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Funded through Bloomingdale's annual Pink Campaign, The Breast Cancer Research Foundation® (BCRF) is awarding a grant to Dr. Andrew J. Dannenberg of Weill Cornell Medical College on Oct. 26 to fund research into the link between obesity, inflammation and breast cancer. Dr. Dannenberg has been a BCRF grantee since 2004.

"If left unchecked over long periods of time, inflammation can predispose people to a variety of illnesses, including breast cancer," says Dr. Andrew J. Dannenberg, the director of the Weill Cornell Cancer Center at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center and the Henry R. Erle, M.D.-Roberts Family Professor of Medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College.

"Understanding the specific ways inflammation works on a molecular level will help us develop better and safer ways to prevent and treat the disease," continues Dr. Dannenberg. "I am grateful to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation and Bloomingdale's for their support."

In 2010-2011, Dr. Dannenberg and colleagues discovered connections between obesity, breast inflammation and molecular changes known to drive the formation and progression of breast cancer. Although inflammation was already known to predispose to numerous other tumor types, this was the first evidence for the breast. Given the link between obesity and increased risk of breast cancer in postmenopausal women, these findings provide a major opportunity for developing risk reduction strategies. Going forward, Dr. Dannenberg will initiate development of interventions to attenuate obesity-related mammary inflammation. Since their laboratory models have proven useful in predicting what occurs in women, they will utilize these models to strengthen the rationale for future human studies. For example, they will determine whether caloric restriction has an impact on the obesity-inflammation axis in the mammary gland. Human breast samples will be analyzed to further define the pathobiology underlying obesity-related inflammation in the breast. Ultimately, the goal will be to develop behavioral, dietary or pharmacological approaches to reduce the risk of breast cancer.

Dr. Dannenberg received his medical degree from Washington University in St. Louis and served as a medical resident and gastroenterology fellow at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center. Dr. Dannenberg has authored more than 150 scientific articles, as well as edited several books and journals. He is a member of the Association of American Physicians, the American Society for Clinical Investigation and the American Association for Cancer Research. He previously chaired the Program Committee of the AACR "Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research" meeting and serves on the editorial boards of several journals including Cancer Prevention Research, Clinical Cancer Research and Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Dr. Dannenberg is recognized for his work on the inflammation-cancer connection with an emphasis on prostaglandin biology. His research has been of major importance in explaining why levels of procarcinogenic prostaglandins are increased in inflamed tissues and tumors. He has also made major contributions to our understanding of why nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs including aspirin possess anticancer activity.

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, located in New York City, is one of the leading academic medical centers in the world, comprising the teaching hospital NewYork-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medical College, the medical school of Cornell University. NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell provides state-of-the-art inpatient, ambulatory and preventive care in all areas of medicine, and is committed to excellence in patient care, education, research and community service. Weill Cornell physician-scientists have been responsible for many medical advances — including the development of the Pap test for cervical cancer; the synthesis of penicillin; the first successful embryo-biopsy pregnancy and birth in the U.S.; the first clinical trial for gene therapy for Parkinson's disease; the first indication of bone marrow's critical role in tumor growth; and, most recently, the world's first successful use of deep brain stimulation to treat a minimally conscious brain-injured patient. NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital also comprises NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center, NewYork-Presbyterian/Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Westchester Division and NewYork-Presbyterian/The Allen Hospital. NewYork-Presbyterian is the #1 hospital in the New York metropolitan area and is consistently ranked among the best academic medical institutions in the nation, according to U.S.News & World Report. Weill Cornell Medical College is the first U.S. medical college to offer a medical degree overseas and maintains a strong global presence in Austria, Brazil, Haiti, Tanzania, Turkey and Qatar. For more information, visit www.nyp.org and weill.cornell.edu.

Bloomingdale's

Bloomingdale's is America's only nationwide, full-line, upscale department store and a division of Macy's, Inc. It was founded in 1872 and currently operates 41 Bloomingdale's stores and five Bloomingdale's, The Outlet Stores in New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, Illinois, Minnesota, Georgia, Florida, Nevada and California. In addition, Bloomingdale's has an international presence with a location in Dubai. Be sure to follow Bloomingdale's on Facebook or Twitter, and for more information, or to shop any time, visit www.bloomingdales.com.

The Breast Cancer Research Foundation

The Breast Cancer Research Foundation® was founded in 1993 by Evelyn H. Lauder as an independent, not-for-profit organization dedicated to funding innovative clinical and translational research. In October 2011, BCRF is awarding $36.5 million to 186 scientists across the United States, Canada, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Australia and China. Currently, more than 90 cents of every dollar donated is directed to breast cancer research and awareness programs. With exceptionally low administrative costs, BCRF continues to be one of the most efficient organizations in the country and is designated an "A+" charity by The American Institute of Philanthropy, the only cancer organization to achieve this. For more information about BCRF, visit www.bcrfcure.org.