PBTF gives second $6 million grant to its research institute at Duke University
May 14, 2008The Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation (PBTF) is giving an additional $6 million grant to its research institute at Duke University, bringing total funding for the program to $12 million.
Duke will use the funds to continue to sharpen its research focus on pediatric brain tumors, which are the leading cause of cancer death in children and adolescents. Four out of 10 children with a brain tumor die within five years of diagnosis, a statistic the PBTF intends to improve through its research institute program.
"The goal of this grant is to translate our understanding of childhood brain tumors into novel, less-invasive treatment methods," said Dianne Traynor, PBTF Director of Research Funding and Advocacy.
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| PBTF Institute at Duke researchers are working to develop gene-based therapies, vaccines, and other novel treatments for childhood brain tumors. |
"The Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation Institute at Duke is the largest basic research collaborative in existence for pediatric brain tumors," Traynor continued. "It brings together established brain tumor researchers and scientists using platform technologies developed for other cancer types. Their work utilizes the disciplines of biochemistry, genetics, molecular biology, cell biology and developmental biology to better understand childhood brain tumors."
The PBTF Institute at Duke is directed by one of the world's pre-eminent brain tumor researchers, Darell Bigner, M.D., Ph.D. "We're working first to unravel the molecular mechanisms that drive these cancer cells," Bigner said. "Then we can develop new treatments that won't damage the brain the way older treatments do."
Researchers at Duke share their results with their counterparts at the three other PBTF Institutes, housed at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Canada, and the University of California, San Francisco. Current funding of the entire PBTF Institute program stands at $13 million.
While several PBTF fundraising efforts support this work, most donations come from the Ride for Kids® program, with long-standing sponsorship from the American Honda Motor Company.
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