OU researchers are set to receive part of $100 million in grant money earmarked to finding a cure for breast cancer that will be distributed to scientists across the country.

Wei-Qun Ding, a molecular biologist at OU, was awarded a $597,500 grant for research on non-systemic breast cancer therapies by Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

“I am very happy to receive this grant,” Ding said. “This is a very competitive and prestigious grant.”

Non-systemic therapy focuses on the specific part of the body affected by the tumors, as opposed to system therapies, which affect the entire body, according to Komen’s Web site.

Ding said the grant will fund research for three years and allow him to recruit more scientists to participate in the study. He said he was surprised to receive the grant since it was his first year to apply.

His research focuses on metal ionophores, which work as anti-cancer agents, and how effectively they kill breast cancer cells.

Ding’s group has been researching metal ionophores for almost seven years and published its initial findings in 2005.

This research is the first of its kind. It demonstrates metal ionophores taking anti-cancer actions in cultured tumor cells and in laboratory experiments.

Ding said the ionophores work as anti-cancer agents by bonding to tumors and taking away cancerous cells. He and his team are working with one compound that demonstrates how bringing metal ionophores into tumors can cure them. Ding’s research will develop a way for metal ionophores to be integrated into clinical practice for treatment.

It is estimated that 182,460 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in the U.S. during 2008, and 40,480 women will die of the disease, according to the American Cancer Society.

Hala Moddelmog, president and chief executive of the Susan G. Komen Foundation, said in a press release that Komen has revamped its research program to challenge scientists to solve breast cancer issues.

“These grants are geared toward results – finding cures, tailoring treatments and resolving the issues that have stymied the search for a breast cancer cure,” Moddelmog said.

The foundation has funded more than $1.2 billion in breast cancer research and community health programs over the last 25 years, according to a press release.

The $100 million grant is part of its initiative to invest an additional $2 billion in research in the next 10 years.