5 For The Fight Announces New Class of Cancer Research Fellows
June 02 2022 - 12:07PM
Business Wire
Recipients were chosen in part for their pledge
to focus on research designed to advance cancer prevention and
survival in minority populations, improve treatments
5 For The Fight, a nonprofit started by Qualtrics and fueled by
thousands of private donors, announced today that seven new cancer
researchers will get a boost for their work thanks to $1.1 million
in grants.
The five women and two men, who are part of the multi-year 5 For
The Fight Cancer Research Fellows program, were vetted and chosen
in part for their pledge to focus on research designed to:
- Advance cancer prevention and survival in minority
populations
- Create more effective treatment approaches for gynecological
cancer
- Find new methods of imaging for pediatric cancers
- Better understand cellular changes that can lead to cancer and
other diseases
- Advance development of new clinical trials & treatments for
leukemia
- Understand how and why certain tumors resist treatments
- Engineer strategies to safely amplify the body’s immune
response to cancer
“What these cancer researchers have in common is grit and
innovation,” said Mike Maughan, 5 For The Fight Co-Founder. “Their
important work – along with the work of other fellows in the
program – bring us one step closer to our goal to eradicate cancer.
We are excited to fuel their progress and help give them a real
chance to advance the field and help mentor those that come after
them.”
This is the third class of 5 For The Fight Cancer Research
Fellows, which now totals over 30 researchers. Each researcher
receives funding for three years and provides updates on findings
annually. 5 For The Fight also has 15 cancer centers through other
grants. Past 5 For The Fight Fellows have reported progress on
research in colon cancer screenings for Black and Indigenous men,
the study of how and why melanomas form, and the role of B cells in
solid tumors, among other achievements. To date, 5 For The Fight
has raised nearly $30 million to help eradicate cancer with 100% of
those funds donated directly to the world’s leading cancer
researchers.
All seven of the new fellowship recipients are located at
Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah. For
information on how to donate to support future fellows as well as
other cancer researchers, please visit www.5forthefight.org
About 5 For The Fight
5 For The Fight, a nonprofit started by Qualtrics in 2017, is a
global campaign inviting everyone to donate $5 to the fight against
cancer. Each donation is made in honor of someone who is battling
or has been touched by the disease. 5 For The Fight is featured on
the Utah Jazz jersey patch and is the only cause-related jersey
patch in the NBA. To join the fight, please visit
www.5forthefight.org.
2022-2025
5 For The Fight Cancer Research
Fellows
Robert L. Dood, MD, MSCE is fighting to improve survival
rates in people with gynecologic cancers. A surgeon-scientist
specializing in gynecologic cancer and an assistant professor of
obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Utah, Dood will
pursue research to better understand specific tumor traits, and use
these findings to advance insights into more effective treatment
approaches. Dood completed his medical degree and a master of
epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania, followed by
fellowship training in gynecologic oncology at the University of
Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.
Shreya Goel, PhD is fighting to improve imaging in
pediatric cancer patients. Imaging is a tool used by doctors to
assess whether a patient is responding to treatment. A pediatric
cancer researcher and an assistant professor of pharmaceutics and
pharmaceutical chemistry, Goel will advance study of new methods of
imaging for pediatric cancers. She completed her PhD in materials
science at the University of Wisconsin, followed by postdoctoral
training in nanomedicine and cancer systems imaging at the
University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.
Crystal Lumpkins, PhD, MA is fighting to prevent cancers
and improve outcomes in African American and Black immigrant
populations through genetic testing and more effective
communication. A cancer population scientist and associate
professor of communication, Lumpkins will test new tools to improve
communication about reducing cancer risk in minority populations.
Lumpkins received her doctorate from the University of
Missouri-Columbia and holds masters degrees in media communications
and management from Webster University in St. Louis, Missouri.
Matt Miller, PhD is fighting to understand the underlying
cellular changes that can lead to cancer and other diseases. A
cancer biochemist and assistant professor and assistant professor
of biochemistry, Miller is working to answer fundamental questions
about how microscopic changes in chromosomes can lead to defects
that precipitate the development of diseases like cancer, and to
use these insights to inform more effective strategies for
prevention and treatment. Miller received his PhD in cell biology
from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, followed by
postdoctoral training in biochemistry and biophysics at the Fred
Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.
Ami Patel, MD is fighting to develop better treatments
that will improve outcomes for people with blood cancers. As a
physician-scientist and an assistant professor of internal
medicine, Patel cares for patients with leukemia and will use the
fellowship award to advance development of new clinical trials to
assess treatments that will target leukemia cells. She completed
medical training and an internal medicine residency at Northwestern
University, followed by fellowship training in hematology-oncology
at the Salt Lake Veterans Affairs Medical Center and University of
Utah.
Melissa Reeves, PhD is fighting to understand how certain
tumor characteristics resist treatments. Reeves oversees a cancer
research laboratory and is an assistant of pathology at the
University of Utah. Reeves studies a tumor trait called
heterogeneity. Heterogeneous tumors respond poorly to
immunotherapy, and are common across many tumor types, including
melanoma, lung cancer, bladder cancer, and kidney cancer. Yet they
are resistant to all available treatments. Reeves plans to
understand the barriers the immune system encounters fighting
heterogeneous tumors and develop treatment strategies that will
improve outcomes for patients. She completed her PhD in biomedical
sciences from University of California San Francisco.
Arabella Young, PhD is a cancer immunologist and
assistant professor of pathology who is fighting to understand how
to safely deliver immunotherapy treatments for certain types of
cancer. Almost all cancers can benefit from immunotherapy treatment
- meaning treatments that harness a patient’s own immune system to
fight their tumor. Yet some internal systems in the patient’s
immune system can create resistance to treatments. Young aims to
engineer strategies that safely amplify the immune response to
cancer. She completed a PhD in immunology from the University of
Queensland, and postdoctoral training in tumor immunology and
autoimmunity from University of California San Francisco.
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Media Contact: Stacey DiNuzzo, Qualtrics press@qualtrics.com
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