Sanjeevani Arora Receives Prestigious Career Development Award from the Department of Defense

Sanjeevani Arora, PhD, assistant research professor in the Cancer Prevention and Control program at Fox Chase Cancer Center.

PHILADELPHIA (April 5, 2018) – Sanjeevani Arora, PhD, assistant research professor in the Cancer Prevention and Control program at Fox Chase Cancer Center, has been selected by the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) to receive the FY17 Peer Reviewed  Cancer Research Program (PRCRP) Career Development award for her work in colorectal cancer.

Arora’s research in colorectal cancer focuses on developing a signature of DNA damage recognition and repair capacity as a biomarker that can potentially predict the effectiveness of neoadjuvant chemoradiation therapy for locally advanced stage rectal cancer patients. Her goal in trying to establish this biomarker is to allow for more individualized treatment for colorectal patients and prevent some patients from receiving unnecessary treatments. She also hopes this research will have applications beyond colorectal cancer.

She is relying on expertise from her mentors Margie L. Clapper, PhD, co-leader of the Cancer Prevention and Control Program, and Joshua Meyer, MD, vice chair of Translational Research, Department of Radiation Oncology. Arora also received guidance from other experts at Fox Chase including, Michael Hall, MD, Roland L. Dunbrack, PhD, Margret Einarson, PhD, Elizabeth Handorf, PhD, and Yan Zhou, PhD.

“The mentorship I’m receiving, along with the resources and time gifted to me by this grant, is invaluable as a young investigator. My hope is that this grant will be a springboard to further my career and allow me to continue pursing research that is important in cancer prevention and control,” said Arora.

The DOD offers the PRCRP Career Development grant to promote mentorship between young investigators and experienced cancer researchers. It also serves to provide funding to researchers whose work may have clinical benefits for both military and civilian patients.

This grant provides up to $650,000 over a three-year period.

Fox Chase Cancer Center (Fox Chase), which includes the Institute for Cancer Research and the American Oncologic Hospital and is a part of Temple Health, is one of the leading comprehensive cancer centers in the United States. Founded in 1904 in Philadelphia as one of the nation’s first cancer hospitals, Fox Chase was also among the first institutions to be designated a National Cancer Institute Comprehensive Cancer Center in 1974. Fox Chase is also one of just 10 members of the Alliance of Dedicated Cancer Centers. Fox Chase researchers have won the highest awards in their fields, including two Nobel Prizes. Fox Chase physicians are also routinely recognized in national rankings, and the Center’s nursing program has received the Magnet recognition for excellence six consecutive times. Today, Fox Chase conducts a broad array of nationally competitive basic, translational, and clinical research, with special programs in cancer prevention, detection, survivorship, and community outreach. It is the policy of Fox Chase Cancer Center that there shall be no exclusion from, or participation in, and no one denied the benefits of, the delivery of quality medical care on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity/expression, disability, age, ancestry, color, national origin, physical ability, level of education, or source of payment.

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