FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For more information, contact:

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center

Sheila Champlin - (901) 448-4957, schampli@uthsc.edu or

Suzanne Thompson - (901) 448-4072, sthompson@uthsc.edu

Postdoctoral Fellow Qiuhua Zhang of

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center

Receives $60,000 Grant from the Knights Templar Eye Foundation

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Memphis, Tenn. (September 6, 2012) - Representatives of the Knights Templar Eye Foundation are very appreciative of the research efforts of Qiuhua Zhang, PhD, a postdoctoral research trainee in the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC). The foundation has so much belief in her work that it recently awarded Dr. Zhang a $60,000 grant to support her efforts.

The focus of Dr. Zhang's research is the optimization of superselective intraophthalmic artery chemotherapy (SSIOAC), a technique designed to deliver high intraocular concentrations of chemotherapy to treat extensive disease while minimizing system exposure. Though SSIOAC is very effective against retinoblastoma, it has had its own vision-threatening adverse effects.

Dr. Zhang hopes to optimize the SSIOAC treatment so that one day it may be the standard treatment for retinoblastoma, instead of conventional chemotherapy, the current treatment option, which also has adverse effects.

"This Knights Templar donation will allow Dr. Zhang to continue her work on a novel treatment for retinoblastoma as well as move toward her long-term career goal to become an independent researcher," stated her mentor Jena Steinle, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Ophthalmology at UTHSC.

The Knights Templar Eye Foundation is a nonprofit that provides funds for research, surgical treatment and hospitalization to those who suffer from diseases or injury to the eyes. For more information, visit www.ktef.org

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) is to bring the benefits of the health sciences to the achievement and maintenance of human health, with a focus on the citizens of Tennessee and the region, by pursuing an integrated program of education, research, clinical care, and public service. In 2011, UT Health Science Center celebrated its centennial: 100 years advancing the future of health care. Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main UTHSC campus is located in Memphis and includes six colleges: Allied Health Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy. The UTHSC campus in Knoxville includes a College of Medicine, College of Pharmacy, and an Allied Health Sciences unit. In addition, the UTHSC Chattanooga campus includes a College of Medicine and an Allied Health Sciences unit. Since its founding in 1911, UTHSC has educated and trained more than 53,000 health care professionals on campuses and in health care facilities across the state. For more information, visit www.uthsc.edu.

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