> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# Cancer institute receives grant to study head injuries
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/cancer-institute-receives-grant-to-study-head-injuries/
- Published: 2008-07-05T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T20:05:14.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Health, Mid-City, #archive-import

*Money will be used to study former NFL players’ injuries*

*By DAILY PRESS STAFF*

MID-CITY The John Wayne Cancer Institute at Saint John’s Health Center announced Wednesday that it has received a grant to study the possible link between head injuries and pituitary hormonal failure (hypopituitarism) among retired football players.

More than 1.2 million Americans sustain a traumatic brain injury annually, the majority of which are cerebral concussions. Repeat concussions have been shown to be a risk factor for neurodegenerative dementing disorders, including mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s Disease.

However, little is known about the impact of single or multiple concussions on the pituitary gland, a small bean-shaped gland located at the base of the skull that controls the body’s hormone production. Damage to the gland could lead to hypopituaturism, which can seriously impair an individual’s quality of life, including increasing the risks of depression, diabetes, obesity and sexual dysfunction.

“The problem of sports-related concussions is increasingly recognized as a major contributor to long-term disability in many retired athletes,” said Bob Klein, vice president at Saint John’s Health Center and a 10-year NFL veteran with the Los Angeles Rams and San Diego Chargers. “However, the potential long-term impact of concussions is not well understood. This research will fill that gap in our knowledge. I have spoken with many of my former colleagues in the NFL, and they share my belief in the critical importance of this study.”

> “Millions of young people and professional athletes participate in sports that put them at risk of concussion; not just football, but also hockey, rugby, soccer, baseball and basketball. We need to know more about how these so-called ‘minor head injuries’ impact their lives in later years, and in particular, whether multiple concussions can lead to pituitary hormonal failure and poor quality of life.”

The new research, which will be conducted in collaboration with the University of North Carolina’s (UNC) Department of Exercise and Sport Science, and the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, will be directed by Dr. Daniel F. Kelly, director of the Neuro-Endocrine Tumor Center at the John Wayne Cancer Institute, and Kevin M. Guskiewicz, chairman of the Department of Exercise and Sport Science at UNC.

Kelly and Guskiewicz will focus principally on the relationship between the number of concussions sustained in an NFL player’s career, their subsequent pituitary hormonal function, and how that function affects their post-retirement quality of life.

Their goal is to determine whether there is a link between multiple concussions and hypopituitarism, to define the effect of hypopituitarism on quality of life, and to determine the impact of hormone replacement therapy. The study will be conducted with the cooperation of the National Football League Players Association.

“This research is long overdue,”Kelly said.

The Neuro-Endocrine Tumor Center (www.neuro-endo.org) is housed at Saint John’s Health Center and the John Wayne Cancer Institute. The center’s focus is the treatment of pituitary tumors, brain tumors, and other neuro-endocrine disorders including pituitary hormonal deficiencies.

The Center for the Study of Retired Athletes at the University of North Carolina works in close affiliation with the National Football League Players Association. Since 2001, the Center has been investigating a spectrum of physical and mental disabilities common to retired athletes. The research team will begin work in July 2008, with initial research results expected in 2010.

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on July 5, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/070508.pdf?ref=smdp.com)