For researchers in The University of Memphis W. Harry FeinstoneCenter for Genomic Research, $900,000 is more than just a niceamount of money. It's an opportunity to take their breast cancerstudies to a new level.
"It's a lot of money," said Thomas Sutter, Feinstone Centerdirector. "But money doesn't make us happy. If we could do it for$20 we would. But this dollar amount allows us to test things thathave never been tested before."
Along with the monetary award, the U.S. Department of Defensenamed the Feinstone Center as one of only five universities in theBreast Cancer Center of Excellence.
The network, which includes the University of Nebraska and theUniversity of Virginia, received a $5.6 million grant to runthrough May 2007.
The award is part of a Congressionally Directed Medical ResearchProgram, whose vision is to eradicate breast cancer.
"It's a very prestigious award," said Rick Kenyon, CDMRR breastcancer program manager. "It's the best of the best. It means thatyour university has expertise in a certain area of study."
The U of M received a large portion of the nearly $6 million tostudy breast cancer prevention and the role estrogen plays incausing cancer, Sutter said.
Sutter and his team of researchers have worked on this study forsix years, he said.
"We are very excited," he said. "We may be able to preventbreast cancer without blocking the beneficial effects that estrogenhave."
The U of M has reached a new level in research because of thegrant, Sutter said.
"Until now we haven't really been associated with cancerresearch," he said. "But this allows our faculty in the sciences tobe more competitive. And we hope to collaborate more with (theUniversity of Tennessee, Knoxville) and St. Jude (Children'sResearch Hospital). This puts us in a pretty good crowd ofinstitutions."
The center is named in honor of community scientific leader W.Harry Feinstone.
"He's a wonderful benefactor for The University," Sutter said."He allowed us to really get things going."
Feinstone worked in lab research at The U of M for nearly 20years. He came to The University in the 1970s after working inresearch at Johns Hopkins University, Sutter said.
"I'm happy to hear that," Feinstone said when he heard about the$900,000 grant. "I'm glad they are being that successful."
