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Cutting the Ribbon for Research Peoria's Cancer Research Expansion Project opens HE COLLEGE OF MEDICINE IN PEORIA has cut the ribbon on its $10 million, 24,000-square-foot Cancer Research Expansion Project that will enhance the leading-edge research the campus' department of cancer biology and pharmacology conducts into the mo- lecular, cellular and genetic characteristics of cancer. "We have spent nearly 10 years dreaming about this building and the vital research that will oc- cur within it," says Sara Rusch, MD, regional dean in Peoria. "Each of us has a friend or relative who has been impacted by cancer. It is critically important that we find a cure. Peoria has the people, the plan and the potential—and now the place." Researchers led by Jasti Rao, PhD, senior associate dean for research and cancer biology and pharmacology department head, will work collaboratively with those at other facilities, including the Illinois Cancer Center and St. Jude Children's Hospital. The new laboratory space in the building will help the college recruit new talented researchers. "My life's goal is to improve the quality of life and survival rates for cancer patients," Rao says. "I have always dreamed of having a facility and the neces- T The $10 million, 24,000-square-foot facility has been a decade in the making and provides crucial laboratory space for the cancer research program. sary funds to recruit other research experts to help reach these goals." The cancer research program in Peoria has received more than $27.7 million in grants and published 150 papers since its founding in 2001. Rao has discovered and patented a prom- ising new anti-cancer treatment that's now being safety tested before it progresses to human trials. "This new and modern building repre- sents the bright future of the College of Medi- cine. It symbolizes how our community works together to accomplish great things," Rusch says, acknowledging support from the community, uni- versity and city, state and federal governments. "Our community is blessed with great leadership, and we've united behind our desire to cure this dreaded disease." The University of Illinois has collaborated on the project with Caterpillar Inc., OSF Saint Francis Medical Center, Methodist Medical Center, the Heart- land Partnership, and other public agencies and private donors. On hand for the groundbreaking were U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock, R-Ill., University of Illinois President Michael Hogan and University of Illinois at Chicago Chancellor Paula Allen-Meares. Regional Dean Sara Rusch cuts the ribbon on the new Cancer Research Expansion Project (clockwise from left); U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood strides to the podium during the ribbon-cutting ceremony; Jasti Rao, professor and senior associate dean for research, leads a tour group that includes state legislators and university leaders. PHOTOS: DAVID ZALAZNIK/JOURNAL STAR 6 | WINTER 2012