Lebanon, NH - A new program will create dedicated time to assist Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health clinicians in researching causes of and cures for cancer.
Six D-H Cancer Research Fellows will share $1 million in annual funding to support up to two full days for each of them to continue their important Cancer research. The initial group of Cancer Research Fellows was chosen through a competitive, peer-reviewed process overseen by D-HH CEO and President Joanne M. Conroy MD, and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Norris Cotton Cancer Center Director Steven Leach, MD.
In June, the selection committee, made up of the scientific leadership of the Cancer Center, announced the first six applicants chosen to receive funding from the program. Recipients range from promising young investigators, to experienced clinicians, all of whom proposed exciting, noteworthy research ideas but were in need of dedicated research time to execute their research.
The first Cancer Research Fellows include:
"Each one of these recipients demonstrated a thoughtful approach, a collaborative spirit and an incredible dedication to gathering data and developing strategies to bring their research to fruition - all with the same passionate desire to make a difference in the lives of our cancer patients," says Joanne Conroy, MD, President and CEO of Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health.
The funding will compensate for the clinician-researchers' effort and time away from clinic, not the research projects themselves. Participants will write and submit competitive National Cancer Institute grant applications to fund these critical large projects. Each applicant's clinical department has arranged for seamless coverage of patient care time for the two days of research time given to the physicians under the program.
"The Norris Cotton Cancer Center is extremely grateful to the leadership support from Dartmouth-Hitchcock for funding this innovative new program," says Steven Leach, MD, director. "By providing our young investigators with appropriate time to develop their discoveries and bring them to our patients, we are providing the spark for future cancer cures."
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About Dartmouth-Hitchcock Norris Cotton Cancer Center
Norris Cotton Cancer Center combines advanced cancer research at Dartmouth's Geisel School of Medicine with patient-centered cancer care provided at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, NH, at Dartmouth-Hitchcock regional locations in Manchester, Nashua and Keene, NH, and St. Johnsbury, VT, and at partner hospitals throughout New Hampshire and Vermont. It is one of 50 centers nationwide to earn the National Cancer Institute's "Comprehensive Cancer Center" designation. Learn more about Norris Cotton Cancer Center research, programs, and clinical trials online at cancer.dartmouth.edu.
About Dartmouth-Hitchcock
Dartmouth-Hitchcock (D-H) is New Hampshire's only academic health system, serves a population of 1.9 million across New England. D-H provides access to more than 1,500 primary care doctors and specialists in almost every area of medicine, delivering care at its flagship hospital, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) in Lebanon, NH. DHMC was named in 2019-20 as the #1 hospital in New Hampshire by U.S. News & World Report and recognized for high performance in 13 clinical specialties. Dartmouth-Hitchcock also includes the Norris Cotton Cancer Center, one of only 50 NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers in the nation; the Children's Hospital at Dartmouth-Hitchcock, the state's only children's hospital; affiliated member hospitals in Lebanon, Keene, and New London, NH, and Windsor, VT, and Visiting Nurse and Hospice for Vermont and New Hampshire; and 24 Dartmouth-Hitchcock clinics that provide ambulatory services across New Hampshire and Vermont. The D-H system trains nearly 400 residents and fellows annually, and performs world-class research, in partnership with the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth and the White River Junction VA Medical Center in White River Junction, VT.