Manoj K. Mishra, Ph.D., founder and director of Alabama State University’s Cancer Biology Research and Training (CBRT) program, received an additional $84,000 to the existing four-year $2.6 million grant from the American Cancer Society’s (ACS) Diversity in Cancer Research Institutional Development (DCRID). The monies will help the university continue its cutting-edge cancer research program and outreach.
“It is our expectation that the CBRT Center at Alabama State University will prove to be pivotal in altering the field of cancer research and improving cancer care outcomes for Black Americans,” Mishra said. “We are deeply appreciative of the American Cancer Society’s efforts behind this initiative.”
The DCRID grant is designed to help improve diversity, equity and inclusion in cancer research.
In a letter to Mishra, Center for Diversity Research Ellie (Elvan) Daniels, MD, MPH, senior vice president, stated “We are pleased to inform you that the American Cancer Society will be providing a supplement to increase the post-doctoral fellowship awards from $175,500 to $217,000 for a three-year award. Due to this change, we are supplementing your Diversity in Cancer Research Institutional Development Grant by $84,000 for the two post-doctoral fellows included as research subawards during your project period. This will increase the individual post-doctoral fellowship subawards by $14,000 per year for each post-doctoral fellow.”
Mishra, who is the principal investigator of the DCR program, pointed out that the generous grant awarded in Jan. 2023 and the supplement award from ACS will help to transform the existing CBRT into a cancer center at the university, as well as directly support a range of other programs.
The DCRID grant will provide pilot projects and clinical scientist development grants to junior faculty interested in cancer research at the university. This award will allow the support of six Master of Science students (stipend and tuition fees) and two postdoctoral fellows to conduct cancer research. Under the grant, Mishra will have the opportunity to travel and discuss his research with different stakeholders, including community leaders, to enhance the cancer research capacity at the university.
“We look forward to providing students a world-class experience thanks to continued funding from the American Cancer Society,” said Mishra. “Through the American Cancer Society’s support, we are helping to build the next generation of cancer researchers.”

About the American Cancer Society
The American Cancer Society is the leading cancer-fighting organization with a vision to end cancer as we know it for everyone. For more than 100 years, the ACS has improved the lives of people with cancer and their families through advocacy, research and patient support to ensure that everyone has an opportunity to prevent, detect, treat and survive cancer.