AUSTIN – The Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) today awarded more than $25 million in new grants advancing the fight against cancer. All 10 grants were made through the CPRIT Scholars program.
One of CPRIT’s goals is to bolster cancer research by providing financial support to attract world-class research scientists to Texas universities and cancer research institutes through CPRIT Scholars recruitment grants. Today CPRIT approved more than $25 million for eight First-Time, Tenure-Track Faculty Member grants, one Established Investigators grant, and one Rising Stars grant.
May is National Cancer Research Month, and the grants awarded underscore the importance of research in the fight against cancer. To date, CPRIT has awarded 1,132 grants of approximately $1.8 billion. Over 1,200 of these are academic research grants totaling more than $1.6 billion. The agency began making awards in 2009 after Texas voters overwhelmingly approved a 2007 constitutional amendment committing $3 billion to the fight against cancer.
"It is only appropriate that during National Cancer Research Month, CPRIT enhance Texas’ world renowned cancer research expertise with these ten stellar recruits," said Wayne Roberts, CPRIT chief executive officer. "These research scholars will extend Texas’ historical cancer fighting initiative for decades to come."
About the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas
To date, CPRIT has awarded approximately $1.8 billion in grants to Texas researchers, institutions and organizations. CPRIT provides funding through its academic research, prevention, and product development research programs. Programs made possible with CPRIT funding have reached all 254 counties of the state, brought more than 127 distinguished researchers to Texas, advanced scientific and clinical knowledge, and provided more than three million life-saving education, training, prevention and early detection services to Texans. Learn more at cprit.texas.gov. Follow CPRIT at twitter.com/CPRITTexas and facebook.com/CPRITTexas.
AWARDED RESEARCH GRANTS
Recruitment of Established Investigators Awards** – One grant totaling $5,104,127
- Benjamin Fregly, PhD, Recruitment to Rice University from The University of Florida
Recruitment of Rising Stars Awards** – One grant totaling $4,000,000
- Heinrich Jasper, PhD, Recruitment to Baylor College of Medicine from The Buck Institute for Research on Aging
Recruitment of First-Time, Tenure-Track Faculty Members Awards** – Eight grants totaling $16,000,000
- Stephen Mack, PhD, Recruitment to Baylor College of Medicine from The Cleveland Clinic – $2,000,000
- Jihye Yun, PhD, Recruitment to Baylor College of Medicine from Weill Cornell Medical College – $2,000,000
- Isaac Hilton, PhD, Recruitment to Rice University from Duke University – $2,000,000
- Colleen Skau, PhD, Recruitment The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center from The National Institutes of Health (NIH) – $2,000,000
- Chao Lu, PhD, Recruitment to The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center from The Rockefeller University – $2,000,000
- Valentina Velez, MD, Recruitment to Baylor College of Medicine from Johns Hopkins University – $2,000,000
- Courtney Hodges, PhD, Recruitment to Baylor College of Medicine from Stanford University School of Medicine – $2,000,000
- Shrikanth Gadad, PhD, Recruitment to Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center at El Paso from The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center – $2,000,000
**Recruitment grants awarded indicate only approval to negotiate offers; at the time of release candidates have not accepted offers.