Pew and the Stewart Trust Launch Scholars Program Targeting Cancer

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Jun 24, 2014, 10:00 ET

PHILADELPHIA, June 24, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Pew Charitable Trusts and the Alexander and Margaret Stewart Trust announced the inaugural class of Pew-Stewart Scholars for Cancer Research. Five promising early-career scientists will receive funding for research aimed at finding cures for cancer using approaches that include genetics, pharmacology, and structural biology.

"Cancer continues to take a terrible toll on human health worldwide, and creative approaches are vital for the development of novel therapies," said Rebecca W. Rimel, Pew's president and CEO. "We are delighted to partner with the Stewart Trust to expand our commitment to science and eagerly anticipate the discoveries these talented researchers will make to address these challenges."

Pew has supported innovative research by young scientists through its biomedical scholars program since 1985 and through the Pew Latin American fellows program launched in 1991.

"Some of the most important health advances have stemmed from curiosity-driven investigations, and young researchers seem particularly primed to seed innovation in the field of cancer," said William Bierbower, executive trustee for the Stewart Trust, which for over 15 years has backed researchers probing the mechanisms of cancer.

"By combining forces with Pew, whose biomedical programs set the standard for selecting outstanding researchers, we believe we can leverage the most talented scientific minds to discover novel means of preventing, treating, and eventually curing cancer."

The Pew-Stewart scholars are assistant professor-level cancer researchers. They receive funding over four years and will have the opportunity to collaborate with Pew biomedical scholars and Latin American fellows at Pew's annual biomedical meeting.

Also announced today were the newest members of Pew's biomedical scholars and Latin American fellows programs, which support groundbreaking research by promising early-career biomedical researchers in the United States and Latin America.

The 2014 Pew-Stewart Scholars for Cancer Research are:

Arvin Dar, Ph.D.

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Oncology and chemical biology

Agnel Sfeir, Ph.D.

New York University School of Medicine

Chromosome biology

Shawn Douglas, Ph.D.

University of California, San Francisco

Pharmacology and nanotechnology

Roberto Zoncu, Ph.D.

University of California, Berkeley

Cell biology and cancer metabolism

Andrew Holland, Ph.D.

Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Cell biology and oncology

For the scholars' full abstracts and for more information about the program, please visit www.pewtrusts.org/projects/Pew-Stewart-Scholars-for-Cancer-Research/.

The Pew Charitable Trusts is driven by the power of knowledge to solve today's most challenging problems. Learn more at www.pewtrusts.org.

Established in 1947, the Alexander and Margaret Stewart Trust is a charitable foundation supporting nonprofit organizations that research, treat, and prevent cancer and pediatric illnesses. The Stewart Trust distributed over $4 million in grants in calendar year 2009. For 50 years, the Trust awarded grants largely for cancer treatment—principally for indigent care and for hospice services. Learn more at www.stewart-trust.org.

SOURCE The Pew Charitable Trusts