Research Project
10247721
PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT The Career Enhancement Program (CEP) is an essential component of the PNW Prostate Cancer SPORE that serves to sustain and enhance our mission by attracting and nurturing new and talented research faculty. The CEP will continue to implement a strategy that has successfully developed clinical, basic, and population scientists for productive careers in translational prostate cancer research. The Specific Aims of the CEP are to: 1. Provide research support and collaborative expertise for junior faculty, advanced fellows, and established investigators who wish to either develop or refocus their careers on translational PC research; 2. Provide a coordinated system for mentoring faculty and advanced fellows pursuing PC research across a broad range of disciplines; 3. Create a framework in which investigators can gain exposure to and training in aspects of translational PC research outside their areas of expertise; and 4. Attract and retain women, minorities, and early career junior faculty who can make key contributions to translational PC research at the institutions comprising the PNW Prostate SPORE. The CEP will be coordinated between the Fred Hutch and the University of Washington (UW); the Prostate Centre at the Vancouver General Hospital (VGH); and the Oregon Health Science University (OHSU). Our organizational structure works across sites and includes recruitment and monitoring of candidates by a career enhancement committee, educational coordination through a conference and education committee, and access to more than 50 multidisciplinary investigators both within and outside the SPORE whose research interests provide relevant experience in translational prostate cancer research. The CEP educational program combines a wide spectrum of individual research opportunities, formal educational courses, and a large number of conferences and seminars in translational prostate cancer research. We plan to continue to recruit both qualified faculty members and senior research fellows who wish to expand their work in translational prostate cancer research, focusing on the inclusion of women and underrepresented minority applicants. In addition to SPORE grant support, this program will be augmented by substantial institutional resources.
