IRELAND-NORTHERN IRELAND-NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2003 | VOL. 3, ISSUE 3

Department of Health and Children 

Ireland

Department of Health, 

Social Services and Public Safety

Northern Ireland

National Institutes of Health

Department of Health and Human Services

United States

TELESYNERGY® Aims to

Improve Cancer Research and

Care Collaboration

www.allirelandnci.org

TELESYNERGY®, developed by NIH,

allows seamless, simultaneous transmissions

of medical data and images and promotes

collaboration between U.S. and island cancer

specialists and clinicians by enabling

interaction at multiple locations. The system

was recently used in the diagnosis and

treatment of a Northern Irish patient with a

rare form of leukaemia.

Available at selected sites on the island and in

the U.S., TELESYNERGY® provides highresolution image displays in both “real-time”

and “store-and-forward” modes through the

use of a combination of cameras,

microscopes, audio equipment, and other

peripheral devices. This system represents a

marked improvement over standard

videoconferencing technologies through

better resolution imagery and elimination of

delays in communication. It offers the added

benefit of minimizing travel costs and time

for patients and care providers and facilitates

education, training, and consultation in

cancer research protocols and patient care.

The technology also helps strengthen

national and international expertise in cancer

research and treatment by enhancing the

adoption of uniform standards of care.

TELESYNERGY® has many potential

collaborative and varied uses, including

clinical case conferences, grand rounds,

expert case review, multi-center radiotherapy

planning, and patient screening for clinical

trials. The system can also be used to

enhance distance learning and seminars, and

allows for high-quality diagnostic radiology

and pathology image transmission and for

discussion and remote manipulation of

biopsy specimens.

The newly formed TELESYNERGY® Users

Group met in Bethesda, Maryland, January

30-31, 2003, to share their experiences with

the system and explore potential applications.

The Users Group includes representatives

from Northern Ireland, Ireland, and

TELESYNERGY® sites in the United States.

Present at this meeting were representatives

from St. Luke’s Hospital (Dublin) and Belfast

City Hospital (Belfast) and from two U.S.

hospitals (Wheeling Hospital, Wheeling,

WVA, and Holy Cross Hospital, Fort

Lauderdale, FL). 

Continued on Page 2

Professor Donal Hollywood

(Ireland) welcomed NIH

Director Dr. Elias Zerhouni

and NCI Director Dr. Andrew

von Eschenbach to the

TELESYNERGY®

demonstration in Dublin.

On 13 November 2002, TELESYNERGY®, a state-of-the-art

telemedicine system, was demonstrated in a three-way conference

between Cancer Centres in Dublin and Belfast and the National

Cancer Institute (NCI). Dignitaries invited to attend the demonstration at

St. Luke’s Hospital in Dublin included U.S. Secretary of Health and

Human Services Tommy Thompson, National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Director Dr. Elias Zerhouni, and NCI Director Andrew von Eschenbach.
Working Group

Chairpersons

Implementation Group

Board of Directors

2 SUMMER 2003 | VOL. 3, ISSUE 3

Board of Directors

Dr. Henrietta Campbell

Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, Social Services and Public

Safety, Belfast, Northern Ireland

Dr. James Kiely

Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health and Children, Dublin, Ireland

Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach

Director, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland USA

Implementation Group

Ireland

Dr. Ruth Barrington, Chief Executive, Health Research Board, Dublin

Dr. Harry Comber, Director, National Cancer Registry, Cork

Professor Donal Hollywood, Professor of Clinical Oncology, Trinity

College Dublin

Dr. Mary Hynes, Regional Manager Acute Services, Western Health

Board, Galway

Professor Mark Lawler, Associate Professor of Experimental

Hematology, Department of Hematology and Institute for Molecular

Medicine, St James’s Hospital and Trinity College, Dublin/Chief Molecular

Geneticist and Director, Cancer Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory,

St James’s Hospital, Dublin

Ms. Mary McCarthy, Chief Nursing Officer, Department of Health and

Children, Dublin

Northern Ireland

Ms. Judith Hill, Chief Nursing Officer, Department of Health, Social

Services and Public Safety, Belfast

Professor Patrick Johnston, Director, Cancer Research Centre,

The Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast City Hospital, Belfast

Professor Robert W. Stout, Director, Research and Development

Office, Belfast

United States

Dr. Joe Harford, Director, Office of International Affairs, NCI

Dr. Richard S. Kaplan, Chief, Clinical Investigations Branch, NCI

Dr. Douglas Weed, Chief, Office of Preventive Oncology, NCI

Working Group Chairpersons

Cancer Registries

Dr. Harry Comber, Director, National Cancer Registry, Cork

Clinical Trials

Dr. Ruth Barrington, Chief Executive, Health Research Board, Dublin

Information Technology

Professor Donal Hollywood, Professor of Clinical Oncology, Trinity

College Dublin

Nursing

Ms. Judith Hill, Chief Nursing Officer, Department of Health, Social

Services and Public Safety, Belfast

Prevention

Dr. Douglas Weed, Chief, Office of Preventive Oncology, NCI

Scholar Exchange

Professor Patrick Johnston, Director, Cancer Research Centre,

The Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast City Hospital, Belfast

Throughout the two-day meeting, both the Users Group and

NIH/NCI staff members participated in group discussions

and breakout sessions that provided updates and highlights

about TELESYNERGY®. Presentations by island and U.S.

site representatives provided updates on their experiences

with TELESYNERGY®. The need for expansion of the U.S.

network to reach underserved populations was discussed, as were

potential projects for collaboration, such as an esophaegeal study.

The group shared their ideas about the use of the telemedicine

system for educational and training purposes (including joint

conferences) and for assessment of the quality of clinical

outcomes. The group also discussed potential technical

enhancements of the system. Telemedicine activities at the NIH

Clinical Center were described during a NIH/NCI staff-led tour

of the Center. The group also toured the Center for Information

Technology’s Computer Center.

Lance Liotta, Chief of the Laboratory of Pathology and Chief

of the Tumor Invasion and Metastases Section in the Center

for Cancer Research (NCI), briefed the group on NCI

telemedicine programs and offered a tour of his laboratory.

Robert Martino, Director of the Division of Computational

Bioscience, provided information about his division’s

involvement with telemedicine and the TELESYNERGY®

system. Overviews of telemedicine use in radiation oncology

and clinical oncology research were also presented.

For more information and meeting presentations, visit the

Consortium’s Web site at www.allirelandnci.org/. 

Island Participants, along with Dr. Joe Harford, Director of NCI’s Office of

International Affairs, attended the first TELESYNERGY® Users Group Meeting.

“One of the initial

areas of clinical

investigation to utilize

the technology within

TELESYNERGY® will

be a joint U.S.-Ireland

study of the clinical,

molecular and 

genetic factors that

predetermine patient

sensitivity to new

forms of chemoradiation treatment.” Donal Hollywood in St. Luke’s TELESYNERGY® center 

Continued from Page 1
Smoking Cessation Workshop

Held in Dundalk The Consortium sponsored a two-day workshop

Smoking Cessation: Current Practice and Future

Directions. Developing a Research Agenda. on May

21-22, 2003, at the Ballymascanlon Hotel in Dundalk, Ireland.

Select NCI staff and Consortium Prevention Working Group

members developed the content and structure of the workshop.

The workshop agenda was based on the goals of establishing

relationships between island and U.S. investigators and

identifying areas of need to be targeted for future research

collaborations. 

Speakers from Ireland, Northern Ireland, and the U.S.

addressed the current state of community-based cessation

activities and improvement of cessation efforts targeted at low

socioeconomic populations. Approximately forty participants

attended the workshop. A smaller group participated in a

working session the following day to prioritize issues, to identify

specific areas of research collaboration that incorporate feedback

and discussion, and to develop specific action plans to move

forward on collaborations. Workshop reports and

recommendations are available on the Consortium Web site at

www.allirelandnci.org/.

During the fall of 2002, four nurses from Northern Ireland and

Ireland completed the second round of Consortium-sponsored

clinical trials training. This training focuses on a team approach

to managing clinical trials, and learning about specific elements of clinical

trial management. The training aims to increase the confidence level of

island clinical trials nurses and provides opportunities for these nurses to

observe high-level clinical research and expertise.

To gain work experience in other clinical trials centre settings, nurses

rotated between the NCI Clinical Center and NCI’s branch at the

National Naval Medical Center. The visiting nurses also used this

opportunity to share their expertise in palliative care with U.S. colleagues

and each other. Besides their collaborative work time, the nurses spent time on tours of the metropolitan D.C. area and

beyond, which helped engender lasting friendships and continuing professional interaction when the nurses returned home. 

Ruth Boyd and Mairéad Devine (both from Belfast City Hospital, Belfast), Marie Cox (University College Hospital,

Galway), and Louise Sherwin (St. Luke’s Hospital, Dublin) completed the second round of training.

Plans for another round of training in the fall of 2003 are under development. Details will be available on the Consortium

Web site (www.allirelandnci.org).

3 SUMMER 2003 | VOL. 3, ISSUE 3

Clinical Trials Nurses Training Programme

NCI Nursing Supervisor Joyce Stocker (center) surrounded by

participants in the second round of 2002 clinical trials nursing

training.

Smoking Cessation Workshop speakers included: Front: Dr. Deirdre Kenny;

Second Row: Drs. Michael Boland and Sue Curry; Next Row: Dr. Doug Weed

(Moderator), Dr. Shu-Hong Zhu, and Ms. Norma Cronin; Top: Mr. Pat Purvis.
4 SUMMER 2003 | VOL. 3, ISSUE 3

With Consortium Board of

Directors members Drs.

Henrietta Campbell (Northern

Ireland), James Kiely (Ireland), and Andrew

von Eschenbach (United States) in

attendance, the first all-island cancer clinical

trials cooperative group was formally

launched on 8 February 2003 at the Royal

College of Surgeons in Dublin. The Belfast

launch of the cooperative group took place in

the Belfast City Hospital on 12 June 2003

during which Professor Sir George Radda,

Chief Executive of the UK Medical Research

Council and Chair of the UK National

Institute for Cancer Research, praised the

development of the group and emphasised

the importance of collaboration in modern

medical research.

The Irish Oncology Research Group

(Dublin) and the Clinical Research Support

Centre (Belfast) collaborated to form the

coordinating body and to provide data and

statistical management for a “network” of

cancer centres to ensure that patients on the

island have access to the latest and most

effective cancer therapies. The new all-island

group’s structure is based on similar U.S.

cooperative groups, which have proved

crucial in delivering new forms of cancer

treatment. 

The all-island group’s ambitious work plan

includes initiation and coordination of

clinical trials in cancer hospitals on the island. Over the

past two years, a Consortium initiative funded nine

hospitals in Ireland so that they can offer patients the

opportunity to participate in high quality clinical trials.

These nine hospitals, Belfast City Hospital, and four

regional cancer units in the North form the cooperative

group. Island collaboration with the U.S. and other

countries will help create a pool of participants large

enough to complete trials in a reasonable amount of

time. 

The Health Research Board in Dublin and the Research

and Development Office in Belfast are jointly funding

the new cooperative group.

Health professionals and officials who were instrumental in the formation of the

cooperative group gathered for the formal launch of the All-island Cancer Clinical Trials

Cooperative Group in Dublin.

Back Row (L-R) Dr. Dermot Kelleher, HRB Board Member, Ireland. Professor Bob Stout,

Director, R&D Office Northern Ireland. 

Middle Row (L-R) Dr. John Armstrong, ICORG Chair. Dr Karen Bailie, Director CRSC.

Front Row (L-R) Dr. Jim Kiely, Chief Medical Officer Department of Health & Children,

Ireland. Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach, Director NCI, U.S. Dr. Ruth Barrington, Chief

Executive Officer HRB, Ireland. Dr. Henrietta Campbell, Chief Medical Officer DHSSPS,

Northern Ireland. 

Northern Ireland health professionals and dignitaries attended the 12 June launch of the

All-island Cancer Clinical Trials Cooperative Group in Belfast.

(L-R) Consortium members Professor Robert Stout and Dr. Ruth Barrington; Professor

Sir George Radda; Dr. Karen Bailie, Director of the Clinical Research Support Centre; 

Dr. John Armstrong, Chairman of the Irish Clinical Oncology Research Group; and

Consortium member Professor Patrick Johnston, Director of the NI Cancer Centre.

First All-Island Cancer Clinical Trials Cooperative

Group Launched
UICC International Cancer

Technology Transfer Fellowships

The International Union Against Cancer (UICC), an

independent, international, non-governmental association, is

comprised of 291 cancer-fighting member organisations

representing 87 countries and covering all aspects of cancer

control. The UICC promotes epidemiology and prevention;

screening, early detection, and diagnosis; and a comprehensive

approach to tobacco control worldwide. It also works to collect

and distribute quality cancer information around the world.

UICC International Cancer Technology Transfer (ICRETT)

fellowships are funded by a group consisting of cancer

institutes, which includes the National Cancer Institute; cancer

societies, leagues, and associations; and governmental agencies

in North America, Europe, and Australia. These short-term

fellowships (up to 3 months) are intended for investigators and

clinicians working in countries where courses are not available

but where new skills can be applied upon return. Experts from

any country are eligible to apply; however, the NCI’s Office of

International Affairs will provide exceptional funding for Irish

and Northern Irish participants. Applications are particularly

encouraged for projects in cancer control and prevention;

epidemiology and cancer registration; public education; and

behavioural sciences. Visit the UICC Web site’s page on

ICRETT fellowships at fellows.uicc.org/fell4icr.shtml for

details and application information.

Multidisciplinary conference for U.S. and island cancer

care/research communities 

• Opportunities to meet with international cancer experts

• Updates on recent developments in cancer care/research

• Forum for exchange of views and ideas

Conference Web site 

www.conferencepartners.ie/cancer2003/

All-Ireland 

Cancer Care Conference 

19-22 October 2003 Cork

Professor Mark Lawler joined the

Implementation Group in September

2002. Currently the Honorary

Secretary of the Irish Association for

Cancer Research, he represents

research scientists on the

Implementation Group. He is Chairman of the St.

James’s Hospital Cancer Strategy Group and also

directs the Cancer Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory

there, the first of its type in Ireland. He has an active

research group working on the molecular basis of

cancer, particularly haematological malignancy. His

work on chimerism and minimal residual disease has

been honoured with awards such as the Ulster Cancer

Foundation lecture, the Eli Lilly Prize, and the Vander

Molen Prize for Leukemia Research. He is the Lead

Investigator of the Cancer Programme for the Dublin

Molecular Medicine Centre and a Visiting Lecturer in

Human Genetics, G’D’Annuzio University of Chieti

in Italy. He is both the co-ordinator of the MSc in

Molecular Medicine and an Honorary Lecturer in

Oncogenetics, Genetics Department, both at Trinity

College Dublin. He is also Scientific Secretary of the

Haematology Association of Ireland and is a member

of the European Cancer Research Forum.

Consortium Welcomes 

New Members

5 SUMMER 2003 | VOL. 3, ISSUE 3

Dr. Mary Hynes was named as a

member of the Implementation Group

in April 2002. As Regional Manager of

Acute Services (Western Health Board)

for the Department of Public Health in

Dublin, she represents four acute

hospitals and the primary care unit of the Western

Health Board, which encompasses the region along

Ireland’s west coast and includes Galway and

surrounding rural areas. She has more than 25 years

experience in public health in Ireland. Working with

the population as a whole in a wide range of areas

from health promotion and prevention to screening,

diagnosis, treatment, and palliative care, she advises

the Consortium on needs such as training and

infrastructure enhancement for hospitals. 
New Fellowship Programmes (under the auspices of the

Consortium)—details to be posted at www.allirelandnci.org/

Collaborative Fellowships for Island Cancer Prevention Researchers:

New level of support for island cancer researchers to participate in

the Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program at the NCI

Joint Research Project Fellowships: Competitive Consortiumsponsored fellowships that support island Research Fellows

collaborating with a self-assembled multinational team on defined

cancer research projects of mutual interest 

All-Ireland Cancer Conference-19-22 October 2003 in Cork 

Call for abstract submissions for poster presentations

Conference Web site: www.conferencepartners.ie/cancer2003/

Second All-Ireland Cancer Incidence and Mortality Report 

(Fall 2004)

Dr. Douglas L. Weed’s article Cancer Prevention and the All-Ireland

NCI Cancer Consortium was published in the December 2002 Journal

of Health Promotion for Northern Ireland. Dr. Weed is Chair of the

Consortium’s Prevention Working Group, and Dean, Education and

Training, Division of Cancer of Prevention, National Cancer Institute.

He also directs the Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program at NCI. A

reprint of the article is available in the Prevention section of the

Consortium’s Web site at www.allirelandnci.org/programs/prev.asp.

Dr. Deirdre Cronin, a molecular biologist from Ireland, recently arrived

in the U.S. for the first year of a three-year Consortium-sponsored

epidemiology fellowship. Prior to this, she had a four-month assignment

at the National Cancer Registry of Ireland (Cork).

Joe Campo of the Washington State (U.S.) Cancer Registry will begin a

one-year research fellowship on the island to produce the Second AllIreland Cancer Incidence and Mortality Report, a jointly funded project

of the Department of Health and Children (Ireland) and the Department

of Health Social Services and Public Safety (Northern Ireland).

Publication of the report is expected by fall 2004.

Island health professionals will attend two separate summer prevention

courses—Principles and Practice of Cancer Prevention and Control

and Molecular Prevention—at the NCI in July and August. 

What’s Next

6 SUMMER 2003 | VOL. 3, ISSUE 3

IRELAND-NORTHERN

IRELAND-NATIONAL CANCER

INSTITUTE

Published periodically by the IrelandNorthern Ireland-National Cancer

Institute Cancer Consortium.

Distributed in Ireland, Northern

Ireland, and the United States. 

The Consortium welcomes your

comments and suggestions.

Please direct all communications to

the Consortium at:

E-MAIL

consortium@cancer.gov

TELEPHONE

(from Ireland/Northern Ireland)

001-301-496-5534

ADDRESS

Ireland-Northern Ireland-NCI 

Cancer Consortium

6130 Executive Blvd.

Suite 305

Bethesda, MD 20892

WEB SITE

www.allirelandnci.org

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