KU News Release

School of Pharmacy ranks third in nation for research funding

LAWRENCE — Anyone who has battled cancer can attest that treatments such as chemotherapy, radiation and surgery can be absolutely grueling. Innovative research at the University of Kansas is looking for ways to develop drugs that could treat highly localized cancers such as breast, colon and prostate and reduce the need for surgery and treatments that take such a heavy toll on a patient.

Research being led by Laird Forrest, assistant professor of pharmaceutical chemistry, is just one of numerous projects funded by the National Institutes of Health. Such research has propelled KU to third in rankings of schools of pharmacy that receive funding from the NIH. The Association of the American Colleges of Pharmacy recently announced the rankings.

Forrest’s research holds the potential to develop drugs to increase the survival rate for patients with some of the most fatal metastasized cancers. Five-year survival rates for highly localized breast, colon and prostate cancers are all less than 35 percent, and one in three people will develop some form of invasive, metastatic cancer in his or her lifetime. Currently, surgery and radiation for such cancers are impractical options, as they are extremely difficult to locate. The NIH funded more than $17,600,000 in such promising research projects at KU in fiscal year 2008.

The NIH is the primary source of federal funding for pharmacy schools in the United States. Support is considered an important part of a pharmacy school’s national reputation. Kenneth Audus, dean of the School of Pharmacy, said the increase in funding shows the importance of research taking place at KU.

“Because of the limited funds and competition, success in NIH funding these days requires a significant level of persistence by the individual researcher,” Audus said. “The success of the faculty here says a great deal about their dedication to research efforts that will benefit the health of all Americans.”

KU is a perennial leader in NIH-funded research. The School of Pharmacy has been in the top five for funding for eight consecutive years and in the top 10 since 1995.

Audus said KU has relatively new faculty such as Forrest and veteran researchers such as Rick Dobrowsky, professor of pharmacology and toxicology, performing cutting edge research. Dobrowsky’s NIH-funded research examines cellular mechanism problems in nerve endings caused by diabetes and aims to develop new drugs to treat them.

“Diabetes is one of the growing health problems in America,” Audus said. “Not only with elderly individuals and those who were born with it, but also with our youth.”

The work of Forrest and Dobrowsky are just two examples of cutting edge work taking place at KU. The School of Pharmacy ranked third in total amount of grants and contracts awarded per full-time doctoral faculty member. With 40 such faculty members, KU’s total amounted to $441,512 per researcher. Twenty-one of the 40 faculty members, or 52.5 percent, received NIH funding, which put KU at fourth in percentage of faculty receiving funding.

KU is in good standing for the future as well. Last October, a six-year, $20.2 million grant from the NIH was announced. The grant, the largest federal research award ever made in Kansas, established a Specialized Chemistry Center for a research team led by Jeff Aubé, professor of medicinal chemistry. Funding from the grant will be distributed over several years and makes KU part of a nationwide network searching for molecules that can fight disease and advance human health.

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The University of Kansas is a major comprehensive research and teaching university. University Relations is the central public relations office for KU's Lawrence campus.