CAIRIBU began as a community of NIDDK-funded benign urology research centers and programs.
Over time, the CAIRIBU Community increasingly includes investigators and trainees from the broader genitourinary research community. Participation in any and all CAIRIBU Community events and opportunities is open to all collaborative-minded investigators and trainees. How did the CAIRIBU Community begin?
- The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) U54 George M. O’Brien Urology O’Brien Cooperative Research Centers formed the basis for CAIRIBU. The George M. O’Brien Urology Centers Program was named for George Miller O’Brien (June 17, 1917 – July 17, 1986), a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1973 until his death from prostate cancer. He represented the’ 17th and 4th districts of Illinois.
- The Urology O’Brien Centers were initially established as P50 programs by the NIDDK in 1987. Each Center worked independently until 2012, at which time they were converted to the U54 mechanism. This was done to encourage collaboration between funded centers and with the larger research community.
- In December 2013, at the “Urology Program Directors’ Meeting,” NIDDK program staff brought together the research teams of the U54 O’Brien Centers as well as those of the P20 Exploratory Centers for Interdisciplinary Research in Benign Urology, and the K12 Urology Career Development Programs. In 2018, these “Directors’ Meetings” were formally transitioned to annual CAIRIBU meetings in an effort to more formally promote interactions and collaboration between constituent Centers and Programs.
OUR MISSION
Nurture and train: Support the next generation of urologic researchers by providing meaningful education, support and mentoring
Build community: Cultivate new research tools and ideas by expanding the collaborative network within and outside of the traditional urologic research field
Improve knowledge: Enhance knowledge of mechanisms associated with normal development, function, and disease pathology related to the urinary tract, kidney, and prostate
Advance and translate science to the people: Translate the knowledge and tools generated from our collaborative work to the clinical setting to reduce the burden of benign urologic illness by developing and testing therapies to better treat, manage, and prevent these diseases
Why Benign Urology
Despite advances in clinical management, millions of Americans remain afflicted with “benign” (non-malignant) conditions of the bladder and urogenital system, including UTIs, urolithiasis, conditions associated with lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) and dysfunction (LUTD) – urinary incontinence, over/underactive bladder & bladder outlet obstruction – pelvic pain syndrome, and erectile dysfunction. The annual treatment cost of these illnesses is ≥$11.5 billion.
Inter- and cross-disciplinary collaboration within the benign urology research community is required in order to understand the mechanistic changes of the urogenital tract in disease and to establish clinically relevant models of urologic conditions
CAIRIBU is a community of NIDDK-funded research centers and programs whose overarching objective is to address gaps in knowledge related to the epidemiology, etiology, development, progression, and expression of benign urologic conditions, all of which contribute to inadequate clinical treatment.
