University of Pittsburgh receives grant for research on cancer...( PITTSBURGH Nov. 6 The University of P...),Health

PITTSBURGH, Nov. 6 The University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute (UPCI), in collaboration with the division of geriatrics and gerontology and the Institute on Aging at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, has received a grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the National Institute on Aging to understand the biology of the effects of aging on the cancer process and to improve health outcomes in older people with cancer. The grant, to be awarded in the amount of $650,000 per year, is part of a five-year, $25-million initiative announced by the NCI to accelerate research into the relationship between aging and cancer. The University of Pittsburgh is one of eight academic centers in the country selected to be part of the new initiative.

"People at ages 65 and older are at the highest risk for cancer and tend to be the most neglected when it comes to cancer care," said Ronald Herberman, M.D., principal investigator of the project and director of UPCI. "They face many physical and social challenges that younger people do not, and often have additional health problems that can make cancer more difficult to treat safely and effectively. Our program will address these challenges by performing laboratory and clinical research studies on the effects of aging on cancer development and progression; developing ways to characterize the nature, severity and likely effects of other health problems on cancer treatment and the ability to cope with cancer; and by developing appropriate interventions to ease the burden of cancer in this population."

According to the NCI, the need for research on cancer and aging has never been more urgent as the number of individuals ages 65 and older is expected to jump from 23 million in 2003 to 70 million by 2030. People who are 65 years of age and older have a cancer incidence rate 10 times greater than the rate for younger people and a mortality rate 16 times greater. This issue is of particular relevance
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Contact: Kathryn Duda
DudaK@upmc.edu
412-647-3555
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
6-Nov-2003

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