Breast Cancer SPORE Career Development Program

The Career Development Program of the Mayo Clinic Breast Cancer SPORE offers opportunities for newer investigators or those considering career transition or expansion. The program is committed to identifying and mentoring junior faculty who demonstrate potential for developing independent programs in translational breast cancer research.

To facilitate the career development of these investigators, the SPORE conducts a rigorous review process aimed at identifying the most talented and promising candidates. Awardees undergo an intensive, rigorous mentoring program under the expertise of a multidisciplinary mentoring committee.

The recipients of the Breast Cancer SPORE Career Development Award become active members of all relevant activities of the Mayo Clinic Breast Cancer SPORE. The ultimate expectation is that they, through their research, develop sufficient preliminary data and a research plan to develop a competitive grant proposal and obtain extramural funding via a National Institutes of Health-level grant in breast cancer.

Current Career Development Program award

In September 2011, following a Mayo-wide competition, the Breast SPORE Career Development Program awarded one award. This award was for one year with anticipation of a second year of funding based on demonstration of adequate progress. The awardee was Aziza Nassar, M.D., and the title of her project was "Identification of biomarkers for risk assessment in benign breast disease by using immunohistochemistry and microarray gene profiling in sclerosing adenosis." Expectations of this awardee are that she will develop sufficient preliminary data for a successful R01-level grant application by the completion of the two years of funding and that she will continue to be an active scientific contributor to the Breast SPORE in the future.