For Immediate Release
Media Contact: Torrey Winchester
918-638-1413
The V Foundation for Cancer Research Announces 2011 Translational Grant Recipients
Grants Totaling $5.4 Million Awarded to Nine Researchers Focused in Bridging Gap Between Lab and Patients
(Cary, NC) – The V Foundation for Cancer Research, one of the nation’s leading cancer research fundraising organizations, has announced the nine recipients of their 2011 Translational Grants. These nine grants have been awarded to elite researchers across the United States.
Translational Grants are $600,000, three-year commitments designed to bring lab discoveries to the field. Often, information collected at the patient bedside can provide insight into laboratory findings and accelerate practical medical discoveries. This year’s nine recipients have concentrations in a variety of fields including leukemia, melanoma, and head and neck cancers.
“Each of the nine Translational grant recipients has already done tremendous work in the fight against cancer,” said Nick Valvano, CEO of The V Foundation for Cancer Research. “The V Foundation is excited to provide grants to these outstanding researchers as they continue to make strides towards a cure.”
The V Foundation’s Scientific Advisory Board, comprised of some of the nation’s leading physicians and research scientists from prominent universities and cancer centers, supervises this competitive grant application process. In The V Foundation’s 18-year history, over $100 million has been raised funding over 400 cancer grants nationwide to more than 100 institutions. 100 percent of all direct donations and proceeds of events through The V Foundation are donated directly to cancer research and related programs nationwide.
For more information on The V Foundation, please log onto www.jimmyv.org or call 1-800-4JimmyV.
About The V Foundation
The V Foundation for Cancer Research was founded in 1993 by ESPN and the late Jim Valvano, legendary North Carolina State basketball coach and ESPN commentator. Since 1993, The Foundation has raised more than $100 million to fund cancer research grants nationwide. It awards 100 percent of all direct cash donations and net proceeds of events directly to cancer research and related programs. Administrative and fundraising expenses are paid by the Foundation’s endowment. The Foundation awards grants through a competitive awards process strictly supervised by a Scientific Advisory Board. For more information on The V Foundation or to make a donation, please visit www.jimmyv.org.
Editors Note: A complete list of the 2011 V Foundation Translational grant recipients follows:
V Foundation 2011 Translational Grant Recipients
Suzanne J. Baker, Ph.D.
Cynthia Wetmore, M.D., Ph.D.
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Memphis, TN
Targeting PDGFR in Pediatric High-Grade Gliomas
Andrei Thomas-Tikhonenko, Ph.D.
Stephen Grupp, M.D., Ph.D.
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Philadelphia, PA
Novel therapeutic targets in acute B-lymphoblastic leukemia
Richard Roden, Ph.D.
Sara Pai, M.D., Ph.D.
TC Wu, M.D., Ph.D.
John Hopkins University School of Medicine
Baltimore, MD
Treatment of Head and Neck cancer with an HPV vaccine
Iannis Aifantis, Ph.D.
Elizabeth A. Raetz, M.D.
New York University School of Medicine
New York, NY
Clinical Implications of TET Regulated DNA Methylation in Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia
Leonard I. Zon, Ph.D.
Richard M. White, M.D.
Children’s Hospital Boston
Boston, MA
Cell Fate as a Target in Melanoma
Janice E. Mehnert, M.D.
Eileen P. White, Ph.D.
Cancer Institute of New Jersey
New Brunswick, NJ
Examining the Role of Autophagy in Melanoma Tumorigenesis
Faith M. Uckun, M.D., Ph.D.
Paul S. Gaynon, M.D.
Amanda M. Termuhlen, M.D.
Children’s Center for Cancer and Blood Diseases
Children’s Hospital Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA
Funded by The V Foundation Wine Celebration
Directing Leukemia Cells to Self-Destruct Using Recombinant Human CD19-Ligand’s Trial Fusion Protein
Carlos A. Ramos, M.D.
Ann M. Leen, Ph.D.
Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center at Baylor College of Medicine
Houston, TX
Most Closely HLA-Matched Allogeneic LMP1/2 – Specificed Cytotoxic T Lymphocytes for Treatment Patients with Relapsed Epstein-Barr Virus-Associated Lymphomas
Hua Eleanor Yu, Ph.D.
Stephen J. Forman, M.D.
Marcin Kortylewski, Ph.D.
Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope
Duarte, CA
Funded in Honor of Neil Aldoroty
Targeting STAT3 in Tumor and the Tumor Microenvironment by a Novel siRNA Technology to Treat Lymphoma
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