American Cancer Society Mentored Grantee Highlights from the Newly Announced Fall 2024 Grant Slate

Earlier this week, the American Cancer Society released the full list of 245 new and renewed research grants that were awarded between August 1 and December 31, 2024. As part of this larger slate of new grants, ACS awarded 77 new Postdoctoral Fellowships and 7 new Clinician Scientist Development Grants. Altogether, these grants represent an investment of $20.2 million dollars in mentored researchers, who are largely individuals in the earliest stages of their careers.

“Funding early career researchers like postdocs as well as clinicians looking to move into the research space allows us to invest in innovative science while also strengthening the cancer research workforce,” said Dr. Kathy Goss, Senior Scientific Director of the Career Growth and Research Excellence program at ACS. “We look forward to working with this incoming cohort of investigators and supporting them in the future as they establish their independent research careers.”

Today, we are highlighting several of the stand-out projects from mentored grantees that are part of the larger Fall 2024 grant slate. To view the full list of new and renewed Fall 2024 grantees, please click here.

Postdoctoral Fellowships

American Cancer Society Postdoctoral Fellowships support new investigators in research training programs to position them for independent careers in cancer research. Grants funded through this program are for up to three years of financial support and are assessed on both the proposed scientific research to be conducted and the research training plan. Additional information about the ACS Postdoctoral Fellowship program can be found on cancer.org.

Highlights from the new slate of postdoctoral fellowships awarded in Fall 2024 include:

Rowan Barker-Clarke, Ph.D.
Cleveland Clinic Foundation 
Postdoctoral Fellowship

Project Title: “Integrating free-living data into digital twin models of glioblastoma”

This study is focused on understanding how glioblastoma (GBM), an aggressive type of brain tumor, affects patients in their daily lives. Dr. Barker-Clarke will use wearable technology like Apple Watches to track patients’ movements and symptoms over time in order to better understand how GBM progresses, what symptoms patients experience, and how it impacts their quality of life. Understanding this information will benefit patients through improved symptom management while also allowing doctors to potentially identify when patients might need more immediate or intensive treatment or support.

Jessica Kelliher, Ph.D. 
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences 
Postdoctoral Fellowship

Project Title: “Exploiting DNA Damage Response Machinery to Combat T Cell Exhaustion”

This project will study the role of DNA damage during T cell exhaustion, a phenomenon where initially effective immunotherapies become ineffective over time as the T cells lose their ability to kill the cancer cells they are targeting. Dr. Kelliher will test the hypothesis that preventing the accumulation of DNA damage over time can improve the efficacy of immunotherapy treatment. Her work will focus specifically on repair mechanisms that can be bolstered to prevent DNA damage and ultimately, T cell exhaustion.

Olasunkanmi Olaoye, Ph.D. 
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute 
Postdoctoral Fellowship

Project Title: “EWS-FLI1-driven upregulation of UGT3A2 unlocks drug sensitivity pathway for precision medicine in Ewing Sarcoma”

Dr. Olasunkami’s earlier work on the protein UGT3A2 generated preliminary data to suggest this is a novel biomarker for drug sensitivity in the treatment of Ewing sarcoma (ES), a rare pediatric bone tumor with no current specialized treatments. The work funded through this grant will validate this new biomarker in in vivo models of ES and improve understanding of how this protein interacts with newly identified drugs identified through large-scale drug screening. Ultimately, this work may accelerate the delivery of custom therapies for ES.

Victor Manuel Ruiz Arroyo, Ph.D. 
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center 
Postdoctoral Fellowship

Project Title: “Mechanisms of clustered microRNA processing in humans”

MicroRNAs are short RNA molecules that bind messenger RNAs, typically resulting in shutting down translation into protein. This project is focused on better understanding the role of clustered microRNAs in regulating carcinogenesis. Multiple microRNAs may be expressed and processed together within the cell, although the specifics of this process are still largely unknow. Dr. Ruiz Arroyo will conduct a series of studies to further elucidate the complicated interactions that underpin this cluster microRNA machinery which may reveal new potential therapeutic approaches.

Nicole Renea Santos Jimenez, Ph.D. 
University of Arizona 
Postdoctoral Fellowship

Project Title: “Elucidating the role of the endometrial microbiome in gynecologic cancer”

This project will evaluate the relationship of endometrial bacteria with endometrial cancer and tumor characteristics, such as tumor size, utilizing robust bioinformatic methods from a previously collected endometrial cancer cohort that is representative of the Southwest U.S. population. Dr. Santos Jimenez will supplement this work with additional experiments focused on better understanding the potential mechanistic links between endometrial bacteria, the tumor microenvironment, and the progression of endometrial cancer.

Ezekiel Thomas, Ph.D. 
University of Michigan Medical Center 
Postdoctoral Fellowship

Project Title: “Structure- and biochemistry-guided optimization of microtubule targeting cancer drugs”

Some cancer drugs target the ability of cancer cells to build new microtubule (MT) networks. MT networks function as a kind of “road” within the cell, allowing the transport of vital “cargo” to different areas of the cell, a key step for cancer cell growth. Through this project, Dr. Ezekiel hopes to increase our fundamental understanding of how cancer drugs can interrupt this process, with the goal of developing better treatments for cancer in the future.

Clinician Scientist Development Grants

American Cancer Society Clinician Scientist Development Grants (CSDGs) support individuals trained primarily as clinicians in becoming independent cancer researchers in addition to the existing clinical practice. Through our partnership with the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO), ACS also funds additional CSDG awards for clinician researchers working in the radiation oncology field. All CSDG awards are for 3 to 5 years of financial support and require applicants to submit both a proposed research project and a personal training plan. Additional information about the ACS CSDGs can be found here on cancer.org, while additional information on ASTRO-CSDGs can be found here.

Highlights from the new slate of CSDGs awarded in Fall 2024 include:

Joal Beane, M.D.
The Ohio State University
CSDG Award

Project Title: “Targeting the IWS1/ENAH Axis to Prevent Invasion and Metastases of Liposarcoma”

Dysregulated RNA splicing can affect the growth and spread of a rare and aggressive form of sarcoma called dedifferentiated liposarcoma (ddLPS). Dr. Beane will evaluate a novel inhibitor of RNA splicing in a preclinical model of the disease. Given the lack of non-surgical options for the treatment of ddLPS, this work will deepen the understanding of the role of RNA splicing dysregulation in cancer and potentially identify new therapeutic opportunities.

Danielle Bitterman, M.D.

Brigham and Women’s Hospital
ASTRO CSDG Award

Project Title: “Artificial Intelligence to Identify and Characterize Cancer Therapy-Induced Adverse Sequelae”

Through this project, Dr. Bitterman will develop AI technologies that can automatically monitor cancer patients’ electronic medical records for important information on side effects stemming from radiotherapy. The new technologies will incorporate natural language processing of clinical notes to better detect side effects that may otherwise go unrecognized and to improve our understanding of which patients may be at the greatest risk of developing side effects in the future. The results of this work have the potential to improve both real-time patient care and population-level survivorship research.

To learn more about the more than 700 research grants currently being funded by the American Cancer Society, and/or to learn more about our upcoming grant opportunities, please visit cancer.org/research/we-fund-cancer-research.html. To see additional highlights from this newly announced slate of grants, please be sure to check back often on this page and to connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.