MINNEAPOLIS -- Oncologist Mark Klein, MD, may have just stepped down as president of the Association of VA Hematology/Oncology (AVAHO), but his main legacy—a foundation that AVAHO can call its own—is set in stone.
Over the past year, Klein has guided AVAHO as it leveraged its remarkable growth in recent years into the landmark creation of a foundation devoted to research. “We want to provide funds to researchers and support access to clinical trials for patients within the VA,” said Klein in an interview after he stepped down as association president at the 2019 AVAHO annual meeting.
Dr. Klein, who works for the Minneapolis VA Healthcare System and University of Minnesota in Minneapolis said the foundation is being seeded with $250,000. One goal is to use the foundation to support unique research projects that may not otherwise draw funding, he said.
For example, he said, the foundation could fund a research project by dietitians into severe weight loss in cancer. Or it could support a study by speech pathologists into swallowing in cancer patients.
In addition, he said, the foundation will focus on providing grants to support junior faculty, including researchers who aren’t MDs. And its funds will be used to boost access to clinical trials in cancer.
Klein said he has also focused on strategic planning and developing partnerships with industry and the leadership of both the VA and the National Cancer Institute. “We’re working to come up with unique ways to get people thinking about the barriers to clinical trials and providing better access for veterans.”
He is especially proud of AVAHO’s partnership with National Association of Veterans’ Research and Education Foundations, which includes partial support of a program manager position.
On the corporate front, he said, “we’re going to start offering corporate memberships so that we can form more industry relationships. That’s another new change and a step in our growth as we work to help more veterans and make a bigger difference.”
