# Cellular Networks in Cancer Program

> **NIH NIH P30** · UT SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER · 2021 · $26,953

## Abstract

The Cellular Networks in Cancer (CNC) Program is a scientifically rich, collaborative, and productive research
program co-led by Melanie Cobb, PhD, and Ralph DeBerardinis, MD, PhD. The vision of the CNC Program is
to advance the fundamental knowledge of both intercellular and intracellular networks that contribute to cancer
initiation, tumorigenesis, and metastasis, then to translate these findings into novel approaches to cancer
prevention and therapy. CNC’s overarching scientific goal is to promote discoveries in how perturbation in these
cellular networks contribute to altered tissue physiology and promote cancer. The CNC Program provides a
highly interactive research environment that capitalizes on the UT Southwestern Medical Center’s (UTSW)
longstanding tradition of basic science discoveries and fosters translation of these discoveries into the
development of new biomarkers, diagnostic technologies, and therapeutic interventions in clinical oncology-
especially malignancies relevant to the SCCC catchment area (e.g., cancer of the lung and kidney). The
program’s structure is purposefully designed to stimulate interdisciplinary intra- and interprogrammatic
collaborations with the objective of delivering transformative discoveries. To accomplish this, the Co-Leaders
established four vibrant and synergistic subprograms that deliberately align with the strengths of program
members and specifically relate to states of perturbed tissue homeostasis in cancer: (1) Signaling and Cell
Biology, (2) Epigenetics and Gene Regulation, (3) Immunobiology, and (4) Metabolism. Each subprogram is
directed by an investigator who is highly respected for his or her science, mentoring, and collaborative spirit. The
subprogram structure and activities have directly contributed to exciting new collaborative projects such as the
SPORE in Kidney Cancer. The CNC Program is composed of 59 basic, computational, and physician-scientists
from 19 departments and centers at UT Southwestern Medical Center. Seven members of the CNC are Howard
Hughes Medical Institute investigators. Annual direct peer-reviewed funding to the CNC Program was $19.3M
in 2019. This represents an increase of $3.8M as compared with 2014 data, which were adjusted to conform to
revised NCI guidelines. NCI funding has likewise increased from $3M in 2014 to $3.9M in 2019. Program
members have authored 750 publications since 2014: 14% represent intraprogrammatic work, 34% are
interprogrammatic collaborations, 32% are inter-institutional, and 37% are in journals with an impact factor ≥ 10.
CNC Program members are heavily reliant upon all six CCSG Shared Resources—especially Live Cell Imaging
and Tissue Management—in furtherance of their scientific goals. The CNC Program’s success is supported by
SCCC’s strong infrastructure and grounded in the program’s solid interactions among CNC members and the
subprograms, as well as with other SCCC Research Program members and external collaborators.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10170612
- **Project number:** 2P30CA142543-11
- **Recipient organization:** UT SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** MELANIE H. COBB
- **Activity code:** P30 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $26,953
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 2010-09-01 → 2026-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10170612

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10170612, Cellular Networks in Cancer Program (2P30CA142543-11). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10170612. Licensed CC0.

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