Consolidated Basic Cancer Research Program

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PROJECT SUMMARY – OVERALL The vision of the Wistar Cancer Center is to conquer cancer through outstanding research, education and partnership, and its mission is to merge basic, translational, and patient-oriented cancer research in a single scientific continuum. Rated Exceptional (Impact score, 19) at the 2013 renewal of the Cancer Center Support Grant (CCSG), the Cancer Center has continued on a path of scientific excellence, impactful contributions in basic and translational cancer research, and productive partnerships with neighboring academic Institutions. Leveraging the 2014 opening of the Fox Research Tower, the largest building built on Wistar campus, a science-focused leadership where the Cancer Center Director (Dr. Altieri) is also Institute President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and a nimble, opportunity-driven administration, the Cancer Center has recruited 10 new members during the last CCSG budget cycle, expanded technological capabilities in all Shared Resources, and realigned Programs for optimal scientific impact and collaboration. Its basic research contributions have elucidated fundamental underpinnings of tumorigenesis in chromatin organization, non-coding RNA, local immunosuppression and metastatic competence, whereas disease site-specific themes in melanoma and ovarian cancer have run the gamut from defining new oncogenic pathways to unraveling mechanisms of drug resistance to bringing novel therapeutics to the clinic. Against this backdrop, the Cancer Center currently receives $12.4 million in peer-reviewed, cancer-related funding, with $8.9 million from the NCI for an exceptional cancer focus of 76%. The three Programs in the Cancer Center have succeeded in a uniquely collaborative approach to cancer research: 76% of all peer-reviewed funding and over 40% of “discovery” publications in the Programs are currently the product of multi-investigator collaborations. For a Cancer Center with only 27 members, Wistar now contributes to three Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPOREs), five Program Project grants, six multi-PI awards, and four U-type grants. The overarching goal of the Cancer Center to move its basic discoveries to the clinic has been met with a landmark agreement with the Helen F. Graham Cancer Center (HFGCC), the first partnership in the nation to bring together two NCI-sponsored programs: an NCI-designated “basic” Cancer Center (Wistar) and a member of the NCI Community Oncology Research Program (HFGCC). This has enabled impactful collaborations between Wistar scientists and HFGCC clinicians, bringing cutting-edge cancer research to the community. The Cancer Center will continue on this successful trajectory of accomplishments during the next CCSG budget cycle, creating new, multidisciplinary research themes in basic and translational tumor immunology, early- stage academic drug discovery, and exploitation of tumor metabolism for novel cancer therapeutics. As an organization solely dedicated to biomedical discovery, Wistar is uniquely poised to continue making transformative advances in basic, translational, and patient-focused cancer research.