A leading expert in bladder and prostate cancer, George Hemstreet III, M.D., Ph.D., has been named the Malashock Chair in urologic surgery, chief of the section of urologic surgery and professor of surgery.
A native of the Netherlands and the son of an industrial engineer, Dr. Hemstreet joins UNMC after serving 20 years as a George Lynn Cross Research Professor of Urology at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center in Oklahoma City.
Dr. Hemstreet’s career in academic medicine includes one year at Duke University Medical Center, four years at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and two years at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.
Researching cancer in its earliest stages
While at the University of Oklahoma, Dr. Hemstreet led a multidisciplinary research team to develop new methods for quantifying proteins in single cells (single-cell proteomics). This research led to further understanding some of the fundamental concepts related to cancer development in its earliest stages. Utilizing this technology, while working with the World Health Organization Center and the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine in Beijing, China, the research team of more than 20 scientists was able to predict individuals at risk for bladder cancer three to five years prior to clinically detectable disease.
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“Dr. Hemstreet brings a great deal of clinical and research expertise to the Medical Center. His expertise in prostate and bladder cancer will complement our clinical enterprise. He’s a national figure in urology and will help us continue to build a world-class research and clinical program. He has also been very well received by community urologists.” “UNMC has a strong tradition of high quality urologic surgeons. Dr. Hemstreet will continue this tradition and will greatly advance our research activities as we try to improve the treatments for patients with these diseases. UNMC has had an extremely successful research program in the biology of prostate cancer. Dr. Hemstreet’s expertise in the prevention of prostate cancer will complement the lab and clinical science expertise of our existing scientists and help us become a world leader.” |
The fundamental concepts for implementing this international study were based on Dr. Hemstreet’s extensive research, which includes more than 104 articles in scientific journals, 16 book chapters, 143 abstracts and presentations, and 10 patents. While at the University of Oklahoma, he also started his own company, CytoDiagnostics Inc., later renamed UroCor Inc. The company served as the cornerstone for a research park in Oklahoma City, which was developed in conjunction with community leaders and now has grown to include four buildings.
Trained in United States
With the exception of one year at a seminary in Wyoming, Dr. Hemstreet lived in the Netherlands until he was 18 years old. He received his higher education in the United States, earning his bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Wake Forest University, his medical degree from Hahnemann Medical College, and his Ph.D. in immunology and microbiology from Duke University Medical Center.
Making predictions
His research in bladder and prostate cancer has centered on finding cell markers that will allow for early detection and prevention of cancer.
“Our goal has been to predict who will get bladder or prostate cancer before they get it,” Dr. Hemstreet said. “One of the big problems in urology is that many men have an elevated PSA (prostate specific antigen) test. Then, over the next 10 years, it’s not uncommon for them to undergo five or six biopsies to determine if they have cancer. I’ve been looking for ‘fingerprints’ in the first biopsy that will allow us to make an accurate risk assessment without undergoing numerous additional biopsies.”
These advances may prove useful for future chemoprevention strategies including new drug development, Dr. Hemstreet said. He hopes that his research in conjunction with the UNMC Eppley Cancer Center and the Prostate Cancer Research group on campus will bridge the gap between mouse and man and assist basic prostate research that will lead to new prostate cancer treatments and prevention.
Outlining his goals
As director of the urologic surgery program in the department of surgery, Dr. Hemstreet said his initial goals are to recruit several new faculty members to support the research and clinical direction of UNMC and to assist existing faculty in their career development.
Dr. Hemstreet is one of the faculty members recruited through the tobacco settlement funds that the Nebraska Legislature allocated to UNMC and the state’s other three biomedical research institutions — the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Creighton University and Boys Town National Research Hospital. In 2001-2002, the Legislature allocated nearly $5 million to the UNMC Tobacco Settlement Biomedical Research Development Fund.
A pioneer in biomarker research
During his career, in addition to his extensive research on bladder cancer, he has pioneered biomarker research in esophageal and lung cancer in China as part of a program co-sponsored by the National Cancer Institute. He is one of the few Americans to be named to the prestigious Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences. From 1991 to 1995, he served as vice chairman of the Subcommittee on Biologic Markers of Urinary Toxicology through the National Research Council. Another member of this committee was William Berndt, Ph.D., former UNMC chancellor and vice chancellor of academic affairs who is now serving as interim chairman of the UNMC pharmacology department.
In the community, at home
Dr. Hemstreet has been active in medical organizations and in the community, serving as president of the Oklahoma State Urologic Association and on the board of the Downtown Lions Club in Oklahoma City. He received the American Medical Association Citation for Meritorious Services for his help with the Oklahoma City bombing victims and several other citations from the Oklahoma Legislature during his career.
His wife, Yuan, is a physician from China, who worked at the National Cancer Institute of China, studied at the Peking Union Medical College and spent a year at the International Association for Cancer Research in Lyon, France. They are the parents of two children Leon (age 4) and Jennifer (age 12).