Pa. hospitals, research groups split up $45M in tobacco funds

Everybody stop smoking!!!

Twenty-three area hospitals, research institutions and other health-care organizations were among the 38 Pennsylvania entities awarded a total of $45 million in health research grants from a portion of the state's tobacco industry settlement.

The money is being awarded under the Commonwealth Universal Research Enhancement program, which Gov. Ed Rendell said is designed to advance the work being conducted at Pennsylvania's leading medical and health research institutions. "This research will ultimately have a positive impact on the health of our residents," Rendell said.

The largest grant recipient was the University of Pennsylvania, which will receive $8.47 million for 10 projects that range from creating a health-services research data center to establishing a tumor tissue bank for cancer research.

Other large grants recipients include Thomas Jefferson University, which will receive $3.7 million for five projects including three aimed at developing new gene-based treatments for cancer; and $3.3 million awarded to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia to discover and determine the underlying genetic causes of, and contributors to, a variety of childhood diseases.

link to full article