Dr. Malcolm Brenner research named in 10 best of 2012

HOUSTON--(April 18, 2012) -- Dr. Malcolm Brenner and his colleagues have been recognized by the Clinical Research Forum for having one of the top 10 clinical research accomplishments published in the last two years.


Brenner, director of the Center for Cell and Gene Therapy at Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children's Hospital and The Methodist Hospital, and his colleagues were honored for their work published in the Nov. 3, 2011, issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. The Clinical Research Forum named the research one of the Top 10 Clinical Research Achievement Awards in the United States for 2012.


In the study, Brenner and his colleagues identified a new approach to make stem cell transplantation safer. For more details on the study, see the initial press release announcing the work.


Brenner, also a professor of pediatrics and medicine at BCM, was awarded the second highest prize of the 10 awardees. He will be presented with the award at the Clinical Research Forum's annual meeting April 18.

Other awardees

Other awardees included researchers from the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University, Duke University, Seattle Children's Research Institute/The University of Washington, the University of Cincinnati, the University of Colorado School of Medicine, the University of North Carolina, the University of Pennsylvania and the Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, MIT and Harvard.

The Clinical Research Forum

The Clinical Research Forum is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing national leadership in clinical research. Its mission is to generate support for clinical research and promote understanding of its impact on health and health care delivery. Members are among the nation's most prestigious academic medical centers and health systems.


"Clinical research is key to our efforts to turn discoveries into health, serving as the bridge between advances in basic scientific understanding and the development of new ways to diagnose, treat, and prevent disease," said NIH Director Dr. Francis S. Collins. "NIH is a major supporter of clinical research and I am delighted to see this important field get the recognition it so richly deserves."


"There's never been a moment that's more optimistic in the history of biology for spectacular breakthroughs to happen, but it will require strategic investment at a most difficult time in our history," said Dr. William F. Crowley Jr., founder and past chairman of the Clinical Research Forum and director of the Clinical Research Program at Massachusetts General Hospital. "But that is what has made America the world leader in biomedical research, and if we're going to retain that we have to continue making these investments."

About Texas Children’s Hospital

Texas Children’s Hospital, a not-for-profit health care organization, is committed to creating a healthier future for children and women throughout the global community by leading in patient care, education and research. Consistently ranked as the best children’s hospital in Texas, and among the top in the nation, Texas Children’s has garnered widespread recognition for its expertise and breakthroughs in pediatric and women’s health. The hospital includes the Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute; the Feigin Center for pediatric research; Texas Children’s Pavilion for Women, a comprehensive obstetrics/gynecology facility focusing on high-risk births; Texas Children’s Hospital West Campus, a community hospital in suburban West Houston; and Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands, a second community hospital planned to open in 2017. The organization also created the nation’s first HMO for children, has the largest pediatric primary care network in the country and a global health program that’s channeling care to children and women all over the world. Texas Children’s Hospital is affiliated with Baylor College of Medicine. For more information, go to www.texaschildrens.org. Get the latest news by visiting the online newsroom and Twitter at twitter.com/texaschildrens.