North Park Earns First NIH Grant for Cancer Research
The university's first-ever National Institutes of Health grant funds a four-year study of how lymphoma spreads to the brain.
Updated on Nov. 2, 2026 in Cancer
On September 17, North Park University was awarded its first-ever grant from the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Tracy O'Connor, assistant professor of biology, received a $650,108 Support for Research Excellence award from the National Cancer Institute.
Why it matters
The award places North Park among 20 Illinois universities receiving NIH funding in fiscal year 2026 and expands research capacity at institutions that have historically received limited NIH support. The project could inform treatments that prevent lymphoma from spreading to the nervous system.
The award is a $650,108 Support for Research Excellence grant from the National Cancer Institute, one of 20 Illinois university NIH grants for fiscal year 2026. Whether the lymphoma-to-brain findings will lead to clinical applications has not yet been established.
The players
National Institutes of Health
The NIH is the primary U.S. federal agency for biomedical and health research, funding studies at universities and institutions nationwide.
National Cancer Institute
The National Cancer Institute is the federal government's principal agency for cancer research, and it issued the SuRE award supporting this project.
North Park University
North Park University is a private university in Chicago affiliated with the Evangelical Covenant Church, now receiving its first NIH grant.
The details
O'Connor's four-year project, titled "Mechanisms of Lymphoma Cell Dissemination to the Brain," examines how lymphoma cells use chemokine networks and signaling pathways to reach the brain. The project began September 24, 2026 and runs through August 31, 2030.
Timeline
September 17, 2026: North Park University awarded its first-ever NIH grant.
September 24, 2026: Lymphoma-to-brain research project begins.
August 31, 2030: Research project scheduled to end.
Big Picture
The award is one of the grants issued under the NIH Support for Research Excellence (SuRE) program, which is designed to build research capacity at institutions that have historically received limited NIH funding. North Park's first award follows that program's stated aim of broadening where federal cancer research dollars go.
For patients with lymphoma, research into how the cancer reaches the brain could eventually shape preventive treatments. For now, the project is in its early research phase and no new treatment is available.
The takeaway
Federal grants for cancer research are reaching a wider range of universities, and early-stage studies like this one can lay groundwork for future treatments. Readers following cancer care should watch for published findings from the project through 2030.
Further reading
Explore more cancer research coverage on Wisevoter.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Manila times.
