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research Celebrating 60 years of progress through the Society's research program The American Cancer Society's research program is celebrating our 60th anniversary this year! Since the beginning in 1946, we have funded promising, and often groundbreaking, studies to pursue our mission of preventing cancer, saving lives, and diminishing suffering from cancer. We have contributed about $3 billion dollars to our research program, the largest private, nonprofit source of funding in America for cancer researchers. As of January 1, 2006, $10,753,000 were given to researchers in Indiana for current grants and $12,059,144 were put to work in Michigan. Presently, the Great Lakes Division has 40 grants, totaling $22,812,144. The Great Lakes Division's research dollars are funding grants for local researchers such as Ignacio Camarillo, PhD, (shown right) of Purdue University, and his team. They are studying the relationship between obesity and increased breast cancer risk and morbidity.  They hope to determine how fat cells cause cancerous tumors in the breast to develop and allow the disease to spread in the body. A better understanding of how fat cells interact with tumor cells will lead to new treatment options. This grant, specifically for junior faculty, is giving Ignacio the chance to gain new knowledge and pursue additional grant dollars in the future.
"It's very tough to get new and innovative research started," says Ignacio. "That's why this grant is so important to me. It enables us to develop a novel model of obesity and incorporate cutting-edge technologies into our research. Without it we would not be able to create the foundation of knowledge necessary to carry forward an area of study that holds great promise." Giving grants to promising new investigators is an important part of our research program. "Virtually every major development in cancer research in the last half century can point to a Society-funded researcher who played a key role along the way, with most of those investigators getting Society support early in their careers when funding is particularly difficult to get," says John J. Stevens, MD, American Cancer Society vice president of extramural grants. Our research achievements have had nationwide impact on the medical community. We changed global views for acceptance of the Pap smear for cervical cancer detection, found the link between smoking and cancer, conducted the first successful chemotherapy treatment, and discovered the first gene mutation in DNA linked to cancer. Sixty years ago, only one out of three Americans were still alive five years after their diagnosis. Today, two out of three cancer patients can expect to live through their next five years and longer. Other articles in VOICES this month community focus: volunteers help drive patients |
community focus: local networking supports Relay For Life |
survivorship and patient services: survivor recommends Society resources |
education: deaths from cancer decline in U.S. |
advocacy: statewide efforts have impact |
advocacy: investigating Medicare Part D |
local area spotlight: Society staff reach migrant workers |
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