Subproject for Institution # SP0033269 Institutional Research Grant for Dr. Dileep Varma

For the past 22 years, the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center (RHLCCC) of Northwestern University (NU) has used funds from an ACS-IRG to support pilot studies by junior investigators seeking to embark on independent careers in cancer research. During the current four-year term, which expires on Dec. 31, 2015, three pilot studies per year have been funded, with one of these being a study in an area of “special interest” to the ACS. This proposal seeks a renewal of this IRG, which has provided crucial seed funding for many beginning faculty members, allowing them to generate initial publications and data on which to base extramural grant applications.