A $6 million Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) grant will help 29 early-career researchers find better ways to detect and treat prostate cancer, and ultimately a cure, the find a cure, the PCF announced in a news release.
The foundation’s 2018 Young Investigator Awards give grantees $75,000 annually for three years toward career advancement and research efforts. The award also provides budding scientists with career development assistance.
Besides the promise of a long and influential career in prostate cancer research, grantees are chosen for their distinctive approaches and pioneering ideas. They also must be under the tutelage of at least one mentor, and be within six years of finishing scientific training programs.
“We are honored to invest in new cutting-edge ideas for prostate cancer research,” PCF President and CEO Jonathan Simons said in a press release. “This year’s recipients show great potential for unlocking new discoveries and achieving unprecedented strides toward research leading the way to help countless men affected by the disease.”
The 2018 recipients were chosen from 103 applications and 55 institutions in 11 countries. Since 2007, the PCF has awarded more than $53 million to support 255 early-career researchers.
Eleven of this year’s recipients are studying how to better treat prostate cancer in U.S. veterans. Other research areas include precision medicine, new treatments and treatment strategies, immunotherapy, genetic alterations for at-risk men, and disparities in prostate cancer trial participation.
Another focus is the relatively higher incidence of prostate cancer among black men. According to an American Cancer Society study, one in six African-American men are likely to develop prostate cancer, compared with one in eight non-Hispanic white men.
To learn more about the award recipients, click here. The Young Investigator Awards offer career and project support for young and proven investigators in postdoctoral fellowships, or who have recently achieved junior faculty positions and are committed to the field of prostate cancer. Application information may be found here.
Founded in 1993, PCF is the leading philanthropic organization funding and advancing prostate cancer research. The nonprofit, based in Santa Monica, California, has raised more than $765 million and provided funding to more than 2,000 research programs at nearly 210 cancer centers and universities in 22 countries.