CDC Reinstates $2.2M Grant to Fund the Mesothelioma Tissue Bank

The mesothelioma community – researchers, doctors, patients, families and advocates – received a much-needed boost this week when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reversed an earlier decision and reinstated funding for the National Mesothelioma Virtual Bank (NMVB). Officials at the CDC in June restored a two-year, $2.2 million federal grant that will carry the NMVB through 2016. "Without this [funding], research of mesothelioma could have stagnated," Michael Feldman, M.D., Ph.D., professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, told Asbestos. com. "It [NMVB] is like the cornerstone of a building: A foundation on which to build upon and so important for any advancement. We're very pleased right now." The NMVB is a biospecimen registry designed to facilitate scientific research and advance the goal of developing novel therapies, preventative measures, diagnostic tools and eventually a cure for mesothelioma. It provides tissue samples, paraffin-embedded blood products and a vast amount of other clinicopathological information free for researchers around the country. Everyone Should Benefit The NMVB, which was founded in 2006, is the only federally funded program specifically designed for mesothelioma research. It is a collaborative effort involving the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, the New York University School of Medicine, the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, and the Mount Sinai School of M...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Tags: Research & Clinical Trials Source Type: news