The Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance Now Accepting Applications for the 2017 Prize for Young Investigators in Cancer Research

NEW YORK, Oct. 3, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance (PSSCRA) today announced the opening of applications for its Prize for Young Investigators in Cancer Research. The prize of $200,000 per year for up to three years is awarded annually to at least five New York City-based scientists, enabling them to continue to pursue explorative and high-risk/high-reward research at a stage when traditional funding is lacking.

Now entering its fourth year, the highly competitive Prize aims to help bridge the gap between academia and the business community while supporting young scientists at a formative stage in their careers. In order to facilitate these collaborations, each Prize winner is given a mentor in the pharmaceutical industry and the opportunity to present his or her work to scientific and business audiences. 

"As we head into a fourth year of the Prize, we are continuously impressed with the excellence of the research performed by our Prize winners, and their commitment to bringing about catalytic change for the detection and treatment options for cancer patients," said Olivia Tournay Flatto, Ph.D., President of the Pershing Square Foundation and Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance. "It is a great honor to be able to fund groundbreaking research where traditional funding is lacking and we are so excited to learn about the 2017 candidates and their amazing work."

In May 2016, PSSCRA awarded the Prize to seven new winners: Omar Abdel-Wahab, M.D., Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center; Uttiya Basu, Ph.D., Columbia University Medical Center; Christopher Mason, Ph.D., Weill Cornell Medicine; Agnel Sfeir, Ph.D., NYU School of Medicine; Samuel Sidi, Ph.D., Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; Christopher Vakoc, M.D., Ph.D., Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory; Andrea Ventura, M.D., Ph.D., Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

Due to the number of high-caliber applicants, in addition to six winners fully funded by the Alliance, 2016 marked the formation a unique partnership with The New York Community Trust ("NYCT"), which provided the funding to support Dr. Samuel Sidi. This partnership, which paves the way for future collaborations, is a testament to the quality of research funded by the Prize.

"I am honored to be part of this esteemed group of early-stage investigators who are working towards understanding the basis of cancer," said Agnel Sfeir, Ph.D., a 2016 prize winner. "With support from the Pershing Square Sohn Prize, my lab and I are pursuing risky approaches to identify all molecular players in cancer and highlight novel ways to treat this disease."

In order to apply for the Prize, applicants must have between 2 to 8 years of experience running their own laboratories and must have a PhD, MD or MD-PhD (or equivalent). The deadline to submit the Letter of Intent is November 7, 2016. For more details on the application process, including the full eligibility criteria, and for more details on the Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance, please visit: www.psscra.org.

About The Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance The Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance was formed in 2013 through a $25 million commitment by Bill and Karen Ackman and The Pershing Square Foundation, which partnered with The Sohn Conference Foundation. The Alliance is dedicated to playing a catalytic role in accelerating cures for cancer by supporting innovative cancer research and by facilitating collaborations between academia and industry. Annually, the Alliance awards The Pershing Square Sohn Prize to young New York based scientists who are engaged in cutting-edge cancer research. For more information, visit http://psscra.org/.

About The Pershing Square Foundation The Pershing Square Foundation is a private family foundation, based in New York, founded in December 2006 by Karen and Bill Ackman. The Foundation has committed $400 million in grants and social investments to support exceptional leaders and innovative organizations that tackle important social issues and deliver scalable and sustainable impact. Bill is the CEO and portfolio manager of Pershing Square Capital Management, L.P. For more information visit: www.pershingsquarefoundation.org.

About The Sohn Conference Foundation The Sohn Conference Foundation is dedicated to supporting innovative initiatives to cure and treat pediatric cancer. Identifying specific areas of need, the Foundation funds groundbreaking research, state-of-the-art technology, and programs to target cures and improve patient care. For more information visit: www.sohnconference.org/

Pershing Square Foundation Press Contacts:

Lauren Condoluci, Rubenstein Communications
212-843-8943 / [email protected]

Hillary Karsten, Rubenstein Communications
212-843-9313 / [email protected]

SOURCE The Pershing Square Foundation

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