January 23, 2013
International research collaboration can successfully address the global health problem of cancer through access to unique populations and environments, shared resources, specialized expertise, new concepts and perspectives, innovative methodologies and/or emerging technologies. However, barriers to sustaining these collaborations exist, such as the lack of funding as well as the lack of sharing of knowledge about these important research partnerships. The Landon Foundation-AACR INNOVATOR Award for International Collaboration in Cancer Research was established to help overcome these barriers by providing funding to an existing collaboration for costs traditional grant mechanisms may not support and to raise the profile of the importance of collaboration to conquering the cancer problem. This support supplements existing funding for the collaboration and provides the means to facilitate travel and the sharing of knowledge that otherwise may have been difficult to achieve in the absence of this funding.
This award will recognize and support highly meritorious research that is being conducted collaboratively by investigators in different countries around the world. The award provides $100,000 over two years ($50,000 per year) to support the salary and benefits of postdoctoral or clinical research fellows and/or research assistants, equipment, research/laboratory supplies, travel between the collaborators’ institutions relevant to the collaboration, training in new techniques that will benefit the collaboration, such as training received through a scholar exchange/visiting professor program, and presentations of research data at scientific meetings or through other means that will contribute to the dissemination of the scientific knowledge gained. It is anticipated that one grant will be funded.