Graduate, Post-Doctoral, & Medical Student Training & Education Opportunities
CRTEC supports the training and education of graduate, post-doctoral, and medical students by:
- Assisting with and creating cancer-relevant training programs.
- Organizing and facilitating the Cancer Symposium Seminars and Colloquiums
- Disseminating relevant grant and training opportunities.
- Providing supplemental funding opportunities for training courses and innovation awards.
Each year new graduate program students embark on a journey to earn a PhD, MD-PhD, or post-doctoral degree through the Graduate Program in Cancer Biology. This interdepartmental program includes training in basic biomedical sciences with opportunities to apply clinical and translational research to studies on human cancer.
Research Programs
Basic research scientists at the CU Cancer Center strive to understand better the fundamental biological activity that leads to cancer. They work closely with clinical researchers to translate laboratory findings into drugs, therapies and techniques that can be applied to patients. Clinical researchers then enroll patients in one of the more than 250 available clinical trials to test these new treatments in cancer research studies. The results of this collaboration are promising new techniques to diagnose, treat and prevent cancer.
Investigators at the CU Cancer Center focus on interdisciplinary research conducted in four main programs: 1) Cancer Prevention and Control, 2) Developmental Therapeutics, 3) Molecular and Cellular Oncology, and 4) Tumor Host Interactions.
Some of the education and training programs that are available to graduate and post-doctoral students include the Colorado Academic Instruction & Research Nexus (CAIRN) Program, the Oncology Summer Internship (OSI), the Lung Head & Neck T32, and the Training in Cancer Biology T32.
OSI: Oncology Summer Internship
The CU-Cancer Center OSI is an ASCO-OSI pilot program that provides a paid clinical experience in oncology for rising second-year medical students attending the CU School of Medicine who are from populations that are under-represented in medicine.
Students in this program spend the summer between their first and second year of medical school attending lectures on oncology topics, shadowing oncology professionals, and interacting with patients in clinic and hospital settings.
Faculty Sponsors: Tejas Patil, MD, Wells Messersmith, MD, and John Tentler, PhD
Contact John Tentler, PhD, for more information.
LaCOTA: LaCamera Oncology Travel Award
The LaCamera Family generously provided a gift to the University of Colorado Cancer Center to provide oncology-related education opportunities for medical students at CU Anschutz Medical School.
The LaCamera Oncology Travel Award (LaCOTA), provides CU Anschutz Medical School students up to $1,500 to attend oncology-related educational trainings and conferences to further their understanding of cancer prevention and treatment.
For more information, please contact the CRTEC office at CRTEC@cuanschutz.edu.CAIRN T32 Program: Colorado Academic Instruction & Research Nexus
The CAIRN program is an IRACDA pilot with the goal of providing postdoctoral fellows from under-represented groups training to develop undergraduate teaching skills and portfolios.
CAIRN trainees participate in workshops and mentored teaching experiences through collaboration with partner campuses, the University of Colorado - Denver and Metropolitan State University of Denver.
Faculty Sponsors: Kristin Artinger, PhD, Aaron Johnson, PhD, and Bruce Mandt, PhD.
Contact Bruce Mandt, PhD, for more information.
Lung, Head and Neck T32
T32CA174648, “Training in Translational Research of Lung, Head and Neck Cancer Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death, and head and neck cancer (HNC) is a high morbidity cancer type. Both cancers have a poor prognosis, share some common etiological factors (e.g., tobacco consumption) and therapeutic interventions.
The Lung, Head and Neck (LHN) cancer training program (LHNTP) is a multi-disciplinary translational program with the mission to train the next generation of researchers and physician-scientists in LHN cancers. This T32 program funds postdoctoral fellows (PhD and MD trainees) and graduate students who are passionate about their career goals as independent investigators or physician-scientists in LHN cancer research.
The LHNTP incorporates innovative and multi-disciplinary clinical and research expertise into our training through unique resources and expertise to significantly strengthen training for the next generation of basic- and physician-scientists dedicated to LHN cancer research.
We have designed didactic coursework for all trainees and clinical coursework for non-MD trainees to enhance the trainee’s scientific background and the translational aspect of the program in addition to laboratory training.
Program Information and How to Apply
The program issues an RFA at the beginning of each project year.
To apply for a training slot, applicants must submit:
- A three-page written proposal consisting of a rationale, specific aims, approach, innovation, significance, and a brief plan to apply for extramural funding. Include a paragraph about rigor and reproducibility.
- Bibliography.
- NIH Biosketches for the trainee and mentor.
- Transcripts
- Three letters of recommendation
Submit the materials above as pdf documents directly to Pamela Garl.
Proposals will be reviewed and ranked by the program study section committee based on NIH training grant criteria, i.e., project merit, quality of trainee and mentor.
Eligibility Requirements
Trainees are required to:
- Focus directly on lung, head and neck cancer-related research for their projects.
- Apply for extramural funding (e.g., individual K-award) during their first year of support.
- Have earned a PhD or MD if a postdoctoral trainee.
- Be U.S. citizens or permanent residents.
Trainees that are from under-represented populations are strongly encouraged to apply.
Training in Cancer Biology T32
The National Cancer Institute-funded Training Program in Cancer Biology (TPCB) trains Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Fellows in independent, mentored research focusing on all aspects of Cancer Biology. Mentors study a large breadth of tumors including cancers of the blood, lung, breast, prostate, salivary, ovarian, bladder, pediatric, colon, etc.
Areas of research include:
- Basic mechanisms of oncogenesis.
- Cell death and survival pathways.
- Tumor evolution.
- Tumor immunology.
- Steroid signaling pathways.
- Genomics and genetics.
- Prognosis and targeted therapeutics.
The TPCB is affiliated with the University of Colorado Cancer Center, the only NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center in the state. This is a research-intensive training program.
Trainees work with the mentor of their choice on a project at the cutting edge of contemporary cancer research. The CU Cancer Center has numerous state-of-the-art core resources available to all trainees in the program including functional genomics, imaging, sequencing, flow cytometry, biostatistics, etc.
Trainees in the program also participate in non-research training activities that are designed to build specific skills and facilitate professional development. These include attending the annual TPCB post-doc research and career development symposium, a T32-specific journal club, career development workshops, a hypothesis development (grant writing) seminar, and a mentored clinical exposure experience. Trainees have opportunities to attend national meetings and conferences.
Program Directors:
Antionio Jimeno, MD PhD
Professor of Medicine
Medical Oncology Division
Eduardo Davila, PhD
Professor of Medicine
Medical Oncology Division
Program Information and How to Apply
The program issues an RFA in May of each year.
To apply for a training slot, applicants must submit:
- A one-page specific aims page and a one-page training plan.
- Three letters of recommendation (one from your proposed mentor).
- NIH Biosketches for the trainee and mentor.
- Transcripts of your education to date.
Please send your complete application as a single PDF to Kristin Herbst.
Proposals will be reviewed and ranked by Program Selection Committee and ranked based on NIH training and grant criteria, i.e. project merit, quality of trainee and mentor.
Eligibility Requirements
Trainees are required to:
- Focus directly on any area of cancer-related research for their projects.
- Have earned a PhD or MD if a postdoctoral trainee.
- Be U.S. citizens or permanent residents.
Trainees that are from under-represented populations are strongly encouraged to apply.
Coursework
Core didactics and a minimum of clinical and grant development activities will be mandatory. The core didactics (shown below) will be designed to focus on 1) immunology and 2) the development of novel anticancer agents. The core didactics amount to 15 credits over 2 years, which is an appropriate course load for clinical fellows that have clinical training requirements. The immunology courses are offered in coordination with the Immunology T32 curriculum and Dr. Torres.
Beyond these core requirements, each trainee’s training program will be individualized so that other elective courses (shown next) or experiences can be incorporated to maximize exposure to relevant areas of research. Note that the elective courses listed above are only partially representative of the numerous courses available in the graduate programs of the Schools of Medicine and Pharmacy. These include additional Immunology courses, geared towards laboratory application of immune principles.
Core Didactics
- Immu 7662 | Immunology | 6 credits
- IMMU 7650 | Research in Immunology | 2 credits
- PHSC 7561 | Pharmacology of Anticancer Agents | 2 credits
- TXCL 7655 | Pharmacokinetics and Toxicokinetics | 2 credits
- CLSC 7101 | Grant Writing | 1 credit
- CLSC 7500 | Practical Application of Molecular and Cell Biology Techniques for the Clinical Investigator | 4-week lab course
- CLSC 7150/7151 | Ethics and Regulation in Human Subjects Research | 2 credits
- COMIRB 101/102 | Certification Course for Clinical Researchers/HIPAA | 1 credit
Note: CLSC 7151 has already been taken by UCSOM clinical fellows/residents.
Example of Elective Courses
- IMMU 7602 | Special Topics in Cancer Immunology | 1 credit
- IMMU 7603 | Special Topics - Immunologic Basis of Human Disease | 1 credit
- IMMU 7604 | Special Topics in Signal Transduction in the Immune System | 1 credit
- PHSC 7330 | Issues in Drug Development | 2 credits
- PHSC 7345 | Principles of Drug Delivery | 2 credits
- PHSC 7649 | Introduction to Modern Biotechnology | 1 credit
- BIOS 6648 | Design of Clinical Trials and Experiments | 1 credit
- PHSC 7651 | Pharmaceutical Biotechnology | 3 credits
- TXCL 7560Ä7561 | Drug Metabolism and Pharmacogenetics I/II | 3 credits each
- BIOL 7711 | Bioinformatics | 2 credits
- PRMD 6630 | Epidemiology | 4 credits
- BIOS 6601/6602 | Biostasticial Methods I/II | 3 credits each
- CANB 7600 | Cancer Biology | 3 credits