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August 2, 2012

Florida A&M University Awarded $5.6 Million Grant

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded Florida A&M University’s College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Science a $5.6 million grant over five years to study novel approaches to treating breast and lung cancer --- two of the  leading causes of cancer deaths among African Americans.

The funds will also support the establishment of sustainable organizations through university and community partnerships to reduce health disparities in African-American communities and to train more health-care professionals from neighborhoods that suffer from health disparities.

The National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities approved the grant, which was announced on Wednesday, July 25.

The grant, which is titled, “Center for Excellence for Cancer Research, Training and Community Service,” was awarded to Dr. Karam Soliman, distinguished professor of basic pharmaceutical sciences at FAMU, which is based in Tallahassee.

In addition, NIH awarded FAMU approximately $1.5 million over five years for the indirect costs of administering the grant.

“I want to thank Dr. Karam Soliman and his research team for securing this grant,” said Dr. Larry  Robinson, Florida A&M’s interim president. “This research initiative provides the opportunity to faculty and students to apply their expertise to address health issues that impact citizens in Florida and throughout the nation. It does this by working directly with members of the communities disportionately impacted by breast and lung cancer.”

The American Cancer Society recently reported that lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among black men and women and that breast cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer deaths among black women.

The funding will help FAMU work to mitigate cancer in our communities, said Dr. Ken Redda, acting vice president for research and professor of medicinal chemistry at FAMU.

The award will enable Florida A&M to support Ph.D. students’ independent research on populations suffering from large health disparities. In addition, the funds will support forming partnerships with community-based organizations that are concerned with fighting cancer.

The grant will also:

•    Support Innovative research to promote minority health and eliminate health disparities;
•    Increase the number of individuals from minority and other health-disparity populations  engaged in research activities;
•    Build research infrastructure and capacity;
•    Increase the number of well-trained researchers from health-disparity populations;
•    Engage minority and other health-disparity communities in sustainable activities for improving the health of their communities by increasing health literacy and knowledge of health disparities.

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