Cancer Center Update is sent to Cancer Center members and staff every Tuesday at 10 a.m. Please submit items to Sandi Sherman, sherm019@umn.edu, by noon the previous Friday.

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In This Issue

News

Education and Events

Cancer Center Program Meetings

Funding News and Opportunities

 

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News

Cancer Center welcomes Jaime Modiano, Ph.D.
Jaime Modiano, V.M.D., Ph.D., has joined The University of Minnesota's College of Veterinary Medicine and Cancer Center as the Al and June Perlman Professor of Oncology. Modiano was previously associate professor of immunology at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center and a senior scientist at the AMC Cancer Center in Denver.

Modiano will serve as director of the Veterinary Medical Center's Animal Cancer Center and will lead the college's comparative cancer research program. The focus of his research will be to develop effective strategies for cancer prevention and treatment by integrating knowledge gained from studies of cancer in people and animals.

"Important advances in our understanding of cancer have been made from studying animals, mostly mice," says Douglas Yee, M.D., director of the University of Minnesota Cancer Center. "Dr. Modiano's recruitment to the University will allow us to make additional advances in cancer causes and treatment. His clinical and research expertise will provide an important resource for researchers interested in improving both animal and human cancer outcomes."

Modiano's laboratory and office are on the fifth floor of the Cancer Center. Visit the Web site for more information about his research.

Walters awarded ACS grant for bladder cancer research
Kylie Walters, Ph.D., member of Carcinogenesis and Chemoprevention Program, has received a $703,000 grant from the American Cancer Society for a four-year study of the mechanisms that cause some people to be more susceptible to environmental chemicals that put them at higher risk for bladder cancer. Read more.

Women's hockey tourney raises $45K for Cancer Center
Representatives from the National Sports Center Stick-It to Cancer Hockey Tournament announced a donation of $45,000 to the University of Minnesota Cancer Center for breast cancer research at a check presentation ceremony June 18 in the Cancer Center Research Building. Read more.

Largaespada quoted in story about history of mouse studies
The cover story of the Summer 2007 issue of Invention & Technology Magazine quotes Genetic Mechanisms of Cancer Program Leader David Largaespada, Ph.D., about the importance of mouse studies in understanding human disease. The article, titled "Mouse Work: How a small animal made it big in research," traces the mouse's interesting journey from being bred extensively by Victorian mouse "fanciers" to its use in laboratories today. Read the article on the AmericanHeritage.com Web site.

Dudek presents study results at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Conference in Switzerland
Arkadiusz Dudek, M.D., Ph.D., member of the Cancer Center's Translational Research Program, presented the results of a phase 2 study that combined thalidomide with carboplatin and gemcitabine in neoadjuvant treatment of patients with inoperable, locally advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Read more.

Geller featured in latest Accelerate newsletter
Melissa Geller, M.D., member of the Translational Research Program and an assistant professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women's Health, is featured in the July edition of Accelerate, the AHC Office of Clinical Research newsletter. She is a recipient of support from the Career Advancement Program for Clinical Research Scholars. This program provides mentoring and protected time for clinicians to focus on their research. According to Accelerate, "Geller's research aim is to identify early in the course of treatment the alterations in biomarker and gene profiles that will predict response to chemotherapy." She will be working with a multidisciplinary team of Cancer Center members including Amy Skubitz, Ph.D., Sundaram Ramakrishnan, Ph.D., Doug Yee, M.D., and Chap Le, Ph.D. Read more.

New Member
Barbara J. Bowers, M.D.
Medical Director, Fairview Southdale Breast Center
Program Area of Interest: Breast Cancer Research
Clinical Focus: Breast cancer

New on the Web site: Sarcoma Quiz
Test your basic knowledge of sarcoma with this seven-question quiz.

Time change for laboratory animal pathology consultations
Dr. Ilze Matise, board certified veterinary pathologist, is available for consultations and review of microscopic lesions and immunohistochemical stain results in research animals every Tuesday morning from 10 a.m. until noon in CCRB 654. It is not necessary to sign up. Just stop by with your materials and slides, result tables and files, images, etc. If you wish to schedule a specific time, please contact Dr. Matise (matis001@umn.edu; 612-625-4256).

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Education and Events

9th Annual MCH Summer Institute: Addressing Health Disparities: Culture, Communications and Health
July 24-25, 2007, Hubert H. Humphrey Center, University of Minnesota
Sponsored by the Maternal and Child Health Program in the School of Public Health

This year's MCH Summer Institute will focus on the role of health communications in reducing health disparities. Keynote speakers and breakout sessions will focus on culture and health literacy, the implications of communications, inequality, health communication needs of specific communities of color, and new strategies to increase communication effectiveness.

Innovative research and program ideas addressing health disparities will be displayed as posters during the Institute. A table will be available for organizations to place informational materials to share with Institute attendees. For more information on submission guidelines, visit the Maternal and Child Health Program Web site or contact Julia Johnsen, 612-624-7349, john2314@umn.edu.

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Cancer Center Program Meetings

Cancer Epidemiology Interest Group
Friday, June 20, 2007, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., 1250 Mayo
Possibilities for cancer research in ARIC
Aaron R. Folsom, M.D., M.P.H., Professor, Division of Epidemiology and Community Health

For a complete schedule visit the Web site.

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Funding News and Opportunities

NIH Announcements:
There were no cancer-related NIH grant announcements this week.

Other Announcements:

Research Professorships
American Cancer Society
Up to $400,000 ($80K/yr. direct costs over 5 years)
Anticipated deadline: April 1, 2008
The American Cancer Society awards Research Professorships to outstanding mid-career investigators who are making groundbreaking contributions to basic cancer research. The grants provide unique research opportunities to foster maximal productivity in cancer research. These grants provide flexible funding for established investigators in mid-career who have made seminal contributions that have changed the direction of cancer research.

American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Research Fellowships
1-3 year grants of $30,000-$40,000/yr.
Request for Applications opening in Fall 2007
AACR Research Fellowships foster basic, translational, clinical, and epidemiological research by scientists at the beginning of their careers in the cancer field. They are open to Postdoctoral Fellows and Clinical Research Fellows at an academic facility, teaching hospital, or research institution who will be in the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd year of their postdoctoral training at the start of the fellowship term.

AACR Career Development Awards
2 year grants of $50,000/yr.
Request for Applications opening in Fall 2007
AACR Career Development Awards are open to junior faculty at an academic or medical institution who completed postdoctoral studies or clinical fellowships no more than three years prior to the start of the grant term.

Visit the Funding News & Opportunities Web page to see listings previously published in Update.

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