This grant is meant for those at an early stage in their research career to help provide seed funding for the research required to apply for larger, longer term grants, often with the NIH. (To secure federal funding, a researcher must prove a theory works; BCA creates the critical bridge between novel research and the opportunity to generate preliminary results.)
Clinical doctors and research scientists at institutions in the contiguous United States who, following completion of their training, will not have held a faculty position for more than four years at the start date of the grant, are invited to apply.
2023 RECIPIENTS (in their first grant year)
Patricia Pereira, PhD, Washington University in St. Louis, WA, Target breast tumor heterogeneity and combat drug resistance with an antibody clicking strategy.
Neil Vasan, MD, PhD, Columbia University, New York, NY, Large-scale functional analysis of PIK3CA variants in breast cancer.
Hai Wang, PhD, Roswell Park Alliance Foundation, Buffalo, NY, Re-sensitizing the refractory breast cancer bone metastasis to endocrine therapies, Supported by Jane and Stuart Weitzman in memory of Irma Wallin
Roberta Zappazodi, PhD, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, New York, NY, Tumor-metabolism-driven therapies to overcome TNBC immune resistance, Deborah G. Black Memorial Grant
2022 RECIPIENTS
Raymond Acciavatti, PhD, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, Self-steering 3D mammography
Ana Christina Garrido-Castro, PhD, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, Studying the evolutionary dynamics of tumor and immune microenvironment in triple-negative breast cancer
Ryan Stowers, PhD, University of California – Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, Understanding epigenomic remodeling induced by tumor mechanical properties, Supported by friends of Stephanie Latham
Jessalyn Ubellacker, PhD, Harvard University, Boston, MA, Targeting metabolic vulnerabilities of breast cancer metastasis in lymph
Alexander Valvezan, PhD, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, Targeting triple-negative breast cancer by exploiting a metabolic vulnerability downstream of mTORC1
2021 RECIPIENTS
Gloria Echeverria, PhD, Baylor College of Medicine, Waco, TX, Characterizing and targeting mitochondrial metabolism in chemoresistant triple negative breast cancer
Jennifer Rosenbluth, MD, PhD, Dana Farber Cancer Center, Boston, MA, Modeling cancer prevention in mammary organoids derived from BRCA1/2 mutation carriers
Maria Soledad Sosa, PhD, Icahn School of Medicine at Mt. Sinai, New York, NY, Targeting disseminated breast cancer cells to prevent metastasis, Deborah G. Black Memorial Research Grant
2020 RECIPIENTS
Colt Egelston, PhD, City of Hope, Duarte, CA, Tumor-derived T cell receptors for engineered T cell therapy of breast cancer
Pengda Liu, PhD, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, Targeting the deubiquitinase OTUD6B in basal-like breast cancer
Thomas O’Sullivan, PhD, University of Notre Dame, South Bend, IN, Multifunctional microimplants for sensing and delivery of response-guided treatment in breast cancer, Supported by Jill and John Coyle
Marjan Rafat, SB, SM, PhD, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, Novel mammary organoids to examine radiation-induced recurrence in HER2BC
Laura Spring, MD, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, The neoadjuvant model as a translational tool to improve outcomes in ER+ breast cancer, Deborah G. Black Memorial Grant
Eneda Toska, PhD, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD (first year: Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center) Elucidating the role of ARID1A in lineage plasticity and endocrine therapy resistance in ER+ breast cancer, Deborah G. Black Memorial Grant
2019 RECIPIENTS
Teresa Davoli, PhD, NYU School of Medicine, New York, NY
Targeting breast cancer specific aneuploidy
Madeleine Oudin, BSc, MSc, PhD, Tufts University, Medford, MA
Dissecting the role of innervation in breast cancer progression and metastasis
Nidhi Sahni, MD, MD Anderson, Houston, TX
Novel role of spliceosome in homologous recombination deficiencies in TNBC
This award recognizes creative, unique and innovative research. Clinical doctors and research scientists at institutions throughout the contiguous United States are welcome to apply.
2023 RECIPIENTS
Camilla dos Santos, PhD , Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, Characterization of strategies for immunosuppression of breast cancer development
Christy Hagan, PhD, University of Kansas Medical Center Research Institute, Kansas City , Progesterone promotes breast cancer immune evasion through downregulation of antigen presentation.
Li Lan, MD, PhD, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, Targeting R-loop and mRNA-dependent repair in homologous recombination-proficient breast cancer.
Laurie Littlepage, PhD, University of Notre Dame, South Bend, IN, Overcoming endocrine therapy resistance by targeting the response to metabolic stress and immune response.
Jordana Phillips, PhD, and Michael Cassidy, PhD, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA, Comparing impact of contrast-enhanced mammography (CEM) to breast MRI on barriers to breast cancer treatment.
2022 RECIPIENTS
Barbara Fingelton, PhD, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN,
Type II IL4 receptor blockade as a strategy for treating breast-to-brain metastasis
Hyungjin Kim, PhD, SUNY Stony Brook, Stony Brook, NY,
DNA replication fork instability as a target for the synthetic lethality of breast cancer
Xin Lu, PhD, Notre Dame, South Bend, IN, “Off-the-shelf” novel chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) NK cell therapy for metastatic TNBC, Supported by the Jeffery family in honor of Karen Lowney
David Rimm, PhD, Yale University, New Haven, CT, Budding carcinogenesis; a novel pathway to malignancy, Deborah G. Black Memorial Research Grant
Anna C. Weiss, PhD, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, The impact of neoadjuvant endocrine therapy on breast cancer axillary outcomes, Supported by Jane and Stuart Weitzman in memory of Irma Wallin
2021 RECIPIENTS
Scott Abrams, PhD and Michael Nemeth, Roswell Park, Buffalo, NY, Unique combination immunotherapy to confront triple negative breast cancer
Rumela Chakrabarti, PhD, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, A novel combination immunotherapy to improve treatment of metastatic triple negative breast cancer, Deborah G. Black Memorial Research Grant
Jianua Yu, PhD, City of Hope, Duarte, CA, An oncolytic virus-engineered to express a full-length anti-CD47 lgG1 antibody for the treatment of breast cancer brain metastasis, Supported by Jane and Stuart Weitzman in memory of Irma Wallin
2020 RECIPIENTS
Mary L. Disis, MD, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, Vaccination Targeting Breast Cancer Stem Cells, Supported by Susan Bevan & Tony Daddino
Hani Goodarzi, PhD, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, Leveraging circulating cancer-specific orphan RNAs for screening of women with BRCA1/2 mutations, The Walsh Family Grant
Poulikos Poulikakos, PhD, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, Targeting SHP2 as a converging node of targeted and immune therapy in TNBC
Jose Silva, PhD, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, Alterations in microtubule dynamics: the Yin and Yang of chemoresistance in triple negative breast cancers, Supported by Tami Eagle Bowling and Friends
Sichun Yang, PhD, Case Western University, Cleveland, OH, Drugging the undrugged for advanced ER-positive breast cancer
Junran Zhang, MD, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, Interruption of Squalene Epoxidase and DNA Damage Response
Society of Surgical Oncology-accredited institutions that are located in NY, NJ or CT may apply for funding for fellowships.
2023 RECIPIENTS
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Kate Rose Pawloski, MD, New York, NY, Veronica Beard Fellowship
Mt. Sinai, Catherine Chappuis, MD, New York, NY
Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, Toobah Mohammad MD, New Brunswick, NJ, Rodkin Family Breast Surgery Fellowship
2022 RECIPIENTS
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Anna C. Beck, MD, New York, NY, Tap Cancer Out Fellowship
Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, Shridevi Singh, MD, New Brunswick, NJ, Rodkin Family Breast Surgery Fellowship
2021 RECIPIENTS
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Marissa Srour, MD, New York, NY
Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, Kelly Krupa, MD, New Brunswick, NJ,, Rodkin Family Breast Surgery Fellowship
Yale University, Billie Borden, MD, New Haven, CT, Supported by the Mitchell Family
These grants support programs directly related to outreach and breast cancer case management services, including education, counseling and screening for the uninsured/underserved. The programs must be located in Connecticut and/or Westchester County, New York. Directors of such programs are invited to apply.
2023 RECIPIENTS
Cancer Support Team, Purchase, NY
Danbury Hospital/New Milford Hospital, New Milford, CT, Paula L. Banwell Memorial Grant
Greenwich Hospital, Greenwich, CT, Town of Greenwich Grant
Griffin Hospital, Derby, CT
Hartford Hospital, Hartford, CT
Hospital of Central Connecticut, New Britain, CT
Middlesex Hospital Cancer Center, Middletown, CT
Norma F. Pfriem Breast Cancer Center/Bridgeport Hospital, Bridgeport, CT, Supported by the Mitchell Family
Norwalk Hospital, Norwalk, CT
Open Door Family Medical Center, Port Chester, NY
Stamford Hospital, Stamford, CT
St. Vincent's Hospital, Bridgeport, CT
White Plains Hospital, White Plains, NY
**Unless otherwise noted, all 2023 Education and Outreach grants were generously funded by Veronica Beard
2022 RECIPIENTS
Cancer Support Team, Purchase, NY
Danbury Hospital/New Milford Hospital, New Milford, CT, Paula L. Banwell Memorial Grant
Gilda’s Club Westchester, White Plains, NY
Greenwich Hospital, Greenwich, CT, Supported by Veronica Beard
Griffin Hospital, Derby, CT
Hartford Hospital, Hartford, CT
Hospital of Central Connecticut, New Britain, CT
Middlesex Hospital Cancer Center, Middletown, CT
Norma F. Pfriem Breast Cancer Center/Bridgeport Hospital, Bridgeport, CT, Supported by the Mitchell Family
Norwalk Hospital, Norwalk, CT
Open Door Family Medical Center, Port Chester, NY
Stamford Hospital, Stamford, CT
St. Francis Hospital, Hartford, CT
White Plains Hospital, White Plains, NY
2021 RECIPIENTS
Danbury Hospital/New Milford Hospital, Paula L. Banwell Memorial Grant
Gilda’s Club Westchester
Greenwich Hospital
Griffin Hospital
Hartford Hospital
Hospital of Central Connecticut
Mary's Center
MedStar Georgetown
Middlesex Hospital
Norma F. Pfriem Breast Cancer Center
Norwalk Hospital
Open Door Family Medical Center
Stamford Hospital
White Plains Hospital
Yale New Haven Hospital
