The National Cancer Institute (NCI) released their Fiscal Year 2022 Annual Plan and Budget Proposal.

Each year, developing this plan provides the NCI with a special opportunity to reflect on progress in cancer research and consider how best to direct NCI resources in the years ahead, on behalf of the American public. This plan focuses on the NCI's enduring top priority — accelerating cancer research — and features four special scientific topics: cancer drug resistance, molecular diagnostics for cancer treatment, obesity and cancer, and cancer survivorship.

Pay special attention to the section on Cancer Drug Resistance, which features research by Jacob Scott, MD, DPhil into co-opting cell evolution to overcome treatment resistance in cancer.

The Applicant Assistance Program (AAP) is accepting applications for those who are participating in the January 2021 SBIR/STTR application cycle.

This is a FREE program geared toward helping small businesses apply for Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) or Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) funding. AAP provides participants with services such as application needs assessment, mentoring, application preparation support, and application review. If you are interested, apply by Thursday, September 24, 2020 on the AAP Application Portal. Program eligibility is limited to small businesses who have not previously won an SBIR or STTR award from the NIH.

If you are interested in participating in AAP, an informational webinar will be held Tuesday, September 15, 2020 from 3-4 pm EDT. Topics to be covered include: SBIR/STTR program basic, eligibility criteria, AAP information and how to write an application for AAP.

Raymond F. Muzic, Jr, PhD has been appointed director of the Radiation Resources Shared Resource. Dr. Muzic is well suited to oversee the operations of the facility. He has a track record of collaborative, translational research with physicians from many departments and especially in Nuclear Medicine and Radiation Oncology. He works closely with the Radiation Safety Departments at Case Western Reserve University and University Hospitals (UH) and has been the chair of the UH Radiation Safety Committee for more than a decade.

As Director of the Quantitative Imaging Laboratory, Dr. Muzic’s research has two main areas. One is development and validation of imaging agents. The other is data analysis methods for quantitative physiological interpretation. In the latter, tools include pharmacokinetic modeling, optimal experiment design, and artificial intelligence. These are applied to support the first area and in application such as personalized dosing and assessing response to therapy.

Dr. Muzic is Professor in the Department of Radiology at CWRU and UH. He has close associations with the departments of Radiation Oncology and Biomedical Engineering and is a long-time member of the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center.

The Case CCC Cancer Data Sciences Leadership Team has partnered with the Case CCC Machine Learning working group to launch a round robin style meeting. This meeting will allow the participants to briefly present their research work and interests in order to facilitate collaboration across the community. Please fill out this form only once, although you may be included on multiple emails with this request.

Case CCC Cancer Data Sciences Leadership Team

Jill Barnholtz-Sloan, PhD, Case CCC Associate Director for Data Sciences

Paolo Caimi, MD

Vinay Varadan, PhD

Aziz Nazha, MD

Paola Saroufim, PharmD, MPH, MBA

In the August issue of Annals in Oncology, Nima Sharifi, MD published an editorial on two original studies from four international patient cohorts that builds upon mechanistic, translational and clinical work investigating castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) at the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center (Case CCC). The international studies show poor CRPC outcomes for HSD3B1(1245C) inheritance with drugs abiraterone or enzalutamide. In his editorial, Dr. Sharifi explains what this might mean, including implications of androgen-driven intrinsic resistance in homozygous 1245C patients, a link to race-associated differences and the role for assessment in earlier disease.

Dr. Sharifi is Director of the Center for GU Malignancies Research at Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute, professor of molecular medicine, and Co-Leader of the Case CCC's GU Malignancies Program.

The Biomedical Graduate Student Symposium (BGSS) is a student-run event that celebrates student research in the School of Medicine at CWRU. BGSS organizers are now accepting abstracts for posters and oral presentations for the 2020 symposium, to be held November 9-10.

Download the abstract template form to submit your abstract by October 2 at 11:59 pm (no exceptions).

Cash prizes will be awarded to top student posters and oral presentations!

Abstract Submission Guidelines:

This event will consist of student poster presentations, student oral presentations and a keynote address from Dr. Yasmine Belkaid, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). BGSS will also partner with the Career Opportunities for Trainees Series (COTS) for a career panel (details and panelists to be announced).

For more details please visit http://cwrubgss.wordpress.com or contact casebgss@gmail.com with any questions or concerns.

To-date, the 44 members that comprise Team Case Comprehensive Cancer Center have raised $22,512 and counting for lifesaving cancer research at Cleveland's top-tier hospitals and research institutions. This is an increase in funds raised of over $2,600 over this time last week!

Despite the shift to Virtual VeloSano, our team pressed on and remained committed to participating in their chosen activities - biking, hiking, walking and yes, even gardening. Fundraising for this year's event will continue through October 1, 2020. Thank you to our committed team members, those who have donated to the cause and all who have cheered them on!

Chase Sloan, a 15-year-old sophomore at Hawken School and aspiring surgical oncologist, has always enjoyed cooking and baking. He hoped to one day create a cookbook, but that goal seemed far off until early March when the world was forced to essential shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was then that Chase found the time to compile his recipes and publish them as a new cookbook, Cakes for Cancer. The cookbook is available through Amazon as an e-book or paperback. Chase will donate 75% of the proceeds to the American Association for Cancer Research and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. 

Chase credits his parents, cancer researchers Drs. Jill Barnholtz-Sloan and Andy Sloan, with educating him first-hand on the value of research, and inspiring him to want to give back and change the world. "Cancer is such a power disease. It is indiscriminate. It doesn’t care if you have healthy habits. It can just come and wipe you out," said Chase. "I wanted to donate money to create a brighter future for better and more effective treatments."

The Case Comprehensive Cancer Center (Case CCC) has budgeted funds for the conduct of early phase clinical trials of relatively short duration. The objectives are to identify and fund investigator-initiated trials, which meet the Cancer Center Support Grant and Case CCC requirements, entertain highly innovative and novel ideas, and which directly foster the mission of the Case CCC. These may be new trials under development or an existing investigator-initiated trial that is unfunded/underfunded. Priority will be given to trials that have been developed jointly between investigators at both hospital systems (University Hospitals and Cleveland Clinic), with planned accrual at both sites.

The NCI has announced a Request for Applications for the Predoctoral to Postdoctoral Fellow Transition (F99/K00) Award for 2020, to support outstanding PhD candidates as they complete their dissertation research training (F99 phase; 1-2 years) and transition to a mentored, cancer-focused postdoctoral career development research positions (K00 phase – up to 4 years).

The F99/K00 award is open to 3rd or 4th year PhD students, including F31 Fellowship applicants and current awardees (note that 3 rd or 4 th year students would have matriculated in 2017 or 2018). International students may also apply. Students Matriculated in a dual-degree program (e.g.) MD/PhD, DO/PhD, DDS/PhD, or DVM/PhD) are not eligible for the F99/K00 program. Projects must be clearly focused on cancer.

To apply for this award, an applicant must be nominated by their institution. As each institution is allocated only one nomination, the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center (Case CCC) requires potential applicants to assemble a pre-application.

Click here to download nomination application instructions. Contact Damian Junk at damian.junk@case.edu for additional information.

With the generous support from VeloSano Bike to Cure, the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center (Case CCC) is providing funding for Case CCC Trainee Associate Members to perform their “dream experiment.”

The experiment should catalyze highly innovative and impactful projects and help strengthen fellowship and career development grant applications. The intent of the award is to support a single or limited set of innovative experiments, not for general laboratory supplies/projects or maintenance of the trainee’s project.

Up to five (4) projects will be funded at $10,000/award. Research projects must be completed within one (1) year, with funds expended by June 30, 2021.

The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCAN) Career Development Award of $200,000 over two years supports junior faculty to conduct pancreatic cancer research and establish successful career paths in the field. Proposed research may be basic, translational, clinical or epidemiological in nature and must have direct applicability and relevance to pancreatic cancer. Special consideration will be given to understudied areas in pancreatic cancer research.

It is anticipated that three grants will be funded. Grant recipients not only receive financial support for their research, but also join the Community for Progress built by PanCAN. This mentorship program connects grantees with leading scientists in the field. Ongoing career support activities offer opportunities for education and professional development to help keep the community of researchers committed and involved. The Community for Progress is a growing, robust and collaborative research community that is dedicated to changing the course of history for pancreatic cancer.