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The Cancer Research Institute (CRI) is a worldwide leader in cancer immunology research created by Helen Coley Nauts located in New York, New York. Their goal is "to discover and develop new, immune-based approaches to the treatment, control, and prevention of cancer." This non profit organization has been around for almost sixty years educating themselves on the human immune system to better the fight against cancer. The main purpose of the inst     itution is to supply top researchers with the funding they need to continue their research. This funding comes from donations given by individual people or families, businesses, and foundations.

Programs
The CRI also funds many programs, such as training, grants, and conferences. These programs were created in an effort to support future cancer scientists. The CRI is also very dedicated to helping these future scientists financially, granting out almost $200 million since 1953. One of the most popular grants is the Student Training and Research in Tumor Immunology (STaRT) Grant. This grant is directed towards students who inspire to be cancer immunologists. Graduate students with an emphasis in Tumor Immunology are eligible to recieve up to $60,000 over a two year period. Another respectable program offered is the Clinic and Laboratory Integration Program (CLIP) Grant. This program is directed towards cancer immunotherapy. Eligible scientists looking to improve cancer immunotherapy may recieve up to $200,000 over two years for their research and any expenses related to their research.

Conferences and meetings are important to medical research. The CRI frequently holds these gatherings to discuss or spread the word of new information, or converse over recent challenges. Two current conferences are the International Cancer Immunotherapy Symposia Series and the Cancer Immunotherapy Consortium Colloquia and Annual Meetings.

In 2002, the CRI created a new program called the Cancer Vaccine Consortium, later changing its name to the Cancer Immunotherapy Consortium (CIC). Academic institutions and employees of biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies teamed up mainly to standardize cancer immunotherapy for the care of cancer patients. They also hoped that by uniting they will be able to make a greater impact on cancer research in general.

But the CRI does not stop there. They offer other grants, host fundraisers, hold educational lectures, and present Annual Honorary Awards to breakthrough scientists.

The Team
The CRI is comprised of trusted, intellectual scientists who are very dedicated to the treatments and prevention of cancer. The institute's headquarters is located in New York, New York, however, scientists from all over the world contribute to the research.

Board of Trustees
The Board of Trustees holds most of the organization's leadership. They control things such as finances and philanthropy. They oversee fundraising, public-relations, and all business decisions. There are fifty-two members on the board, including two co-chairmen, four vice chairmen, a treasurer, and a secretary.

Scientific Advisory Council
Unlike the Board of Trustees, the Scientific Advisory Council is comprised of strictly scientists. There are currently sixty-nine of the most notable scientists from all over the world on the council. The main purpose of the council is to manage all scientific research. Also, they are in charge of research funding towards clinical trial grants and predoctoral awards, and scheduling international meetings for the CRI.

Staff
The staff at the Cancer Research Institute is made up of well trained professionals in different areas, such as marketing, management, event planning, and more. Within the staff is six departments: Office of the CEO, the Cancer Vaccine Acceleration Fund, Office of Grants Administration, Office of Special Events, Office of Communications, and Office of the Controller and General Manager.

Young Philanthropists Council
The Young Philanthropist Council consists of young professionals, not scientists. These young council members volunteer for different things at the CRI because of their dedication to cancer immunology research. The council is comprised of a chair, a vice chair, a treasurer, and nineteen members from New York, New York.

Research Milestones
These real stories from the CRI are about important people who made a significant difference at the research institute. Although scientists are greatly important to the CRI, there are also donors, patients, staff members, and other members of the general public who make the research possible.

Kunle Odunsi, M.D., Ph.D,. works in the Gynecologic Oncology division for the Tumor Immunology and Immunotherapy Program at Roswell Park Cancer Institute located in Buffalo, New York. Dr. Odunsi took a special interest in women with advanced-staged ovarian cancer. He saw that chemotherapy was effective, but wi thin a couple of years the cancer often came back, killing more than 70% of patients. Wanting to make a difference using immunotherapy, he teamed up with the CRI Clinical Investigation Program. His research proved successful for many of his patients in his CRI/LICR Cancer Vaccine Collaborative clinical trials. For many, the disease did not come back as soon as it normally would have, and some even had remission. Dr. Odunsi continues to search for cures and treatments for ovarian cancer.

For years, cervical cancer has been leading to human papillomavirus (HPV). Dr. Ian Frazer took an interest in the HPV virus and teamed up with Dr. Jian Zhou for further research. Dr. Frazer had an idea that HPV-related cancer could possibly be treated with an artificial non-infectious HPV virus. With the support and funding of the CRI, the two scientists are putting this theory to work. Dr. Frazer is also working on a therapeutic cervical vaccine, which the CRI funds and supports as well. Dr. Frazer was a co-award winner of the William B. Coley Award for Distinguished Research in Basic and Tumor Immunology.

Ways to Donate
As mentioned before, the CRI is a non-profit organization that is ran off of donations. These donations can be given several different ways: cash gifts, memorial and tribute gifts, employer matching gifts, securities donations, car and other vehicle donations, planned giving options, and payroll deduction. The CRI can also be contacted at 1-800-99CANCER (or 1-800-992-2623) by phone, or by mail:

Cancer Research InstituteNational Headquarters

One Exchange Plaza

55 Broadway, Suite 1802

New York, NY 10006