About: KWRISF Research Funding

Rein In Sarcoma Authorizes New $154,000 Grant Round

The Rein in Sarcoma Board of Directors at its September meeting authorized a new funding round for Sarcoma cancer research at the University of Minnesota Sarcoma Cancer Center of $154,000. This is the largest grant round in the Foundation's history.

The ability of Rein in Sarcoma to authorize this extraordinary grant round is a direct result highly of successful Rein in Sarcoma 2009 held last July, plus major fundraisers initiated by many individuals and families in support and Rein in Sarcoma, and major contributions from newly formed RIS Tribute and Memorial Funds.

With this authorization competitive proposals from throughout the University will be sought during the coming weeks in from many facets of sarcoma cancer research. The Board's current time line calls for final determination of which proposals to be funded in February 2010. Specifically $125,000 will be for specific sarcoma research.

In addition the Board approved a 2010 commitment of $25,000 to be matched by $25,000 in grants from the Children's Cancer Fund and the Roby Thompson Endowment for the 2010 Sarcoma Cancer all University Translational award program.

The 2009 All University Sarcoma cancer Translational Award was given to Dr. Daniel A Saltzman’s  for his studies of attenuated salmonella with IL-2 against unresectable malignancies  

Finally, the RIS Bord finally authorized $4,000 in sarcoma cancer Medical scholarships for 2010 which will be award to third year medical students that are committed to specialize in sarcoma cancer clinical or research work. This is twice the size of the current RIS Medical Scholarship.

Current 2009 Funding

The majority of the proceeds of the Foundation are to support the Karen Wyckoff Sarcoma Research Fund, the primary Sarcoma fund of the University of Minnesota Masonic Cancer Center. The Foundation also supports education of the community and physicians about sarcoma cancers with a particular emphasis on lessening misdiagnoses.

All of the sarcoma doctors at the University of Minnesota have affirmed their commitment to the Foundation. Dr. Dusenbery and Dr. Cheng are charter board members and Dr Dan Mulroney joined the Board in May 2009.

• Dr. Peter Bitterman is continuing to have success in his research which has received funding from the Foundation.
• Dr. Clohisy helped to put together a poster about sarcoma which is being used at continuing education workshops for physicians.
• A musculoskeletal tumor database was supported by the Fund, which is a major new asset, allowing clinical research to go forward.
• Dr. Dusenbery conducts an annual seminar for medical students on how to determine which lumps, bumps, and bruises are serious and merit more investigation. The objective of this seminar is to reduce the amount of misdiagnosis so common to sarcomas.
• Other work includes the creation of a new website about sarcoma at the University of Minnesota Cancer Center.

All of this work is possible because of hundreds of committed and generous donors.

For Projects funded by the Foundation in 2009, click here

For Projects funded by the Foundation in 2008, click here

For Projects funded by the Foundation and Fund through 2005, click here