The center at Northwestern is one of seven CCNEs established across the country. These centers are a major component of NCI's $144.3 million five-year initiative for nanotechnology in cancer research. First-year funding for Northwestern is $3.9 million. Funding for the following four years has not yet been determined, but is expected at approximately the same level, said Chad A. Mirkin, who will direct the new center.
"This is a truly exciting opportunity," said Mirkin, George B. Rathmann Professor of Chemistry, professor of medicine and professor of materials science and engineering. "We look forward to establishing this center and working for years to come on the important problems of cancer diagnostics and therapeutics."
Capitalizing on the existing partnership between the University's International Institute for Nanotechnology (IIN) and the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University, the center will support multidisciplinary teams of nano-scientists, cancer biologists, engineers and clinicians who will work collaboratively to develop nanomaterials and nanodevices for cancer therapeutics, drug delivery, imaging, diagnostics and monitoring applications.
"This new center will bring together two of Northwestern's strongest research entities with the shared goal of using advances in nanoscience and technology to address one of the world's most deadly and debilitating classes of diseases," said Mirkin, director of the IIN. "It is possible that nanotechnology will become one of the fundamental drivers in oncology and cancer research, and we are extremely excited about focusing our research in this direction."
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Contact: Megan Fellman
fellman@northwestern.edu
847-491-3115
Northwestern University
3-Oct-2005