Funding

Two funding programs within the Breast Cancer SPORE support innovative translational breast cancer research and rising independent investigators, with an emphasis on diversity.

Developmental Research Program

The Developmental Research Program supports innovative and scientifically meritorious research projects that can be translated into clinically important applications that improve breast cancer diagnosis and management and reduce mortality.

The program expands the SPORE's research portfolio by:

Encouraging and soliciting innovative translational laboratory, population and clinical study proposals.
Promoting and supporting interdisciplinary collaboration in translational research in breast cancer.
Generating new hypotheses that can be tested in larger scale research projects.

Selecting projects

Members of the Scientific Advisory Committee and experienced investigators offer their expertise in the application and peer review process for the program.

Criteria to select projects for funding are based on scientific merit, originality, qualifications of the applicant and translational potential. The program is committed to vigorously carrying out the policies and procedures of Mayo Clinic to identify and support qualified candidates who are women, minority individuals, veterans and people with disabilities.

Expectations

Developmental research projects are expected to generate data that can serve as the basis for other SPORE-sponsored projects or support through peer-reviewed external grant support.

The three main metrics for productivity of the program are:

Advancement of projects to a full project status in the SPORE.
Acquisition of extramural funding.
Publications by the project awardees.

The program has been highly successful in identifying a cadre of investigators that has expanded and enriched the scientific portfolio of the SPORE and provided a mechanism to develop co-leaders in full projects. The program is open to investigators at Mayo Clinic, the Masonic Cancer Center at the University of Minnesota and Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University.

Current projects

Current projects in the Developmental Research Program are:

Self-Assembling Real-Time RNA Nanoparticle Dendritic Cell Vaccines (SMART-DC-VAC). Investigators: Karen S. Anderson, M.D., Ph.D.; Michael P. Gustafson, Ph.D.; and Felipe Batalini, M.D.
FastAd To Evolve Better Breast Cancer Oncolytic Immunotherapies. Investigator: Michael A. Barry, Ph.D.
Enhancing the Immunity Against Breast Tumors Through Activation of P2RX7-Expressing Virus-Specific Tissue-Resident Memory CD8+ T Cells. Investigator: Henrique Borges da Silva, Ph.D.
Spatially Resolved Characterization of Immune Landscapes in Early-Stage Triple-Negative Breast Cancer. Investigator: Saranya Chumsri, M.D.
The PROMISE of Cell-Free DNA Signatures To Predict Resistance to Palbociclib Plus Endocrine Therapy in Hormone Receptor (HR)-Positive, HER2-Negative, Advanced Breast Cancer. Investigators: Aadel A. Chaudhuri, M.D., Ph.D., and Ciara O'Sullivan, M.B., B.Ch.
Targeting Drug-Resistant Breast Cancers with Allosteric Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 2 Inhibitors. Investigator: Gunda I. Georg, Ph.D., University of Minnesota.
Development of Z-Endoxifen-PROTACs for the Treatment of Chemoresistant Triple-Negative Breast Cancer. Investigators: Swaathi Jayaraman, Ph.D., and Matthew P. Goetz, M.D.
Sensitizing Triple-Negative Breast Cancer to Radiation Therapy. Investigators: Zhenkun Lou, Ph.D.; Robert W. Mutter, M.D.; and Liewei Wang, M.D., Ph.D.
Exploring ACK1 Kinase Inhibition in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: Dual Mechanisms in Tumor Suppression and Immune Enhancement. Investigator: Xinyan Wu, Ph.D.

Program director

John R. Hawse IV, Ph.D.

Career Enhancement Program

The Career Enhancement Program identifies and mentors junior faculty members with the greatest potential of developing independent programs in translational breast cancer research.

The Career Enhancement Program has a demanding review process aimed at identifying the most talented and promising candidates. Emphasis is placed on identifying qualified women, minority individuals, veterans and people with disabilities.

Intensive mentoring

Awardees participate in an intensive, rigorous and effective mentoring program. The mentoring program is based on the establishment and optimal functioning of a multidisciplinary mentoring committee.

The committee is led by a senior investigator with the scientific expertise and commitment to develop the next generation of translational breast cancer researchers. The committee is composed of the primary mentor and the complementary clinical or basic investigator necessary for a comprehensive mentoring program, along with a statistician.

It's crucial for the awardee's success that mentoring be ongoing and robust. The director of the Career Enhancement Program provides close oversight of the mentoring process and the progress of the awardee.

Dr. Goetz, who serves as both the Breast Cancer SPORE director and the Career Enhancement Program director, reports to the SPORE Executive Committee. This intensive oversight process was established because the development of independent investigators and translational breast cancer research is central to the SPORE mission. Awardees are expected to use program resources to develop independent research programs and secure independent funding in breast cancer research.