 years after diagnosis, whichever is later. At that time,
ACT patients graduate and become St. Jude alumni.

Each year, scores of these alumni and their families return to St. Jude to
commemorate an integral part of their childhood at St. Jude Annual Survivors
Day Conference. The event welcomes St. Jude alumni and patients of all ages
back to the hospital to reconnect with staff and former patients, attend
educational workshops and participate in special activities that commemorate
their battle against catastrophic disease. This year's event is Saturday,
October 10.

"It is important to remember that survivorship does begin at the day of
diagnosis. We consider all of our patients survivors," Hudson said. "We also
want them to see that, once they get through therapy, they can lead normal,
productive lives."

As part of the 2009 celebration, themed "Survivorship: Enhancing the Silver
Lining," keynote speaker, 2008 Olympic swimmer and cancer survivor Eric
Shanteau will share his message of hope and triumph. During the summer of
2008, Shanteau achieved his lifelong dream of qualifying for the U.S. Olympic
Swim Team. Just one week before the trials, he was found to have with
testicular cancer. Shanteau was able to delay surgery to compete in the
Olympic Games where he swam a personal best time in the 200 meter
breaststroke. Shanteau is an advocate for cancer awareness, especially in
young adults, and travels the country giving motivational speeches.

For those who have already marked a decade or more as cancer survivors, St.
Jude is in the midst of one of the most ambitious studies yet of the long-term
impact of cancer and its treatment. The St. Jude Life study is inviting more
than 4,000 of alumni cancer survivors who were treated at the hospital to
return for clinical evaluation.

"The goal is to better understand issues survivors face and to identify
factors that might help predict risk for long-term health problems," said Les
Robison, Ph.D., Epidemiology and Cancer Control chair. "The knowledge will
also inform future cancer treatments. Today's therapies are based on improved
understanding of the potential treatment complications of those earlier
therapies. The findings of this study will serve as a benchmark against which
we will be able to compare future outcomes."

The scientific community will learn more when St. Jude investigators publish
specific St. Jude Life outcomes in early 2010. The work will continue for
decades with the expertise and resources available to fight late effects from
all angles.

"Following St. Jude patients throughout life is a substantial institutional
commitment," Robison said. "Moving forward is going to require tenacity,
perseverance and focus as we capitalize on this unique opportunity to cure our
patients with minimal or no adverse long-term effects of their cancers."

For more related to cancer survivorship:
Les Robison, Ph.D., is chair of the Epidemiology and Cancer Control
Department; associate director for Cancer Prevention and Control, Cancer
Center; and co-leader of the Cancer Prevention and Control Program. Robison is
an expert in the epidemiology and etiology of childhood cancer, cancer
survivorship, cancer outcomes research, and clinical trials in cancer
prevention and control. He is also a principal investigator for the Childhood
Cancer Survivor Study.

Melissa Hudson, M.D, is director of the Cancer Survivorship Division and
co-leader of the Cancer Prevention and Control Program. Hudson is an expert in
late effects of cancer therapy and health education and promotion in childhood
cancer survivors. She is also a principal investigator for the Childhood
Cancer Survivor Study.

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is internationally recognized for its
pioneering work in finding cures and saving children with cancer and other
catastrophic diseases. Founded by late entertainer Danny Thomas and based in
Memphis, Tenn., St. Jude freely shares its discoveries with scientific and
medical communities around the world. No family ever pays for treatments not
covered by insurance, and families without insurance are never asked to pay.
St. Jude is financially supported by ALSAC, its fundraising organization. For
more information, please visit www.stjude.org.

SOURCE St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Carrie Strehlau, +1-901-595-2295, or +1-901-595-3578, pager 2500,
carrie.strehlau@stjude.org, or Summer Freeman, +1-901-595-3061, or
+1-901-595-3578, pager 2348, summer.freeman@stjude.org, both of St. Jude
Children's Research Hospital