Health officials estimate that in 1998 more than 178,000 women
in the United States will be diagnosed with breast cancer and that 43,500
women will die of the disease. The American Cancer Society reported in
1997 that 30 percent of new cancer patients were women who were diagnosed
with breast cancer. Researchers at the University of Nebraska Medical Center
hope to lower these statistics with the help of a $50,000 breast cancer
research grant, which is funded by the Junior League of Omaha and Omaha’s
Race for the Cure program.
Judith K. Christman, Ph.D., chairperson and professor of biochemistry
and molecular biology at UNMC, will use the grant money to research an
inhibitor for the DNA methyltransferase enzyme. It is believed that the
inhibitor, developed and patented by Christman, can be used to manipulate
the gene expressions that occur when a normal cell becomes cancerous. Research
funded by the Race for the Cure grant will determine the best way to get
the inhibitor into the breast cells, whether the enzyme can be used to
test for early changes in breast tissue and to see if the inhibitor can
normalize cancerous breast cells.
Omaha’s Race for the Cure event is one of 86 different events
sponsored by the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Susan Brinker formed the Komen
Foundation in 1982 to honor her sister who died of breast cancer at the
age of 36. The foundation’s mission is to eliminate breast cancer as a
life-threatening disease by advancing research, education, screening and
treatment. The largest fundraisers for the Komen Foundation are the Race
for the Cure events held across the country.
UNMC is the only public academic health science center in the
state. Through its commitment to research, education and patient care,
UNMC has established itself as one of the country’s leading centers for
cancer research and treatment and solid organ transplantation. More than
$27 million in research grants and contracts are awarded to UNMC scientists
annually. In addition, UNMC’s educational programs are responsible for
training more health professionals practicing in Nebraska than any other
institution.