Training the Next Generation of Precision Medicine Experts

The Kansas Institute for Precision Medicine (KIPM) has secured a renewed $11.6 million COBRE (Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence) grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, part of the National Institutes of Health. This funding, extending over five years, promises to elevate patient care by nurturing the next wave of researchers and physician-scientists in the burgeoning field of precision medicine.

Precision medicine is a transformative approach for treating and preventing disease that matches healthcare to an individual’s specific environment, lifestyle and molecular disease characteristics. This renewal grant will enable the KIPM to continue its pivotal role in this field, providing junior investigators with essential support, mentoring and funding for groundbreaking research.

Led by Andrew Godwin, PhD, deputy director of The University of Kansas Cancer Center, KIPM is Kansas’ only precision medicine research center. Since its founding in 2019 with an initial $12.2 million COBRE grant, the KIPM has supported critical health research, including cancer studies, and fostered the careers of emerging physician-scientists.

The renewed grant will enhance the KIPM’s capacity, including providing $150,000 annually to four junior faculty (Research Project Leaders), expanding access to new and leading-edge tools through its active research cores and doubling the number of annual pilot grants to four $50,000 awards. These pilot grants will help recruit both emerging and established investigators into the field of precision medicine and fuel innovative research projects that could reshape medical treatment.

This support positions the KIPM to make even greater strides in transforming patient care, ensuring that the latest scientific breakthroughs lead to real-world health benefits for people in Kansas and beyond.