Yale Cancer Center (YCC) researchers were awarded a 5-year, $11.7 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to fund the Yale Head and Neck Cancer Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE). The SPORE program harnesses the strengths of academic cancer centers by bringing together experts in oncology, immunobiology, pharmacology, molecular biology, pathology, epidemiology, and addiction science to collaborate on projects. The goal of the Yale Head and Neck Cancer SPORE is to address critical barriers to treatment of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma due to resistance to immune, DNA-damaging, and targeted therapy.
Support for a Collaborative Effort
“Head and neck cancer is a devastating disease, with even successful treatments causing significant after effects, and yet research into head and neck cancer is relatively less funded than research into other cancers. Team research will be
Barbara Burtness, MD
critical to making progress for people with head and neck cancer, and the award of this SPORE in head and neck cancer will make a significant difference in helping us advance treatment options for this difficult-to-treat disease,” said principal investigator Barbara Burtness, MD, Professor of Medicine (Medical Oncology) and Co-Leader, Developmental Therapeutics Research Program at YCC.
“The grant will facilitate collaborations between basic, translational, and clinical scientists from our labs and institutions around the country to help identify new curative therapies for our patients,” Dr. Burtness added.
