If you want to discuss the benefits of robotic prostate surgery, you’ll have to catch up with Paul Kuligowski, 52, of Washington Township. Just three weeks after his minimally invasive procedure at Beaumont's cancer center in Michigan, he was part of a relay team that competed in the recent Detroit Free Press Marathon.

Following a diagnosis of prostate cancer, Paul had a robotic prostatectomy at Beaumont Hospital in Troy, Michigan. With a smaller incision, less pain and a shorter hospital stay, the robotic surgery meant Paul was back to everyday activities more quickly than traditional surgery.

The Beaumont cancer center in Michigan has launched national research of accelerated whole breast radiation treatment options for women with early-stage breast cancer.

The study, RTOG 1005, was developed by the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group, a cancer therapy research cooperative group funded by the National Cancer Institute at the National Institutes of Health, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Beaumont enrolled the first patient in the study, a 51-year-old woman from Royal Oak, Michigan.

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Investigators at the Beaumont Cancer Institute, a cancer center in Michigan, are seeking men diagnosed with prostate cancer who have been placed on active surveillance, also known as watchful waiting, for participation in a national research trial. Researchers will study the effectiveness of a diet high in vegetables in slowing the disease’s progression.

“Most patients would rather be proactive in their treatment as opposed to a ‘wait and see’ approach," says Howard Korman, M.D., local trial principal investigator for Beaumont Community Clinical Oncology Program.

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Can a drug developed to lower cholesterol also help prevent colon cancer? Investigators at Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak are seeking volunteers who have had colon cancer removed by surgery for a national research trial. Researchers will study the effectiveness of the statin drug rosuvastatin, brand name Crestor®, in preventing a recurrence of cancer of the colon or rectum.

“The goal of this study is to evaluate the effects, good and bad, of the drug rosuvastatin,” says Harry Wasvary, M.D., co-director, Colorectal Multidisciplinary Tumor Clinic, Beaumont, Royal Oak and the site’s principal investigator.