Helen F. Graham Cancer Center

Helen F. Graham Cancer Center All About Innovation

Headquartered in Delaware and operating since 2002, the Helen F. Graham Cancer Center is one of the most advanced cancer care facilities in the nation.

The center’s physicians diagnose and treat mesothelioma and other cancers with the help of the latest advances in medical technology, a 4,000-square-foot on-site research laboratory and an expansive array of amenities and services. A part of the ChristianaCare Health System, one of the largest health care providers in the U.S., the center provides comprehensive cancer treatment to more than 3,000 cancer patients per year.

In 2007, the Helen F. Graham Cancer Center was among the first 16 awarded sites of the National Cancer Institute’s Community Cancer Centers Program (NCCCP). Created to build a community-based research platform and improve the overall quality of patient care, the program and its support helped the center become recognized as a world leader in cancer diagnosis, treatment and research. Further, the Helen F. Graham Cancer Center’s excellence in cancer care served as a national model for other care centers when the NCCCP expanded to include an additional 14 community hospitals in 2010.

Expertise in Mesothelioma Treatment at Graham Cancer Center

Doctors at Helen F. Graham Cancer Center take a multidisciplinary approach to treatment of all cancer types, including mesothelioma. This means that a full team of mesothelioma experts provide cancer screening, prevention, treatment and palliative care under one roof. In addition to a primary care doctor, the multidisciplinary team could include a surgeon, a medical oncologist, a hematologist and a radiation oncologist.

Decades of clinical experience show that multimodal treatments combining surgery, chemotherapy and radiation are most effective, so the cancer center’s experts collaborate to provide a world-class treatment plan individualized for the specific needs of every patient.

Thoracic surgeons at the Helen F. Graham Cancer Center’s Thoracic and Esophageal Cancer Multidisciplinary Center use multimodal therapy to treat patients with mesothelioma, lung cancer, esophageal cancer and other malignancies of the chest.

Specializing in the treatment of mesothelioma, mediastinal tumors and lung cancer, Charles R. Mulligan, M.D., offers various effective surgical options, many of which are minimally invasive. Mulligan and his team not only strive to provide outstanding patient care today, but contribute toward advancing the treatment options of tomorrow. Helen F. Graham Cancer Center surgeons are deeply involved in collaborative research, medical education, national and international studies and clinical trials.

Graham Cancer Center Research Is Advancing Treatment

The quality treatments and patient care offered at the Helen F. Graham Cancer Center would not be possible without the countless advances being made in the laboratory. New scientific discoveries by ChristianaCare’s Cancer Research Program are constantly changing what is known about cancer and how it is most effectively treated.

As a part of the National Cancer Institute’s Community Cancer Centers Program, the Helen F. Graham Cancer Center received a $2.8 million boost to extend cancer research in 2010. This funding is currently being used to support basic, clinical and population-based research initiatives, expand community outreach programs, advance survivorship and palliative care and improve disparities in health care.

Mesothelioma Clinical Trials at ChristianaCare Helen F. Graham Cancer Center