In 2007, the State of Kansas established a line item in the state budget in the amount of $5 million per year, in support of The University of Kansas Cancer Center’s goal of obtaining National Cancer Institute (NCI) designation. This annual funding serves as a critical resource for KU Cancer Center and played an essential role in the cancer center’s NCI designation in 2012.
Cancer continues to be a leading cause of death in Kansas and incidence is expected to increase 45 to 50 percent over the next 10 years. In response to these alarming statistics and KU Cancer Center’s application for NCI Comprehensive Cancer Center designation in 2021, the Kansas Legislature increased annual funding from $5 million to $10 million, establishing the Cancer Center Research Fund.
The Cancer Center Research Fund will be used to enhance the cancer center’s research in the areas of basic laboratory, clinical, and population-based research, as well as in transdisciplinary research that bridges these scientific areas. In addition, these funds will be used to enhance cancer education and outreach programs. This appropriation will have a lasting and beneficial impact on the lives of all Kansans.
The resources found under More Information include testimony by Roy A. Jensen, MD, director of The University Kansas Cancer Center and AACI president; cancer survivor Peggy Johnson, executive director and COO, Wichita Medical Research and Education Foundation; cancer survivor Chief Darren L. McLaughlin, Merriam Police Department; and Fred Logan, chair, Masonic Cancer Alliance Partners Advisory Board.
Contact
Robert McCormack
Director, Government Relations
University of Kansas Cancer Center