The specific aim of this proposal is training physicians to become successful patient-oriented research scientists. The major factors limiting the pool of POR scientists are the time constraints of patient care and the lack of support. This training grant is designed specifically to address these needs. By providing stipend and research support, trainees will be guaranteed protected time and have the opportunity to participate in a formal training program as full time students. The program is designed to train physicians who have completed their subspecialty training in oncology and are board eligible and/or certified. The program will consist of 2 years of intensive training. Each trainee will have two mentors, a laboratory based scientist and a POR physician scientist, to assure that the trainee learns to translate laboratory research data to the clinic and the reverse, that is to be able to explore in the laboratory fundamental findings from the clinic. The program will include formal course work in clinical trials, clinical epidemiology, statistics and molecular and cellular biology. The course work will be augmented by conduct of a research project including preparing the protocol, obtaining research committee and institutional review board approvals, analyzing the data, writing and publishing manuscripts, and preparing and submitting research grants. The Principal Investigator and the 3 Co-Principal Investigators will be responsible for program management. The overall program will be supervised by an Executive Committee, consisting of the Principal Investigator and the 3 Co-Principal Investigators, assisted by the V/P for Translational Research, the V/P for Education, the V/P for Institutional Diversity and the Program Director for Education Research and Assessment. An Advisory Committee consisting of the clinical division heads and the basic science department chairmen will oversee and evaluate progress of the grant. A comprehensive panel of mentors in all disciplines is available for student supervision and instruction. The program will prepare oncology physician specialists for careers in academic patient-oriented research in oncology.
| McAuliffe, John C; Hunt, Kelly K; Lazar, Alexander J F et al. (2009) A randomized, phase II study of preoperative plus postoperative imatinib in GIST: evidence of rapid radiographic response and temporal induction of tumor cell apoptosis. Ann Surg Oncol 16:910-9 |
