• MGH study finds herceptin has additional antitumor qualities
  MGH scientists have discovered that herceptin, a monoclonal antibody used to fight certain forms of breast cancer, can stop the growth of new blood vessels. Herceptin is known to block the cell receptor HER2 on breast cancer cells and is used to treat women whose tumors produce extra copies of the receptor, which causes a more aggressive form of cancer. In the March 21 issue of Nature, researchers from the MGH Department of Radiation Oncology show that herceptin also can reduce the diameter and volume of tumor blood vessels, slow tumor growth and prolong survival in animal models of cancer.

• Anyone need a taxi?
  There will be no more waiting for a taxicab at MassGeneral Hospital for Children thanks to a donation from Jordan's Furniture. And what do taxis have to do with furniture? The furniture retail company, known for its generosity to local charities, donated a fleet of 24 yellow, taxi-shaped push carts to the hospital to make transport between tests and appointments more enjoyable for young patients.

• AMMP celebrates Women's History Month
  In recognition of the progress and resilience of women leaders in the work place, the Association of Multicultural Members of Partners (AMMP) hosted a special Women's History Month celebration featuring guest speaker, Matina Horner, PhD. Horner, who is a trustee of the MGH and chair of the Institute of Health Profession's Board of Trustees, delivered a talk entitled "Then and Now: Women Leading in a Male-Dominated World."

• Shopping for a good cause
  Armed with credit cards and ready for a good discount, bargain hunters shopped until they dropped March 6 at Bloomingdale's in Chestnut Hill. But this was no ordinary sale. Shoppers received merchandise discounts of up to 30 percent off, and in exchange, the MGH Vincent Obstetrics and Gynecology Service received a donation from ticket sales in support of important Vincent research.

• Safety at the MGH: New director joins Safety Office
  It is a homecoming of sorts for Bob Castaldo, who recently was selected to be the new safety director at the MGH. Castaldo had served as assistant safety officer from 1978 until he left the MGH in 1988.

• MGH Mercury Containment Initiative makes progress
  As part of the MGH's ongoing Mercury ContainmentInitiative (MCI), field teams from the Safety Office and Triumvirate Environmental Services have been working with MGH researchers and clinicians to collect and test products for mercury content to help eliminate the unintentional discharge of the toxic element.

• Blum Center celebrates third anniversary
  The Maxwell and Eleanor Blum Patient and Family Learning Center (PFLC) at the MGH is celebrating its third anniversary throughout the month of March.

• What's Happening

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