€1.75 million fund to establish first Irish Prostate Cancer Outcomes Research in Ireland launched
Professor John Fitzpatrick, Head of Research at the Irish Cancer Society today announced that the Society in collaboration with Movember will dedicate €1.75 million in funding to establish the first Irish Prostate Cancer Outcomes Research (IPCOR) in Ireland that will monitor, benchmark and publicly report annually on outcomes of prostate cancer treatment and care. This equates to €350,000 in funding being allocated per year, for up to five years.
The aim of IPCOR is to effectively record and report on outcomes of prostate cancer treatment and care with a view to improving the lives of those living with and beyond prostate cancer. It aims to build on the National Cancer Registry data, by collecting data for all newly diagnosed prostate cancer cases in Ireland with the involvement of clinicians who treat men with prostate cancer.
Today the Society is calling for applications from suitably qualified organisations to submit a proposal by 3pm on Friday, 6th September 2013 to establish IPCOR, and successfully manage this grant. Eligible organisations include recognised Research Institutions and State Agencies in the Republic of Ireland. More information is available on http://www.cancer.ie/research/apply-for-funding
“The Irish Cancer Society’s mission critical, as the National Cancer Charity, is to eliminate cancer. To achieve this, one of our primary goals is to lead excellent, collaborative research in Ireland that will improve the care and survival of patients. IPCOR represents the first significant step towards achieving this goal for men living with prostate cancer,” said Prof Fitzpatrick.
“IPCOR will be the first Irish, quality clinical registry, funded by the Irish Cancer Society and Movember that will contain population-based, clinical and patient-reported data of men diagnosed with prostate cancer. This is significant because it will not only provide evidence-based data to clinicians, hospitals and decision makers on prostate cancer clinical practice, but it will also foster and evaluate improved quality of treatment and care for men newly diagnosed with prostate cancer.”
“Furthermore, for the first time in Ireland, an annual report will be published by the IPCOR Steering Committee that reports on the experience of men living with prostate cancer – addressing the quality of treatment, care and survival for men diagnosed with prostate cancer, where appropriate data is available.”
John McCormack, CEO of the Irish Cancer Society, said, “The Irish Cancer Society is dedicated to supporting excellent cancer research, and IPCOR will allow us to monitor and evaluate patient outcomes, together with their partners, carers and families, for the purpose of improving treatment and care for men. We encourage organisations with a strong research ethos to come forward and submit an application for this grant before 3pm on Friday, 6th September 2013 and help us in our effort to make life better for men with prostate cancer.”
The main objectives of the Irish Prostate Cancer Outcomes Research (IPCOR) are:
· Monitor, benchmark and publicly report annually on the outcomes of prostate cancer treatment and care.
· Provide risk adjusted, evidence based data to clinicians, hospitals and decision makers on prostate cancer clinical practice that fosters and evaluates improved quality of treatment and care for men diagnosed with prostate cancer.
· Foster research leading to improvement in care and survival; ideally enabling comparisons across countries.
Neil Rooney, Ireland Country Manager for Movember, stated that “Improving the physical and mental health of Irish men diagnosed and living with prostate cancer is a critical priority for Movember. We are delighted to see the Irish Cancer Society launch this health outcomes initiative, which will give us important insights into the lived experience of men. It’s an essential piece of research that will make a real difference to the lives of those affected by prostate cancer and we're proud that the Irish Movember community is able to help facilitate it. The research is testament to the Movember communities’ ongoing support and fundraising which is driving research that will have an everlasting impact on men's health in Ireland.”
The Irish Cancer Society has contributed more than €30 million to cancer research since 1963. During that period, more than 650 important research findings have been made.
For further information or for any questions about this grant, please contact the Irish Cancer Society research team on research@irishcancer.ie or Dr Aisling O’Connor at 01 231 0583. For further information on the Irish Cancer Society’s research programme, IPCOR or to make a donation, visit www.cancer.ie or contact the Irish Cancer Society on Call Save 1850 60 60 60.
