CSU receives $1 million for cancer biology program

FORT COLLINS, COLO. - 5/12/05 - A $1 million gift to Colorado State University (CSU) is earmarked for a new cancer biology program within the institution's College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences.

The anonymous donor requested the gift be administered through the Morris Animal Foundation to pay for current development within the college's Animal Cancer Center, university officials say.

"This gift allows the university to provide educational and research opportunities for students in a field where few opportunities to learn are available today," veterinary college Dean Dr. Lance Perryman says in a prepared statement. "The understanding of cancer at the whole animal, cellular and molecular level is critical to our ability to continue to successfully solve problems related to prevention, treatment and diagnosis of cancer."

The program will train scientists focused on the basic science of the causes and prevention of cancer, in addition to cancer diagnosis, therapies and risk assessment. Funding will be matched by the university's Animal Cancer Center, officials say.

To obtain a Ph.D. degree in this program, students must complete 72 credit hours in courses such as biochemistry, science and ethics, disease epidemiology and advanced cell biology and molecular genetics, officials say. Students also will complete new courses such as cancer genetics, environmental carcinogenesis and clinical oncology, officials add.