Breast Cancer Stamp Funds $6.7 Million in 2-Year NCI Grants

BETHESDA, Md—Purchasers of the US Postal Service’s breast cancer awareness stamp have funded $6.7 million in 2-year grants to support novel and innovative research into the disease. The National Cancer Institute has given grants to 31 researchers, and a 32nd grant awaits final approval.

NCI has earmarked its share of money raised by the stamp sales to fund investigators who want to explore areas that are underrepresented in NCI’s research portfolio, particularly high-risk projects that have a potential for a high payoff if successful. One of the aims is to develop new methodologies and technologies that will be seeds for future discovery.

Each grant will provide $75,000 a year for 2 years. NCI expects a number of these projects to develop into mature investigations for which the researchers will seek traditional grant funding.