Komen Announces $500,000 Research Grant for Fox Chase Cancer Center

Fox Chase Cancer Center researchers will see whether they can change the genetic "signature" of a woman's breast cells to mimic the protective effects of pregnancy on the breast and thus substantially reduce the risk of getting breast cancer, with funding announced today by Susan G. Komen for the Cure®, the world's largest breast cancer organization.


The Komen for the Cure $500,000 grant is one of two for Fox Chase and is part of nearly $1.7 million in research that Komen is funding in Pennsylvania this year. Globally, Komen is awarding $59 million in research grants for scientists to find the cures for breast cancer and to end the disease. Overall, Komen is investing nearly $8.5 million into Pennsylvania's economy for research and community programs

 

"Once we've discovered the cures, we want a world where no one ever has to face breast cancer ever again, which is why solid, comprehensive science on how to prevent this disease is so very important," said Ambassador Nancy G. Brinker, founder and CEO of Susan G. Komen for the Cure.  "Susan G. Komen for the Cure has funded prevention research for years, but we have far more to learn to unlock the secrets of how this disease forms."

 

Komen will also award $800,000 in other grants to Thomas Jefferson University and the University of Pennsylvannia. One of these studies will try to find better ways to predict everything from recurrence to survival rates for individual patients. Komen is also funding a Penn State study to investigate disparities in breast cancer care for women in rural Appalachia.

 

"Komen's infusion of millions of dollars into research projects means that promising research that is designed to treat and ultimately eradicate breast cancer will continue," said Eric Winer, M.D., Komen's chief scientific advisor.

 

Komen by the Numbers in Pennsylvania:

 

  • Since 1989, Komen has awarded more than $34 million in research in Pennsylvania, part of Komen's more than $450 million in research funded globally since Komen was founded in 1981.

  • Additionally, the four Komen Pennsylvania Affiliates invested $6.6 million in their local communities last year, supporting programs for early detection and treatment of breast cancer, breast health education and outreach programs.

  • Nationwide, Komen Affiliates invested a total of $130 million in their local communities last year. During the past 28 years, Komen has invested more than $900 million to community education and support programs worldwide.

 

Pending agreements, Komen this year is funding the following Pennsylvania researchers and projects:

  • Temple University: Bin Wang, $450,000, Targeted Multidrug Delivery System to Overcome Chemoresistance in Breast Cancer

  • Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine: Roger Anderson, $269,936, Breast Cancer Disparities in Rural Appalachia

  • Thomas Jefferson University: Michael Lisanti, $600,000, Mining the Breast Cancer "Stromal Proteome": Using Targeted Proteomics to Identify Novel Stromal Breast Cancer Biomarkers

  • Fox Chase Cancer Center: Jose Russo, $500,000, Chromatin remodeling as a preventive strategy in breast cancer

  • Fox Chase Cancer Center: Xiaowei Chen, $450,000, Identify Novel Breast Cancer Candidate Loci by Genome-Wide Allele-Specific Expression Analysis

  • University of Pennsylvania: Arjun Yodh, $180,000 - Non-invasive tissue response monitoring during neoadjuvant chemotherapy using Diffuse Optical Tomography and MRI

  • University of Pittsburgh: John Lazo, $120,000 - Identifying chemosensitivity nodes and small molecule inhibitors regulating breast cancer stem cell proliferation and survival