$1.2 Million in Grant Funding Fuels New Research for the Second Leading Cause of Death in Women in the United States
$1.2 Million in Grant Funding Fuels New Research for the Second Leading Cause of Death in Women in the United States
810,320. Thats the number of women expected to be diagnosed with cancer in 2014, according to the American Cancer Society. Its the second leading cause of death for women in the United States, but its not just a number. It represents a mother, sister or daughter and its the reason why The Mary Kay FoundationSM continues its steadfast fight against cancers affecting women by awarding grants totaling $1.2 million to 12 of the top research institutions nationwide.
After a meticulous review of more than 80 applicants by The Mary Kay FoundationSM research review committee, 12 grants in the amount of $100,000 each were awarded to major medical centers across the nation. From New York to Kentucky to California, these highly competitive grants provide crucial and potentially life-saving funds. The review committee is composed of prominent medical scientists and doctors who volunteer their time to help the Foundation select the most promising research projects.
With 3 million Mary Kay independent beauty consultants in more than 35 markets around the world, our mission is enriching womens lives, said Michael Lunceford, chairman of the board for The Mary Kay FoundationSM. Through our independent sales force, we know too many heartbreaking stories of women battling cancer. By supporting top medical scientists at some of the most-respected institutions in the country who are searching for cures, early detection screenings and innovative cancer treatments, we only hope that we begin to hear more stories of survival. To date, the Foundation has invested more than $20 million in the cause.
At the University of Vermont College of Medicine in Burlington, Vt., medical scientists will use the grant to explore the impact of cholesterol medications on breast cancer patients. At Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Md., doctors there are developing a new screening approach for endometrial and ovarian cancers. At Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, researchers are studying preventative therapies to reduce breast cancer incidences. Meanwhile, identifying cells that become resistant to chemotherapy is the goal of the research project funded by The Mary Kay FoundationSM at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind.
Its important in science to push the boundaries and take risks but its also imperative to have the opportunity to pursue such research aspirations, said Jerry W. Shay, Ph.D., professor and vice chairman of the Department of Cell Biology for The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas and chair of The Mary Kay FoundationSM Scientific Review Committee. This year, we ranked all grant applicants on a scale system and narrowed the pool to the top 12 most promising and innovative research teams, doctors and medical scientists in the country. Thanks to grants like these, we are giving the medical community the tools to explore and develop early diagnosis and new treatments for cancers affecting women.
About The Mary Kay FoundationSM
The Mary Kay FoundationSM was founded in 1996, and its mission is two-fold: to fund research of cancers affecting women and to help prevent domestic violence while raising awareness of the issue. Since the Foundations inception, it has awarded $34 million to shelters and programs addressing domestic violence prevention and more than $20 million to cancer researchers and related causes throughout the United States. To learn more about The Mary Kay FoundationSM, please visit www.marykayfoundation.org or call 1-877-MKCARES (652-2737).
