The Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center has received a coveted award that recognizes its expertise in lung cancer research and that will fuel its aggressive efforts to develop cures for the leading cancer killer. These grants are awarded to institutions with a critical mass of experienced investigators in a field. The cornerstone has to be translational research. You have to have both excellent science and excellent clinical translation of that science to patients. Each year, investigators submit reports of their work and progress, but they have the ability to expand, contract, eliminate or add projects as developments warrant.
Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer death in both men and women in the United States.
With an estimated 170,000 new cases each year, lung cancer represents 13 percent of cancer diagnoses. But it kills more than 157,000 Americans each year, accounting for 28 percent of all cancer deaths. The grant also provides for career development and pilot projects, supplemented by Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center. This includes two positions through the Vanderbilt Physician-Scientist Development Program, with additional University and Cancer Center funding earmarked for two more positions. The project will include testing in animal models of drugs that inhibit MMPs to ascertain the response of lung tumors to these agents.