Career Enhancement Program

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Abstract The long-term success of national efforts to reduce breast cancer incidence and mortality rests in part on the ability of Breast Cancer SPORE programs to attract and build the translational research careers of talented young faculty. Since 1992, the UNC Breast Cancer SPORE has used career development funds to promote the breast cancer research careers of selected investigators. The SPORE Career Enhancement Program (CEP) both recruits externally and identifies internal faculty with interest in translational breast cancer research. The CEP then matches junior faculty with training offerings and senior mentors. We seek to enrich the field with our efforts to recruit qualified women and minorities as both participants and mentors in the program. Over the 24 years of the program recruits funded by the CEP include 17 women and six minority faculty (three African Americans, three Hispanic). Co-recruitment with departments across campus attracts exceptional talent to UNC and its Cancer Center. The SPORE CEP makes available extended training for junior faculty with an interactive group of respected and successful investigators who can influence and help build careers. The combination of an excellent talent pool and an effective training and mentoring program has resulted in an elite cadre of breast cancer researchers whose work contributes to the national breast cancer effort. Over the last six years the CEP has attracted 13 participants; five were women and three were minorities. We are particularly pleased that six of the 13 recruits were named Komen Career Catalyst Scholars (as was one DRP Awardee) and several have already been funded by NCI. These CEP participants’ contributions include published research, funded grants and collaborative breast cancer research across the spectrum of population, basic, clinical and translational research. Over the course of the CEP program a number of participants have become SPORE leaders. These include Bob Millikan, who developed CBCS; Charles Perou, Multi-PI and co- leader of Project 3; Lisa Carey Co-program head and co-leader of Projects 1 and 3 and the Career Enhancement Program; Melissa Troester, co-leader of Project 1; Carey Anders, clinical trial leader of Project #4; Claire Dees co-investigator on Project #2 and Katie Hoadley co-investigator Project #1, #3 and the Bioinformatics / Biostatistics Core. Over the next five years, the UNC Breast Cancer SPORE will continue to promote and develop careers in translational breast cancer research. The UNC Breast Cancer SPORE requests $50,000 to support career development. These funds will combine with $400-600,000 yearly in institutional funds to provide for recruitment and career development of faculty in translational breast cancer research. The SPORE leaders will continue to identify, recruit, and develop minority and women faculty.