SPORE grants are designed to promote collaboration among the best scientific minds, National Cancer Institute officials said. The grants bring together researchers who might not otherwise have a chance to work together on their far-flung academic campuses and in their large medical institutions, deKernion said. The goal is to translate basic research from the laboratories into patient care much more quickly and effectively. UCLAs SPORE will bring together scientists specializing in cell signaling, gene expression, pathology, molecular imaging, epidemiology, biostatistics, immunology and biological chemistry to share their theories as well as their research findings.
Were bringing together the best of our laboratory scientists and clinical researchers to move the most promising concepts forward for clinical evaluation in patients with prostate cancer, deKernion said.
The timing of the grant is optimal: Awareness about prostate cancer is increasing. Scientifically, were at the point now where we can make significant advances in prevention, detection and treatment, deKernion said.
UCLAs Jonsson Cancer Center is the only prostate cancer SPORE in Southern California, and one of only nine in the United States.
This year alone, an estimated 189,000 American men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer, according to the American Cancer Society.
Five key projects form the core of the UCLA SPORE, most of which have their scientific roots in Jonsson Cancer Center labs. Four of the projects focus on cell-surface antigens and cell-signaling pathways implicated in prostate cancer. The goal is to develop targeted therapies that focus on what is broken in the cancer cell. The fifth project will explore the relationship between diet and prostate cancer.
The SPORE projects include:
Drs. Robert Reiter and Owen Witte will focus on PSCA, or pr
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Contact: Kim Irwin
kirwin@mednet.ucla.edu
310-206-2805
University of California - Los Angeles
22-Oct-2002