ASCO, Conquer Cancer Foundation Congratulate 2016 Grant and Award Recipients

The Conquer Cancer Foundation of ASCO (CCF) presented more than $6.1 million in grants and awards to nearly 250 promising oncology researchers at the 2016 ASCO Annual Meeting. The Conquer Cancer Foundation and ASCO congratulate the recipients on their contributions to the field of oncology and offer their profound thanks to the generous organizations that supported these awards.

To see the complete list, visit conquercancerfoundation.org/grant-award-recipients.

Advanced Clinical Research Award in Breast Cancer

The Advanced Clinical Research Award (ACRA) funds investigators in their 4th–9th year of faculty appointment who are committed to clinical cancer research in an area not currently funded. The award is supported by the Breast Cancer Research Foundation^®탎.

• Carey Anders, MD, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Carey Anders, MD, Advanced Clinical Research Award in Breast Cancer recipient, with CCF Board of Directors Chair Thomas G. Roberts Jr, MD.

Career Development Awards

The Career Development Award (CDA) provides funding to clinical investigators who have received their initial faculty appointment to establish an independent clinical cancer research program. This year’s recipients will each receive a 3-year grant totaling $200,000.

• Gabriel Brooks, MD, MPH, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (2013 YIA)
• Eli Diamond, MD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
• Alice Fan, MD, Stanford University
• Renata Ferrarotto, MD, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
• Matthew Hellmann, MD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
• Neil Iyengar, MD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (2013 YIA)
• Aki Morikawa, MD, PhD, University of Michigan (2013 GBRF)
• Michael Postow, MD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (2013 YIA)
• Solmaz Sahebjam, MD, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute
• Quoc-Dien Trinh, MD, Brigham and Women’s Hospital

Career Development Awards recipients: Matthew Hellmann, MD; Renata Ferrarotto, MD; Aki ­Morikawa, MD, PhD; Neil Iyengar, MD; Solmaz Sahebjam, MD; Alice Fan, MD; Michael Postow, MD; and Quoc-Dien Trinh, MD. Not pictured: Gabriel Brooks, MD, MPH, and Eli Diamond, MD.

CDAs are supported by the Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma Research Foundation; Amgen; Astellas; AstraZeneca; Breast Cancer Research Foundation; Genentech BioOncology; Janssen Scientific Affairs, LLC; Lilly; Michael’s Mission; Roche; Takeda Oncology; and the Triple Negative Breast Cancer Foundation.

Young Investigator Awards

The Young Investigator Award (YIA) provides funding to promising investigators to encourage and promote quality research in clinical oncology. This year’s 58 awardees will each receive a 1-year grant of $50,000. 

YIAs are supported by Anonymous; AbbVie, Inc; American Association for Cancer Research; ASCO; Amgen; ASCO and Conquer Cancer Foundation Boards of Directors; ASCO State Affili­ate Council and ASCO Clinical Practice Committee; AstraZeneca; Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Breast Cancer Research Foundation; Celgene Corporation; The Cholangiocarcinoma Foundation; Conquer Cancer Foundation; Conquer Cancer Foundation Women Who Conquer Cancer; Eisai Inc.; EMD Serono Inc.; Ethicon; Fibrolamellar Cancer Foundation; Florida Society of Clinical Oncology; Gateway for Cancer Research; Genentech BioOncology; Gilead Sciences, Inc.; HELSINN; Incyte Corporation; Janssen Oncology; Janssen Scientific Affairs, LLC; the Journal of Clinical Oncology; Kidney Cancer Association; The John and Elizabeth Leonard Family Foundation; Lilly; Lung Cancer Alliance; J. Edward Mahoney Foundation; Merck & Co., Inc.; Novartis Oncology; Susan K. Parsons, MD, and Walter Armstrong; Pfizer Oncology; The Reid R. Sacco Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Alliance; Aaron and Barbro Sasson; Strike 3 Foundation; Takeda Oncology; Triple Negative Breast Cancer Foundation; and The WWWW Foundation, Inc. (QuadW) and The Sarcoma Fund of the QuadW Foundation of Communities Foundation of Texas.

The International Development and Education Award (IDEA) and IDEA-Palliative Care (IDEA-PC) recipients. Back row: Fábio de Figueirêdo Chaves, MD; Manuel Caitano Maia, MD; Raja Pramanik, MD; Davit Zohrabyan, MD; Uday Yanamandra, MBBS, MD; Jayson L. Co, MD; Jesse Elungat Opakas, MBBS, MD; Pham Tuan Anh, MD; Fernando Pérez Jacobo, MD; and Andre Jerome Williams, MBBS, DM. Front row: Juliano Cé Coelho, MD; Kul Ranjan Singh, MBBS, MS, MCh; Jalil Salih Ali, MBChB; Yusuf Adetomiwa Adelabu, MBBS; Sandhya Chapagain Acharya, MD; Susmita Sharma, MBBS, MD; Narmin Talibova, MD; Andrea Craciunescu, MD; Chris Tania Echeveste, MD, PhD; Ali Alkan, MD; Dorothy Chilambe Lombe, MD; and Oladapo Adedayo Kolawole, MBBS. Not pictured: Mohammed Abdulqader Suwaid, MBChB, MD.

International Development and Education Award

The International Development and Education Award (IDEA) and IDEA-Palliative Care (IDEA-PC) provide support for early-career oncologists in low- and middle-income countries to further their knowledge and careers and establish strong long-term relationships with leading ASCO members who serve as scientific mentors. This year’s 20 IDEA and 3 IDEA-PC awardees attended the 2016 ASCO Annual Meeting and visited their mentor’s institution, where they gained knowledge and skills to share with their peers back home.

IDEAs are supported by Avon Foundation for Women; Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals Inc.; Conquer Cancer Foundation Mission Endowment; CRDF Global; National Cancer Institute; National Science Foundation; NF Nimeh, MD; and Takeda Oncology.

Medical Student Rotation for Underrepresented Populations

The Medical Student Rotation (MSR) for Underrepresented Populations provides 8- to 10-week clinical or clinical research oncology rotations for U.S. medical students from populations underrepresented in medicine who are interested in pursuing oncology as a career. This year, five medical students were selected:

• Juan Alban, University of Illinois College of Medicine
• Adrienne Nicole Hawkins Baksh, University of Illinois at Chicago
• Ogochukwu Ezeoke, State University of New York Upstate Medical University at Syracuse
• Daniel E. Lage, Harvard Medical School
• Charelle Smith, Trinity School of Medicine

The MSR for Underrepresented Populations is supported by Amgen; Conquer Cancer Foundation; Janssen Oncology; and Lilly.

Resident Travel Award for Underrepresented Populations

Resident Travel Award for Underrepresented Populations recipients: Lionel Aurelien Kankeu Fonkoua, MD; Carolina Soto Chervin, MD, PhD; Kimberley Lee, MD; Leslie S. Anewenah, MD; Frederick Edem Doamekpor, MD; Ashley Cheree Woods, MD; Chinelo Madubom, MBBS; Fiyinfolu Balogun, MD, PhD; and Sherise C. Rogers, MD, MPH. Not pictured: Lina Maria Ortega, MD.

The Resident Travel Award (RTA) for Underrepresented Populations provides financial support for residents from underrepresented populations to attend the ASCO Annual Meeting. This year, 10 residents were selected:

• Leslie S. Anewenah, MD, Mercy Catholic Medical Center
• Fiyinfolu Balogun, MD, PhD, New York University School of Medicine
• Carolina Soto Chervin, MD, PhD, The University of Chicago
• Frederick Edem Doamekpor, MD, Morehouse School of Medicine
• Lionel Aurelien Kankeu Fonkoua, MD, Penn State College of Medicine
• Kimberley Lee, MD, Johns Hopkins University
• Chinelo Madubom, MBBS, The Brooklyn Hospital Center
• Lina Maria Ortega, MD, Massachusetts General Hospital
• Sherise C. Rogers, MD, MPH, Stony Brook University
• Ashley Cheree Woods, MD, Yale New Haven Hospital

The RTA is supported by Amgen; Conquer Cancer Foundation Mission Endowment; and Janssen Oncology.

Clinical Trials Participation Award

The Clinical Trials Participation Award (CTPA) recognizes and promotes high-quality clinical research sites with the intent to increase the awareness of and participation in clinical trials among physicians. The awards are presented to community-based practices participating in clinical trials at an exceptional level. The Coalition of Cancer Cooperative Groups has supported these awards for 14 consecutive years. Three practices were honored this year:

• CHI Health St. Francis Cancer Treatment Center, Grand Island, Nebraska
• Joliet Oncology Hematology Associates, Ltd., Joliet, Illinois
• Virginia Center Specialists Research Institute, Fairfax, Virgina

Merit Awards for High-Quality Research

Special Merit Award recipients: Ian Kleckner, PhD; Nickhill Bhakta, MD, MPH; Mark W. Knestrick Jr., MD, PharmD; and Alvaro Lassaletta, MD. Not pictured: Raja Pramanik, MD.

The Conquer Cancer Foundation distributed 102 Merit Awards to oncology fellows who submitted high-quality research for presentation at the 2016 ASCO Annual Meeting and 5 Special Merit Awards for the highest-ranking abstracts in select categories. The 2016 Special Merit Award recipients are:

• Nickhill Bhakta, MD, MPH, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Bradley Stuart Beller Special Merit Award
• Ian Kleckner, PhD, University of Rochester Medical Center, Pain and Symptom Management Special Merit Award
• Mark W. Knestrick, Jr, MD, ­PharmD, West Virginia School of Medicine, Allen S. Lichter, MD, Endowed Merit Award
• Alvaro Lassaletta, MD, The Hospital for Sick Children, James B. ­Nachman ASCO Junior Faculty Award in Pediatric Oncology
• Raja Pramanik, MD (2016 IDEA), All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Brigid Leventhal Special Merit Award

The 2016 Merit Awards are supported by Amgen; AstraZeneca; friends, family, and colleagues of Dr. Ronald Beller, Mrs. Judith Beller, and Dr. James B. Nachman; Celgene Corporation; Conquer Cancer Foundation; Gilead Sciences, Inc.; Janssen Oncology; Kidney Cancer Association; Lilly; Novartis Oncology; Jackson G. Simpson; Spectrum Pharmaceuticals; and Takeda Oncology.

Oncology Trainee Travel Awards

The Oncology Trainee Travel Award (OTTA) supports the continuing education and professional development of trainee oncologists by providing individual travel grants to defray travel expenses for attending the ASCO Annual Meeting. In 2016, the Conquer Cancer Foundation awarded 28 OTTAs.

OTTAs are supported by Amgen and Takeda Oncology.

2016 Long-Term International Fellowship

Long-term International Fellowship recipients: Enrique Soto Perez de Celis, MD; Shuhang Wang, MD, MS; Allan Andresson Lima Pereira, MD, PhD; and Nisreen Yousef Amayiri, MBBS, MD.

The Long-term International Fellowship (LIFe) provides early-career oncologists in low- to middle-income countries the support and resources needed to advance their training by deepening their relationship with a mentor from the United States, Canada, or Europe and their institution. This year’s recipients are:

• Nisreen Yousef Amayiri, MBBS, MD, King Hussein Cancer Center (Jordan)
• Allan Andresson Lima Pereira, MD, PhD, Instituto do Cancer do Estado de São Paulo (ICESP)–Sao Paulo University (USP)
• Enrique Soto Perez de Celis, MD, Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Medicas y Nutricion Salvador Zubiran
• Shuhang Wang, MD, MS, Beijing Cancer Hospital

The LIFe is supported by Amgen; Conquer Cancer Foundation; Conquer Cancer Foundation Mission Endowment; and Roche. ■

All recipient lists are up-to-date as of June 8, 2016.

Originally printed in the July issue of ASCO Connection. © American Society of Clinical Oncology. “ASCO, Conquer Cancer Foundation Congratulate 2016 Grant and Award Recipients.” All rights reserved.