NEW YORK -- March 15, 2007 – To foster radical breakthroughs in cancer, the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation and Andrew and Debra Rachleff have created a novel grant program to provide seed funding for young scientists to conduct high risk research designed to significantly impact our understanding of cancer and approaches to its prevention, diagnosis and treatment.
Scientists with out-of-the-box, unproven ideas have always had enormous difficulty obtaining funding. For junior scientists, this challenge is far greater. However, it is these young investigators who often have the fresh perspective, creativity and drive that lead to revolutionary discoveries, much like their entrepreneurial counterparts in the technology world. The goal of the Damon Runyon – Rachleff Innovation Award is to apply a venture capital philosophy to funding scientific research by investing in junior scientists with innovative ideas, as well as the vision and passion to transform a field.
The Rachleffs have partnered with the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation to establish this new program. "I bring the mentality of taking risks to get innovation and Damon Runyon brings its expertise in running internationally respected grant programs for young investigators. By joining together, we were able to create something different, while avoiding duplicative administrative costs. We hope that our program and partnership will be a model for others," explains Andy Rachleff.
Damon Runyon and the Rachleffs seek dramatic scientific breakthroughs with these awards. "Unlike traditional research funding which focuses on incremental advances, we are investing in ideas that are high risk but have the potential for breakthrough discoveries," says Lorraine Egan, Executive Director of the Foundation. As Andy Rachleff explains, "Similar to the venture capital world, we are not focused on batting averages. We are looking for home runs."
Launched with initial funding of $5 million from the Rachleffs, the program awards between three and five new grants each year, with each recipient receiving $450,000 over three years. The first awards will be made in the fall of 2007.
Nation's Leading Scientists on Advisory Board
Recognizing that a different kind of expertise is required to evaluate out-of-the box thinking, Damon Runyon recruited a scientific advisory board comprised of world-renowned scientists who themselves conceived breakthrough ideas at a young age. They understand the challenge of attracting grant money for novel ideas. As committee member Mark Davis, PhD, of Stanford University, a pioneer in the field of immunology, recalls, "I was told that one of my early grant requests was rejected simply because 'some of your experiments might fail.' It's hard to make real progress with that mind set."
Special attention was also paid to creating a board representing diverse scientific backgrounds in cutting-edge areas of research so that ideas across a broad spectrum could be considered for funding. Representatives from academia and industry provide perspective across the continuum from basic discovery to application. The committee is chaired by Ronald Levy, MD, of Stanford University, who developed Rituxan, the first FDA-approved monoclonal antibody for treatment of Lymphoma , and includes such scientific leaders as Elizabeth Blackburn, PhD (UCSF), David Botstein, PhD (Princeton), Napoleone Ferrara, MD (Genentech) and Todd Golub, MD (Broad Institute).
Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation
Founded in 1946, the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation is highly respected by the scientific community for the quality of the basic and clinical research it has supported and the important role it has played in identifying the most promising young scientists and encouraging them to focus their careers on cancer research. To date, the Foundation has invested over $200 million and funded more than 3,000 scientists. 100% of all donations to the Foundation are used to support scientific research. Its administrative and fundraising costs are paid from its Broadway Tickets Service and endowment. For more information visit www.drcrf.org