Solvay Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Awards 15 Student Research Fellowships For IBD Research
NEW YORK, Aug. 7, 2002 - Fifteen students have been selected to receive a 2002 Solvay Pharmaceuticals Student Research Fellowship. Administered by the Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America (CCFA), the fellowships are awarded to undergraduate, graduate or medical students who are performing full-time mentored research on inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
The Solvay Pharmaceuticals Student Research Fellowship Program is funded by Solvay Pharmaceuticals, Inc. This is the seventh year the company has funded the program, which has awarded more than $125,000 in fellowships.
The following students were awarded 2002 fellowships:
Recipient
Academic Institution
Laura Chang
University of Chicago
Justin M. Cifuni
Merrimack College
Ryan Enke
University of Illinois
Jessica Gibney
Case Western Reserve University
Michelle Kron
Williams College
Tracy L. McAuliffe
University of Louisville
Lesley Rhee
University of Chicago
Cristina Saunders
University of California-Los Angeles
David Adam Scott
DePauw University
David I. Shalowitz
Brown University
Alexis Sherman
Dickinson College
Jonathan Tam
University of Chicago
Cheryl Young
DePauw University
Tian Zhang
Columbia University
Svetlana Zhovits
University of Rochester
"CCFA is dedicated to improving the quality of life for persons with inflammatory bowel disease through research, education and supportive services. The student research fellowship program is one program that helps meet this goal," said Gene Kestenbaum, chairperson of the board, Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America. "With the support and cooperation of Solvay Pharmaceuticals, we are not only able to further research into IBD but also give a boost to the careers of young researchers."
Ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease, collectively known as IBD, affect up to one million Americans, with 30,000 new cases diagnosed annually. Ulcerative colitis affects the colon. Symptoms include persistent bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramps, fever and weight loss. There is also a link to increased risk for colon cancer. Crohn's disease is a painful condition that causes inflammation of the small and large intestines. It can lead to diarrhea, abdominal cramps, weight loss and bowel obstruction. The causes of IBD are unknown, although both genetic and environmental factors are thought to play a role. There is currently no medical cure.
Solvay Pharmaceuticals values its partnership with the Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America," said Harold H. Shlevin, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of Solvay Pharmaceuticals, Inc. "Our organizations share a commitment to helping persons with inflammatory bowel disease and irritable bowel syndrome and we are pleased to be able to provide IBD research opportunities to deserving students. We hope that through these efforts and those of our internal research programs we can together make faster progress in developing new therapies to treat these often debilitating diseases.
Solvay Pharmaceuticals, Inc. of Marietta, Ga., is a research-based pharmaceutical company active in the therapeutic areas of cardiology, gastroenterology, mental health and women's health. It is a member of the worldwide Solvay S.A. chemical and pharmaceutical group headquartered in Brussels, Belgium.
The mission of the Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America, Inc. is to cure and prevent Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis through research, and to improve the quality of life of children and adults affected by these digestive diseases through education and support. Known collectively as inflammatory bowel diseases, these painful, chronic illnesses affect up to one million Americans, including approximately 100,000 children under the age of 18. CCFA was founded in 1967. For more information about CCFA, call 800-932-2423, or log on to www.ccfa.org.
