Funding for Colon Cancer Research Available

The AACR and the Littlefield 2000 Trust have entered into a new partnership to establish the Jeannik M. Littlefield-AACR Grants in Metastatic Colon Cancer Research. Support of $100,000 to $250,000, over one or two years, is available for innovative research projects designed to accelerate the discovery and development of new agents to treat metastatic colon cancer. Proposals that focus on pre-clinical research with direct therapeutic intent also will be accepted. Special emphasis will be placed on promising research for individualized treatments or other novel cancer therapeutics which will translate into clinical applications within a one- to two-year period.

Applications for the first Jeannik M. Littlefield-AACR Grants in Metastatic Colon Cancer Research are due by Monday, March 27, 2006.

Researchers who are affiliated with any institution involved in cancer research, cancer medicine, or cancer-related biomedical science anywhere in the world may apply.

The grants are sponsored by Jacques and Sandy Littlefield, of Portolo Valley, Calif., who donated $3 million to the AACR at the end of last year. They are named for Mr. Littlefield’s mother.

“Ensuring an adequate and expertly trained cancer research workforce for the future has always been an integral part of the AACR’s mission, and never more so than now, as we stand on the threshold of our second century,” noted David Irwin, PhD, managing director of the association’s science and education division.

“These new grants add considerably to our existing program of scientific awards, travel grants and research funding, and set a strong precedent for more privately supported, disease-specific cancer research in an era of changing national funding priorities,” said Irwin.

Applications will be evaluated by a selection committee comprised of at least seven well- respected and highly accomplished senior scientists.

The Littlefield-AACR Grants Scientific Review Committee will consider each application independently, based the following criteria:

1.) extent to which the proposed study addresses an important problem related to metastatic colon cancer;
2.) degree to which the studies will impact the understanding and treatment of gastrointestinal malignancies;
3.) whether the studies are designed appropriately to provide answers to the research questions posed;
4.) originality and level of innovation;
5.) research credentials of the investigative group; and
6.) contribution of the institutional environment to the probability of success of the proposed studies.

In order to be eligible, researchers must have acquired a doctoral degree in a related field. If an applicant has obtained an equivalent degree at a foreign institution, information on the nature of the degree must be provided at the time of application.

Applicants need not be members of the AACR. However, grant recipients will be expected to become AACR members following presentation of the grants.

There are no geographic, national, or residency status restrictions.
For more information, visit the AACR Web site at: www.aacr.org/page5528.aspx. To apply, visit the proposal CENTRAL Web site at: http://v2.ramscompany.com.

Founded in 1907, the American Association for Cancer Research is a professional society of more than 24,000 laboratory, translational, and clinical scientists engaged in all areas of cancer research in the United States and in more than 60 other countries. AACR's mission is to accelerate the prevention and cure of cancer through research, education, communication, and advocacy.

Source: American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)

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