Newswise — Dr. Edward Sauter, the new associate dean for research at the University of North Dakota's School of Medicine and Health Sciences, is on a mission to turn the research going on in the school's laboratories into treatments at patients' bedsides.
The concept is known as "translational" research, and according to Sauter, a cancer surgeon and researcher, it's nothing new.
"It's what we've always wanted to do," he said. "If you remember the war on cancer, which was announced by President Nixon, there was a real thrust in research dollars at the federal level toward this. The focus even then was to take these grant dollars and translate them into cures for cancer."
There's a renewed focus on translational research, led in part by recently resigned director of the National Institutes of Health Dr. Elias Zerhouni. "As a physician, he's keenly aware that we need to show impact on people," Sauter noted. The other thrust toward translational research stems from declines in federal financial support for the NIH over the past eight years.
"With shrinking dollars, the question is where do you get the most bang for your buck," Sauter said. "Congress wants what the American people want. They want research that will improve their health as quickly as possible."
World-class researchers
A researcher's success in obtaining federal funding and other grants improves by demonstrating clinical relevance, Sauter said. At UND, he's got a lot to work with. World-class researchers line the corridors of the medical school, involved in studies on cancers, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, infectious diseases, heart disease, trace elements involved in urology-related diseases, drug and alcohol addiction, and rural health concerns, just to name a few.
"I've met with department chairs to identify their needs and to obtain ideas to advance the research mission," Sauter said. "My goal is to get people collaborating more with each other."
The challenge for Sauter is to take UND's medical research and apply it in clinics around the state and region.
"We're a community-based medical center," Sauter said. "We can work with University and community physicians to explore important scientific questions."
UND's medical school works with physicians statewide at hospitals such as Altru Health System in Grand Forks, MeritCare in Fargo, Trinity Health in Minot and MedCenter One and PrimeCare in Bismarck.
Body and soul
Sauter came here from the University of Missouri-Columbia, where he was vice chair for research in the department of surgery.
He brings a wealth of nationally recognized research and clinical experience to UND. Among many other accomplishments, his research group pioneered noninvasive and minimally invasive techniques to predict breast cancer risk.
Sauter, a native of New Orleans, spent 12 years in a Catholic religious order, and during that time, he entered the Louisiana State School of Medicine. "You can cure the soul or the body, or both," he said. "I remain very active in my church and I most certainly always will."
Sauter received his Ph.D. in molecular biology from the University of Pennsylvania. He had multiple other academic and professional appointments, including stops at the renowned Fox Chase Cancer Institute in Philadelphia, Temple University and Thomas Jefferson University.
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