Transforming Research at UIC College of Dentistry

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The University of Illinois at Chicago College of Dentistry is building a comprehensive, cutting-edge research program. As a result of external and self-evaluation, the College has developed an infrastructure enhancement plan which is embodied in the structure of the "Interdisciplinary Research in Cancer Care from an Oral Perspective". Building upon existing College strengths, faculty in this program will collaborate with researchers within the College and University, and with the research community in Chicago, which includes Northwestern University, Loyola University, the University of Chicago, and the US Military Dental Research Institute at Great Lakes. The program will develop research aimed at improving prevention, diagnosis, treatment, quality of life and rehabilitation of the patient with oropharyngeal/head and neck cancers and patients with adverse oral reactions to therapy for cancer in other body regions. The planned enhancements in research infrastructure will build an interdisciplinary team which will make advances in cancer care for a diverse population of Americans by the discovery of new knowledge and its transfer to health care practitioners. The College has assembled faculty from the UIC Comprehensive Cancer Center, College of Medicine, Bioengineering, School of Public Health, Pharmacy, Nursing, and Applied Health Sciences to collaborate in this interdisciplinary research program, which is congruent with the NIH Roadmap model. UlC's senior administration has demonstrated strong support for the initiative by committing more than $2.4 million in matching funds for the U24 grant. The enhancement plan calls for 1) recruiting two magnet and six junior investigators, 2) developing collaborations among scientists from diverse fields, 3) providing faculty development training opportunities for cutting edge research techniques and clinical research, 4) recruitment of a new cadre of oral health scientists. The funding of this proposal would dramatically increase research productivity in the College and significantly improve clinical care of cancer patients.