The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) is pleased to announce a new partnership with the Prostate Cancer Foundation, creating the AACR-Prostate Cancer Foundation Recognition Awards for Research Excellence. Recently given at the AACR Annual Meeting 2008, the awards provide financial support for early-career scientists to travel to AACR scientific meetings to present exceptional proffered papers in the field of translational prostate cancer research.

The two inaugural recipients of the AACR-Prostate Cancer Foundation Recognition Awards for Research Excellence are:

• Megumi Iiizumi, Ph.D., postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Medical Microbiology at the University of Southern Illinois School of Medicine. Iiizumi’s abstract, titled "RhoC promotes metastasis but not growth of prostate tumor" has promising implications for gene regulation of prostate cancer metastasis. It was presented on at the AACR Annual Meeting on Monday, April 14, 2008.

• Saskia J.A.M. Santegoets, M.S., graduate student at the VU University Medical Center in The Netherlands. Santegoets' abstract, titled "Dendritic and T cell functions in patients with metastatic hormone-refractory prostate cancer treated with GVAX immunotherapy for prostate cancer and ipilimumab" shows promise in the area of clinical immunotherapy. It was presented in a scientific session on Monday, April 14, 2008 and a press briefing on Tuesday, April 15.

Part of the AACR Scholar-in-Training awards program, the new award recognizes excellence in translational prostate cancer research and is used to offset travel expenses for the 2008 Annual Meeting and future AACR meetings and special conferences for the next two years. Attendance at AACR's meetings not only provides top-notch scientific education for young investigators, but also promotes the exchange of information and offers valuable networking, collaboration and mentorship opportunities.

For more information about the AACR-Prostate Cancer Foundation Recognition Awards for Research Excellence and other AACR Scholar-in-Training Travel Grants, please visit the AACR website.

About the American Association for Cancer Research
The mission of the American Association for Cancer Research is to prevent and cure cancer. Founded in 1907, AACR is the world's oldest and largest professional organization dedicated to advancing cancer research. The membership includes nearly 27,000 basic, translational, and clinical researchers; health care professionals; and cancer survivors and advocates in the United States and more than 70 other countries. AACR marshals the full spectrum of expertise from the cancer community to accelerate progress in the etiology, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer through high-quality scientific and educational programs. It funds innovative, meritorious research grants. The AACR Annual Meeting attracts more than 17,000 participants who share the latest discoveries and developments in the field. Special Conferences throughout the year present novel data across a wide variety of topics in cancer research, treatment, and patient care. AACR publishes five major peer-reviewed journals: Cancer Research; Clinical Cancer Research; Molecular Cancer Therapeutics; Molecular Cancer Research; and Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention. Its most recent publication and its sixth major journal, Cancer Prevention Research, is dedicated exclusively to cancer prevention, from preclinical research to clinical trials. The AACR also publishes CR, a magazine for cancer survivors, patient advocates, their families, physicians, and scientists. CR provides a forum for sharing essential, evidence-based information and perspectives on progress in cancer research, survivorship, and advocacy. 

About the Prostate Cancer Foundation
Prostate cancer strikes one out of every six American men. The Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) is the world's largest philanthropic source of support for prostate cancer research to discover better treatments and a cure for recurrent prostate cancer. PCF pursues its mission by reaching out to individuals, corporations and others to harness society’s resources—financial and human—to fight this deadly disease. Founded in 1993, the PCF has raised more than $350 million and provided funding for more than 1,400 research projects at nearly 150 institutions worldwide. The PCF has been a pioneer in the grant making process, simplifying paperwork for grantees, leaving more time for scientific investigators to conduct needed research. The PCF also advocates for greater awareness of prostate cancer and more government resources, resulting in a twenty-fold increase in government funding for prostate cancer. More information about PCF can be found at www.pcf.org.

Contact
Jennifer Ryan
Phone: 267-646-0558
jennifer.ryan@aacr.org