Newswise — FORT WASHINGTON, PA — The NCCN Foundation®, which, through private philanthropy, empowers people through knowledge and advances the mission of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) to improve the quality, effectiveness, and efficiency of care provided to people with cancer, has awarded grants to five young investigators from NCCN Member Institutions. These awardees, who are dedicated to advancing and discovering new treatments for cancer, enhancing quality, and improving patient education, represent the fourth series of the NCCN Foundation Young Investigator Awards—a program initiated in 2011. The grants will provide $150,000 in funding over a two-year period, beginning in September 2014.

“The NCCN Foundation is proud to award grants to five young investigators from the NCCN Member Institutions,” said Gary J. Weyhmuller, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, NCCN. “The support of the NCCN Young Investigator Awards fosters the development of the next generation of world-class oncology researchers and furthers the NCCN mission. We applaud the hard work and support of the NCCN Foundation to make these awards possible.” Following are the 2014 NCCN Foundation Young Investigator Awards recipients: • James Murphy, MD, MS; UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center; “Breast Cancer Radiation among Elderly Women in the U.S.: Assessing the Impact of NCCN Guidelines on Nationwide Patterns of Care”• Jae Park, MD; Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center; “Improving Safety and Efficacy of CD19-Targeted CAR Modified T Cells in Patients with B-Cell Hematologic Malignancies”• Ashley Rosko, MD; The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute; “NCCN Senior Adult Oncology: Myeloma Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment and Biomarkers of Aging Investigation”• Terri Woodward, MD; The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center; “Novel Psychological Intervention to Prevent Fertility-Related Distress”• Jing Xia, PhD; Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center/Seattle Cancer Care Alliance; “PERMIT: Prostate Early Recurrence Indicating Treatment?”

The awardees responded to a Request for Proposal (RFP) issued by the NCCN Foundation to the NCCN Member Institutions. All submissions were reviewed by a multidisciplinary panel of oncology experts, and the awardees were selected based on several key components, including scientific merit and study design. The studies will be managed and overseen by the NCCN Oncology Research Program (ORP).

Since their inception in 2011, NCCN Foundation Young Investigator Awards have been received by 18 individuals. In March 2014, NCCN featured abstracts highlighting the work of the second series of Young Investigator Awardees at the NCCN General Poster Sessions during the NCCN 19th Annual Conference: Advancing the Standard of Cancer Care™. The 2012 recipients’ research contributed to a number of critical areas in oncology including, but not limited to quality improvement in oncology care, the role of genetics in tumorigenesis, delayed intervention and surveillance in cancer treatment, and internet-based decision-making based on the NCCN Guidelines for Patients®. The outcomes of this research, funded through the NCCN Foundation, illuminate the impact of the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines®) in improving the lives of people with cancer.

For more information about the NCCN Foundation Young Investigator Awards, visit NCCN.org.

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About the National Comprehensive Cancer NetworkThe National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®), a not-for-profit alliance of 25 of the world’s leading cancer centers devoted to patient care, research, and education, is dedicated to improving the quality, effectiveness, and efficiency of cancer care so that patients can live better lives. Through the leadership and expertise of clinical professionals at NCCN Member Institutions, NCCN develops resources that present valuable information to the numerous stakeholders in the health care delivery system. As the arbiter of high-quality cancer care, NCCN promotes the importance of continuous quality improvement and recognizes the significance of creating clinical practice guidelines appropriate for use by patients, clinicians, and other health care decision-makers.

The NCCN Member Institutions are: Fred and Pamela Buffett Cancer Center at The Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE; City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Los Angeles, CA; Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center | Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center, Boston, MA; Duke Cancer Institute, Durham, NC; Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA; Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT; Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center/Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, Seattle, WA; The Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins, Baltimore, MD; Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University, Chicago, IL; Mayo Clinic Cancer Center, Phoenix/Scottsdale, AZ, Jacksonville, FL, and Rochester, MN; Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY; Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, FL; The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute, Columbus, OH; Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY; Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO; St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital/The University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN; Stanford Cancer Institute, Stanford, CA; University of Alabama at Birmingham Comprehensive Cancer Center, Birmingham, AL; UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center, La Jolla, CA; UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, San Francisco, CA; University of Colorado Cancer Center, Aurora, CO; University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Ann Arbor, MI; The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX; Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, Nashville, TN; and Yale Cancer Center/Smilow Cancer Hospital, New Haven, CT.

Clinicians, visit NCCN.org. Patients and caregivers, visit NCCN.org/patients.