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R&D Program Overviews
 The
Portland VA is home to an exciting research program that
began in the early 1970s with a small group of scientists
and clinicians dedicated to improving the health of veterans.
Today Portland ranks among the top 3 VA medical centers
nationwide in VA research support. The program has more
than 110 funded investigators and a budget for fiscal
year 2005 that totaled nearly $31 million. An invaluable
asset, the Portland VA Research Foundation handled over
$3 million during 2005 to support research. Our strong
affiliation with Oregon Health & Science University was
greatly enhanced in 1993 with the opening of the sky bridge,
and research collaborations continue to grow. Reflecting
the critical mass of talent assembled here, the VA has
been fortunate to receive a number of large grants in
recent years to establish special centers dedicated to
the fight against important diseases. These include:
The VA Portland Alcohol Research Center (1995)
Scientists here are among leaders in the quest to tease
out the complex interplay between heredity and alcoholism,
tracking down genes that may either increase or decrease
risk.
NIH-funded Cancer Center, with affiliate OHSU (1996)
In 1999, the Portland VA dedicated its newest research
building, the Northwest Veterans Affairs Cancer Research
Center. This facility houses joint projects of the Portland
VA and OHSU, many of them on the frontiers of research
to forge an entirely new generation of cancer treatments-"smart
bombs" that target only cellular abnormalities underlying
cancers, sparing normal tissue that can be damaged by
radiation and standard chemotherapy.
 National
Center for Rehabilitative Auditory Research (1997)
People are often surprised to learn that the most common
service-connected disability-affecting an estimated 300,000
veterans-is hearing loss. This is the only center in the
VA dedicated to addressing needs of veterans with hearing
loss and tinnitus, the mysterious ringing in the ears
suffered by millions of Americans.
Mental Illness Research Education and Clinical Center
(1997)
A collaboration with the VA Puget Sound Health Care
System, this center focuses on understanding basic mechanisms,
developing better treatments and improving health services
for post-traumatic stress disorder and schizophrenia-two
devastating problems common among our nation's veterans.
 Research
Enhancement Awards Program in Multiple Sclerosis (1999)
This group is seeking new weapons against multiple sclerosis,
a disabling disorder affecting some 350,000 Americans.
A recent study found that a combination treatment of estrogen
and a vaccine developed by the Portland team could prevent
a similar disease in female mice-a finding the researchers
hope to translate to humans.
 Research
Enhancement Awards Program in Hepatitis C (1999)
Investigators here are among leaders in the battle against
hepatitis C, a life-threatening disease that is especially
common among veterans. Recent Portland advances include
progress in work to design a vaccine and the discovery
that genetic factors in the donor liver may influence
whether severe liver disease recurs in hepatitis C patients
who have had a liver transplant.
Parkinson's Disease Research Education and Clinical
Center (2001)
The Portland VA gained its newest special center when
it was named one of six new VA centers specializing in
Parkinson's disease, a debilitating neurological disorder
that afflicts 1.5 million Americans. Research projects
will include studies to determine whether deep brain stimulation
can reduce symptoms of Parkinson's disease, to find ways
of regenerating brain cells damaged by the disorder, and
to sort out the cause of Parkinson's-associated cognitive
problems.
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