Of the 13 distinguished healthcare professionals whom President Clinton has appointed to a new White House Commission on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Policy, two are from New York Weill Cornell Medical Center: Dr. Joseph J. Fins and Dr. William R. Fair.

A research team consisting of scientists from the Department of Psychiatry of Weill Cornell Medical College and the Department of Psychology of Harvard University has launched a major study of the enigmatic form of mental illness known as "borderline personality disorder" (BPD).

Dr. Ashutosh K. Tewari, director of the Lefrak Center for Robotic Surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, will be awarded the prestigious Gold Cystoscope Award from the American Urological Association for outstanding contributions to the field of urology and urologic oncology. He will receive the award May 23 at an awards dinner during the Association's Annual Meeting in Atlanta, Ga.

Nearly 50 clinicians, working in eight operating rooms, successfully performed New York City's first four-way kidney transplant at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center. Four patients, who otherwise had no compatible donor, received lifesaving kidneys.

Despite the common belief that the massively dilated and dysfunctional hearts of patients with severe end-stage heart failure are irreversibly damaged, recent evidence has shown that the support of these hearts with left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) can lead to normalization of heart structure and improved strength of heart muscle.

The Center of Excellence for Lymphoma and Myeloma at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center is the only medical center in the nation to currently offer a chemotherapy cocktail with the next-generation immuno-modulatory research drug Revlimid™ (lenalidomide), as part of a clinical trial for patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma. Results of the single-center Phase II clinical trial are anticipated to show improved complete remission rate and response time, and decreased toxicity -- compared to the standard treatment.

A team of researchers who have pioneered novel treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been awarded an $11 million, four-year grant from the U.S. Department of Defense to investigate the differences between virtual reality and traditional prolonged exposure therapy.

The Avon Foundation has awarded a one-year $50,000 grant to NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital's Family PEACE (Promoting Education Advocacy Collaboration and Empowerment) Program in collaboration with Northern Manhattan Improvement Corporation (NMIC) to fund community outreach and interventions for children exposed to domestic violence.