The Eppley Institute for Research in Cancer and Allied Diseases is a research institute at the

University of Nebraska Medical Center The University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) is a public academic health science center in Omaha, Nebraska. Founded in 1869 and chartered as a private medical college in 1881, UNMC became part of the University of Nebraska System in 1902. Ra ...

in Omaha,

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the so ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

. Dedicated in 1963, the mission of the Eppley Institute is to "Develop superior research programs that will provide a better understanding of the causes of cancer, improve the methods for diagnosis of cancer and improve the methods for the treatment and prevention of cancer and similar disorders".

About

The Eppley Institute is part of the University of Nebraska Medical Center and The Nebraska Medical Center. It has access to 734 licensed beds and handles 22,000 inpatient admissions yearly for approximately 3,600 new cancer patients annually. 164 Cancer Center members, including 61 practicing physicians, are involved in basic, clinical, and population-based research and are awarded approximately $20 million in peer-reviewed research grants annually.

History

Originally built with a grant from the

Eugene C. Eppley Foundation The Eugene C. Eppley Foundation was founded in Omaha, Nebraska. Founded by Omaha hotel magnate Eugene C. Eppley, the foundation was the leading benefactor for several charities and institutions in the Midwestern United States. (This is not to b ...

, the Institute was founded in 1960 with support from the

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health, commonly referred to as NIH (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary agency of the United States government The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U ...

and the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC). Dr. Henry M. Lemon was the first director. In 1968, Dr. Philippe Shubik's research group moved to UNMC from the

Chicago Medical School The Chicago Medical School (CMS) is a medical school located in North Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is one of the graduate schools of Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science (RFUMS). It was founded in 1912 and obtained a ...

to continue their focus on the study of chemical

carcinogenesis Carcinogenesis, also called oncogenesis or tumorigenesis, is the formation of a cancer, whereby normal cells are transformed into cancer cells. The process is characterized by changes at the cellular, genetic, and epigenetic levels and abnor ...

. The Eppley Institute became an independent research institute in 1972 with an act from the

Nebraska Legislature The Nebraska Legislature (also called the Unicameral) is the legislature of the U.S. state of Nebraska. The Legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln. With 49 members, known as "senators", the Nebraska Legislature is the sm ...

. In 1973 the Institute grew by 30,000 feet with the addition of the Eppley Hall of Science, which was funded by the Eppley Foundation and the

National Cancer Institute The National Cancer Institute (NCI) coordinates the United States National Cancer Program and is part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which is one of eleven agencies that are part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. T ...

. The

American Cancer Society The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a nationwide voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. Established in 1913, the society is organized into six geographical regions of both medical and lay volunteers operating in more tha ...

awarded the Eppley Institute a "Special Institutional Grant in Cancer Cause and Prevention" in 1988. This award is one of only seven such awards in the nation, recognizing the achievements of the investigators at the Eppley Institute in this field.

Notability

Eppley is an internationally recognized cancer research center that is well-reputed for its treatments of

hematological malignancies Tumors of the hematopoietic and lymphoid tissues (American English) or tumours of the haematopoietic and lymphoid tissues (British English) are tumors that affect the blood, bone marrow, lymph, and lymphatic system. Because these tissues are all ...

, particularly

lymphoma Lymphoma is a group of blood and lymph tumors that develop from lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). In current usage the name usually refers to just the cancerous versions rather than all such tumours. Signs and symptoms may include enl ...

s and

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ...

. Its basic research programs in chemical carcinogenesis; molecular, cellular, and structural biology; and translational research in novel therapies are well-noted, as well. It is considered to be a Center of Excellence for the study of lymphoma, and Eppley's expertise in the field of transplantation began with

bone marrow Bone marrow is a semi-solid tissue found within the spongy (also known as cancellous) portions of bones. In birds and mammals, bone marrow is the primary site of new blood cell production (or haematopoiesis). It is composed of hematopoieti ...

transplantation in 1983.

Education

Cancer Research Doctoral Program - National Cancer Institute-supported T32 Cancer Biology Training Program https://projectreporter.nih.gov/ Project: NCI T32 CA009476 24A1 that trains future scientists to approach cancer research knowledgeably and creatively and to make significant contributions in the cancer field in their future careers. The faculty members of the Cancer Research Doctoral Program have primary appointments in many departments and institutes at UNMC, such as the Eppley Institute, the Pharmaceutical Sciences Department, the Oral Biology Department, and several departments in the College of Medicine (the Biochemistry & Molecular Biology Department, the Genetics, Cell Biology & Anatomy Department, and the Pathology & Microbiology Department).

References

External links