Carl June, MD, of the University of Pennsylvania and Michel Sadelain, MD, PhD, of Columbia University, received the 2026 International Steven Hoogendijk Award for Medical Engineering in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, on October 2. The researchers were recognized for their pioneering contributions to the conceptual, technological, and clinical development of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy. Their work helped establish genetically modified T cells as therapeutic products and contributed to the achievement of long-term remissions in patients with hematologic malignancies. Dr. June is Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and Dr. Sadelain is Professor of Medicine at Columbia University. The award, presented by the Batavian Society for Experimental Philosophy, recognizes pioneering achievements at the intersection of medicine and engineering.
Dennis Slamon, MD, of the UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Tony Hunter, PhD, of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, have been awarded the 2026 Albany Medical Center Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research for discoveries that advanced the understanding of cancer biology and led to the development of targeted therapies. Dr. Slamon, Director of Clinical and Translational Research at the UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center and Chief of Hematology/Oncology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, is recognized for research that established the role of HER2 in breast cancer and contributed to the development of trastuzumab. His subsequent work helped establish CDK4/6 inhibitors as treatments for hormone receptor–positive breast cancer. The Albany Medical Center Prize, which includes a $500,000 award, recognizes scientific discoveries that have been translated into advances in patient care.
CS Pramesh, MBBS, MS, FRCS, Director of Tata Memorial Hospital and Professor and Head of Thoracic Surgery at Tata Memorial Centre in Mumbai, India, has been elected President of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) for the 2026–2028 term. A surgical oncologist, researcher, and health systems leader, Dr. Pramesh is internationally recognized for his work to improve access, quality, and equity in cancer care, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. He will serve alongside newly appointed UICC President Zainab Shinkafi-Bagudu and the organization’s Board of Directors in guiding efforts to strengthen global cancer control.
The Appendix Cancer PMP Research Foundation has awarded its $150,000 Changemaker Research Grant to Mohammad Haroon AsifChoudry, MD, a surgical oncologist at UPMC Hillman Cancer Center in Pittsburgh and Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. The grant, dedicated to the memory of Katie Centorbi, will support Dr. Choudry’s research into overcoming the dense mucus barrier that surrounds tumor cells in appendiceal pseudomyxoma peritonei and can prevent chemotherapy from reaching them. His team is investigating an approach combining targeted mucus-dissolving therapy with heat-activated nanoparticles to improve drug delivery to cancer cells.
Leor Weinberger, PhD, a virologist and professor at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, has received the National Institutes of Health Director’s Pioneer Award for his research into cancer therapies designed to evolve alongside tumors. Dr. Weinberger, who is also the founding Chair of the Department of Cell and Systems Biology at the Miller School, is developing a novel type of oncolytic virus capable of adapting to genetic changes in cancer cells. His research will focus on pancreatic cancer, glioblastoma, and acute myeloid leukemia. This is the second time Dr. Weinberger has received the award, which provides 5 years of funding for innovative, high-risk research.
Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center (MECCC) in the Bronx, New York, has announced several senior leadership appointments under Director Ulrich Steidl, MD, PhD. Amit K. Verma, MD, MBBS, has been named Deputy Director of MECCC; Julio A. Aguirre-Ghiso, PhD, has been named Associate Director for Basic Science; Marina Konopleva, MD, PhD, has been named Associate Director for Translational Science; and H. Dean Hosgood, PhD, will serve as Associate Director for Population and Community Sciences. Additionally, Wenjun Guo, PhD, will serve as Co-Leader of the Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis Program; and Aditi Shastri, MBBS, has been appointed Co-Leader of the Cancer Therapeutics Program.
