Fwd: NCCAM FUNDS TWO AWARDS INAUGURATING DEVELOPMENTAL CENTERS FOR RES EARCH ON COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE

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" NIH OLIB (NIH/OD) " <olib wrote:

Wed, 29 Oct 2003 11:15:25 -0500

" NIH OLIB (NIH/OD) "

NCCAM FUNDS TWO AWARDS INAUGURATING DEVELOPMENTAL CENTERS FOR RES

EARCH ON COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE

NIHPRESS

 

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

 

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

 

NIH News

 

National Center for Complementary

and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM)

http://nccam.nih.gov

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, October 29, 2003

 

CONTACT:

NCCAM Press Office

301-496-7790

 

 

NCCAM FUNDS TWO AWARDS INAUGURATING DEVELOPMENTAL CENTERS

FOR RESEARCH ON COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE

 

BETHESDA, MARYLAND -- The National Center for Complementary

and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) is forging new

partnerships between complementary and alternative medicine

(CAM) institutions and major research universities in an

innovative effort to advance research on widely used CAM

practices. The first two Developmental Centers for Research

on Complementary and Alternative Medicine (DCRC) will help

to build a collaborative CAM research community that will

enhance the scientific rigor in this field.

 

" These new Centers provide a vehicle for scientists in CAM

institutions to partner with established investigators in

conventional research institutions to conduct rigorous

exploratory and developmental research projects on CAM, "

said Margaret A. Chesney, Ph.D., NCCAM Deputy Director.

" The DCRC is one of three types of NCCAM Research Centers

that will offer research flexibility, promote

collaboration, and expand NCCAM's research program, " she

added.

 

The purpose of the DCRC initiative is to:

 

-- Increase the level and quality of CAM research by

assisting CAM institutions, researchers, and practitioners

in conducting high-quality research;

 

-- Promote research expertise and infrastructure within the

CAM community; and

 

-- Support enhanced communication and partnerships between

CAM and conventional medical research institutions so that

established researchers will gain the clinical and cultural

perspectives needed to undertake CAM research.

 

The first two 3-year grants in the DCRC initiative have

been awarded to:

 

-- PALMER CENTER FOR CHIROPRACTIC RESEARCH, DAVENPORT, IA

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: WILLIAM MEEKER, D.C., M.P.H.

This DCRC will focus on the mechanisms of action and

effects of chiropractic manipulation (adjusting the spine

from different positions using varying degrees of force),

especially for the common problem of low back pain.

Scientists at the Palmer Chiropractic University will

collaborate with investigators at the University of Iowa,

Kansas State University, the State University of New York

at Stony Brook, and the National University of Health

Sciences in Illinois. The total award is approximately $2.3

million.

 

-- NEW ENGLAND SCHOOL OF ACUPUNCTURE, WATERTOWN, MA

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: PETER M. WAYNE, PH.D.

This Center will evaluate the efficacy and safety of

acupuncture, develop methodologies and study designs

required for acupuncture research, and address the benefits

of acupuncture in the treatment of women's health problems.

This Center will build upon collaborations between

clinicians and scientists at the New England School of

Acupuncture, the Osher Institute at Harvard Medical School,

and two other major Harvard-affiliated institutions, the

Dana Farber Cancer Institute and Children's Hospital

(Boston). The total award is approximately $2.0 million.

 

These first two DCRCs demonstrate dynamic and committed

partnerships between CAM and conventional institutions.

This program is also expected to develop and strengthen

preliminary CAM research studies that will lead to the

submission of competitive R01 grant applications to NIH,

the benchmark for a mature research program.

 

The DCRC is one of three new NCCAM research center

programs. They were implemented following the review of the

NCCAM centers program by an expert panel in 2002. The panel

reviewed the original CAM centers that were established

shortly after creation of NCCAM in 1999. Based on the

lessons learned from these first centers, and in response

to the evolving opportunities and challenges in CAM

research, the expert panel recommended a more diverse

platform of approaches to support research centers and a

sharpened focus on their pursuit of original science. In

response to these recommendations, NCCAM designed the

following three new programs to build its next generation

of research centers:

 

-- Developmental Centers for Research on CAM (DCRC)

specifically for CAM institutions;

 

-- Centers of Excellence for Research on CAM (CERC) for

established research organizations; and

 

-- Planning Grants for International Centers for Research

on CAM (PICRC) to stimulate U.S.-international research

partnerships.

 

Announcements of awards for the latter two new programs

will be made separately.

 

" The creation of these first Developmental Research Centers

will be viewed as a transforming event in the national CAM

research agenda, " said Stephen E. Straus, M.D., NCCAM. " In forging alliances in which the perspectives

of CAM practitioners and those of seasoned investigators

are melded into robust research teams, we are pursuing our

goal of a more integrated approach to medicine. "

 

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative

Medicine (NCCAM) is dedicated to exploring complementary

and alternative healing practices in the context of

rigorous science, training CAM researchers, and

disseminating authoritative information to the public and

professionals. For additional information, call NCCAM's

Clearinghouse toll free at 1-888-644-6226 or visit the

NCCAM Web site at .

 

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