March 2016

Wafting cumin through the building, 15 slow cookers full of chili lined an L-shaped conference room at the Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research Advanced Technology Research Facility (ATRF), as voters strolled past “No electioneering” signs and the tasting began Feb. 29.

Chili No. 13 came out of the gate with a spicy authority. “My tongue’s still tingling,” said one taster. “Just looking at it, you can tell how spicy it is,” said another judge. Thick with ground beef, with a smoky, peppery aroma, it was layered with black beans and corn, and it had a back-of-the-throat burn no other contestant’s offering could match. A nearby box of tissues served as a must-have for anyone sampling the sinus-clearing concoction.

NCI at Frederick employees have a unique opportunity to contribute directly to cancer and AIDS research by donating blood, saliva, and other samples through the Research Donor Program (RDP). Donors are compensated for their time, which is typically between 10 and 30 minutes.

The RDP, which is administered by Occupational Health Services (OHS), Leidos Biomedical Research, provides samples from healthy donors for use in in vitro research conducted at NCI at Frederick and Fort Detrick. Samples are provided anonymously to researchers.

Members of the Eighth Joint National Committee recently released new standards for treating hypertension, also referred to as high blood pressure (BP). The new standards do not recommend treatment changes for individuals under 60 years of age. However, treatment changes were recommended for people over the age of 60 who do not have conditions such as diabetes or chronic kidney disease (CKD), but whose BP numbers are 150/90 or higher. This BP threshold is up from the previously recommended threshold of 140/90. The panel also recommended that for people over 60 years of age who have diabetes or CKD, treatment should begin when BP is 140/90, which is an increase from 130/80. Treatment may involve lifestyle changes and/or medication to bring the BP numbers into a healthy range.