BIRMINGHAM, Ala. As National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, October has been a key time to recognize the strides made in breast cancer prevention, detection and treatment, and to press forward in the battle against the disease.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has recognized the University of Alabama at Birminghams (UAB) commitment to cancer research by renewing a major grant to support groundbreaking breast cancer science and discovery. NIH has awarded the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center an $11.5 million renewal grant of its Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE) in breast cancer from the National Cancer Institute.
The UAB breast cancer SPORE is among 11 such projects funded nationally. Since its inception more than five years ago, the UAB program has grown into one of the most productive and highest-ranked efforts to combat the disease.
"Theres no question this grant is a fantastic honor, and a major recognition of our award-winning womens cancer care," said Cancer Center Director Edward Partridge, M.D. "What this means for the women of Alabama and the region is that our breast health program is stronger than ever. It also means that women who come to UAB with breast cancer, or risk factors for the disease, are potentially eligible for leading-edge treatments."
The $11.5 million grant will focus primarily on experimental compounds and cellular targets that have shown promise in preventing, slowing or effectively treating breast cancer. Three of the four main projects involve targeted therapies and anti-cancer compounds that were discovered or developed in the basic science laboratories of UAB, and will soon be tested here.
"The great fundamental strength of this SPORE is seizing on translational research taking a finding from the lab, and then moving it into clinical testing to see if it helps prevent, treat or conquer breast cancer," said Kirby I. Bland, M.D., chair of the UAB Department of Su
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| Contact: Troy Goodman tdgoodman@uab.edu 205-934-8938 University of Alabama at Birmingham Source:Eurekalert |