CPRIT awards nearly $10M to UTHealth Houston cancer researchers
(Graphic by UTHealth Houston)
Seven UTHealth Houston researchers received awards totaling nearly $10 million in funding from The Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT), a state legislative initiative designed to advance cancer research and prevention in Texas. The recipients oversee initiatives spanning multiple strategic and beneficial areas within cancer research and prevention.
Five of the grants were led by faculty at UTHealth Houston School of Public Health. Three of those, which total nearly $5 million, were led by researchers from the Center for Health Promotion and Prevention Research in partnership with UTHealth Houston Institute for Implementation Science. McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston leads two of the grants focusing on cancer’s effects on the body and potential therapies for treatment. Dual-appointed assistant professor of pediatrics Andrea Ramirez Varela, MD, PhD, MPH, is among the awardees.
“This outstanding performance by our talented faculty during this current CPRIT round demonstrates the strength of cancer research across all our schools at UTHealth Houston,” said John Hancock, MA, MB, BChir, PhD, ScD, senior vice president for research strategy and innovation at UTHealth Houston and professor, executive dean, and the John S. Dunn Distinguished University Chair in Physiology and Medicine at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston.
With this recent round of funding, CPRIT’s overall investment in the fight against cancer in Texas surpasses $4 billion, making it the highest-funded state initiative of its kind in the U.S. and the second-largest overall cancer funder after the National Cancer Institute. Founded by legislative action and voter approval in Texas in 2007, CPRIT has since recruited 344 cancer investigators, supported 25 companies relocating or expanding in Texas, and enabled approximately 11.2 million prevention services covering all 254 Texas counties.
These awards further emphasize UTHealth Houston’s continued commitment to advancing both fundamental cancer sciences and access to screening and early detection programs.
Andrea Ramirez Varela, MD, PhD, MPH – School of Public Health and McGovern Medical School
Boosting Breast and Colorectal Cancer Prevention Through Physical Activity Assessment, Prescription, and Referral Into Clinical Care Among Communities in Need – $978,714
Led by Andrea Ramirez Varela, MD, PhD, MPH, assistant professor of pediatrics at McGovern Medical School and assistant professor of epidemiology at the School of Public Health, and Timothy Walker, PhD, assistant professor of health promotion and behavioral sciences, this nearly $1 million award aims to increase physical activity and improve prescriptions and referrals in rural clinics across South Texas. Ramirez Varela and Walker will work with and train health care staff in rural communities to improve electronic health records, establish strong partnerships with community organizations, and develop a sustainable system that encourages patients to become more physically active. This initiative will primarily focus on reducing the risk of breast and colorectal cancer, while also strengthening the overall quality of preventive care.
The team will partner with community health workers to further support patients, guiding them toward local exercise opportunities and help them stay active long term.
“Patients in these rural communities will receive personalized guidance to become more physically active, which can lower their risk of breast and colorectal cancer,” said Ramirez Varela.
“Most of all, we look forward to the positive impact this initiative will have on patient health and look forward to developing a means for this to be a cost-effective and scalable model that can be used in other communities across Texas,” she said.
View additional UTHealth Houston awardees in full article >>
Corresponding post on UTHealth Houston Instagram