Samuel Waxman Cancer Research Foundation Collaborates with Scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine to Study Aging and Cancer
New York, NY – May 2, 2023 – Samuel Waxman Cancer Research Foundation (SWCRF) is collaborating with Albert Einstein College of Medicine scientists to co-sponsor research to address the increased risk of cancer relapse associated with aging. Funding will be provided to scientists based at Einstein’s Nathan Shock Center of Excellence (E-NSC) and Montefiore Einstein Cancer Center’s (MECC) new Cancer Dormancy & Tumor Microenvironment Institute (CDTMI).
Aging is the leading risk factor for cancer. The incidence of cancer among people aged 60 and older is more than 400% higher than the rate among people under age 20. According to the World Health Organization, the number of people over age 60 will grow to more than two billion by 2050, drastically increasing the global burden of cancer. However, how aging may influence the rate of cancer relapse after initial treatment has not been carefully explored.
“Despite the alarming increase in the incidence of cancer, research specifically designed to examine the complex interplay between aging and cancer continues to be underfunded,” said Dr. Samuel Waxman, SWCRF CEO. “Collaborating with investigators at Einstein will help us better understand the aging-associated processes that exacerbate recurrent cancer risk and lead to new preventions and treatments.”
“One of the strategic scientific priorities of MECC is to investigate the biological mechanisms of the aging process that lead to the development of cancer,” said MECC Director Edward Chu, MD, MMS. “This collaboration with Dr. Waxman and the SWCRF will provide a real boost to our MECC scientists focused on cancer and aging.”
The new collaboration will invest $120,000 to support a team of co-investigators from Einstein for two years. The pair of scientists—one whose research is focused on aging and the other on cancer—will examine links between aging, cancer dormancy, and relapse. Applications will be evaluated in June 2023 by scientific leaders at SWCRF, CDTMI, and E-NSC and the chosen grantees will receive funding starting in July 2023. Grantees will be present their research results at the SWCRF Annual Scientific Review held every fall.
“Much of the focus of aging and cancer has centered around cancer initiation, but relapse of a previously treated cancer can also be affected by aging,” said Dr. Julio Aguirre-Ghiso, founding director of CDTMI, co-leader of the Cancer Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis program at MECC, and the Rose C. Falkenstein Chair in Cancer Research at Einstein. “Our relationship with SWCRF is an important step in building a cadre of researchers exploring the connections between aging and cancer relapse, sparking research collaborations, and advancing our understanding in the field.”
MECC, the 4th NCI-designated Cancer Center in the nation, founded CDTMI in 2021 to comprehensively examine how variables such as residual cancer dormancy, lifestyle-related perturbations of target organ niches, epigenetics, genetics, treatments—and aging—influence relapse in cancers of all types.
“Targeting the biology of aging can prevent many diseases, including cancer,” said Nir Barzilai, M.D., director of E-NSC, director of the Institute for Aging Research, and professor of medicine at Einstein and an endocrinologist at Montefiore Health System. “Exploring this aging environment and how it relates to cancer development and relapse will help us develop new preventions and treatments that can improve healthy aging and reduce cancer mortality.”
“Collaborating directly with scientists at medical schools and other institutions is an exciting new model that we hope will inspire other medical schools across the country to consider,” added Dr. Waxman. “Together, we can stem the tide of cancer.”
About the Samuel Waxman Cancer Research Foundation:
The Samuel Waxman Cancer Research Foundation is an international organization dedicated to curing and preventing cancer. The Foundation is a pioneer in cancer research and its mission is to eradicate cancer by funding cutting-edge research that identifies and corrects abnormal gene function that causes cancer and develops minimally toxic treatments for patients. Through the Foundation’s collaborative group of world-class scientists, the Institute Without Walls, investigators share information and tools to speed the pace of cancer research. Since its inception in 1976, the Samuel Waxman Cancer Research Foundation has awarded more than $100 million to support the work of more than 200 researchers across the globe. For more information, visit www.waxmancancer.org.
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Wylie Tene
Samuel Waxman Cancer Research Foundation
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