Radiation Oncology Institute launched with $5 million ASTRO grant

FAIRFAX, Virginia-The American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) has invested $5 million in the newly created Radiation Oncology Institute (ROI). The goal of ROI is to support research and education in radiation therapy.

Theodore S. Lawrence, MD, PhD, from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and Colleen A. Lawton, MD, from the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee will lead the endowment campaign. Their goal is to raise $10 million in capital to build the infrastructure of the new ROI, according to ASTRO.

Once ROI is functional, it will serve as the chief philanthropic partner to ASTRO. Possible ROI programs include supporting research studies or impact analyses of new and existing treatment options; conducting outcomes studies on the efficacy and cost/ benefit of radiation therapy; and publishing radiation oncology-related trend data. ROI also will build a database of workforce and practice structures.

From ASTRO’s $5 million investment, $1 million will be used for an endowment and $1 million for initial seed funding.