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If you feel ready for spring, or at least a tropical vacation, you are not alone. Let’s face it, 2025 has been rough for many of us. The weather has been cold—maybe not colder than when I was a kid—but much colder than the recent past. I know some of you like snow, but others of us view it as an aesthetically pleasing inconvenience. Beyond the weather, the hospital, and all the hospitals in our system, have been unusually busy. It has become commonplace for admitted patients to be waiting in the Emergency Department for a bed, and the hospital has been running close to 100% occupancy on many days. I want to thank all the doctors, nurses, pharmacists, social workers, and other clinicians for their tireless efforts. Our administrative colleagues have been working equally hard.

At the same time, we are all worried about the impact of a potential decline in indirect rates on grants. Indirect funds are critical to cover the costs associated with research, and a sustained decline in indirect rates will clearly influence the biomedical enterprise and our ability to conduct research. This change could eventually mean fewer clinical trials as well as cutbacks in laboratory, epidemiologic, and virtually all types of research. The dramatic advances in cancer care over the past two decades would not have been possible without the support of the National Cancer Institute and other federal agencies. In my view, this is not the time to put the brakes on cancer research; instead, we want to push hard on the research accelerator.

Fundamentally, I am an optimist. I urge all of you to be optimists as well. The weather will get warmer, the hospital will become less crowded, and cancer research will continue. Now, more than ever, we need to band together to solve the problems that stand in front of us, and we need to focus on our core missions—clinical care, research, and education.

1. YCC member Thazin Nwe Aung, PhD, associate research scientist received the $100,000 Career Development Award from the Dr. Susan Love Fund for her proposal. It identifies patients with Triple-Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC), a fast-growing type of cancer with limited treatment options, as being in need of better treatment advice. Immunotherapy, which helps the immune system fight cancer, has benefited some patients, but around 70% do not respond and may experience serious side effects, even when tests suggest they should respond. Her team intends to develop a computational tool to predict treatment outcomes for TNBC.

2. Valentina Greco, PhD, Carolyn Walch Slayman Professor of Genetics, was named as “50 Scientists that Inspire” from Cell Press. Dr. Greco was named to the list due to her research in epithelial stem cells and her support of women in science, technology, engineering, math, and medicine. Learn more about the “50 Scientists that Inspire” in Cell Press.

3. Mehra Golshan, MD, MBA, a professor of surgery at Yale School of Medicine and executive vice chair in the Department of Surgery, will be awarded a 2025 Ellis Island Medal of Honor from the Ellis Island Honors Society. The medal recognizes Golshan’s contributions to breast cancer treatment and research, his dedication to patient care, and his commitment to mentorship. For more, go here.

4. & 5. YCC members David Schatz, PhD, and Noah Wolcott Palm, PhD, will be honored the first week in May at the annual meeting of American Association of Immunologists in Honolulu, Hawaii. The AAI-BioLegend Herzenberg Award Presentation and Distinguished Lecture recognizes Dr. Schatz's "outstanding contributions to the field of immunology in the area of B cell biology. The AAI-BD Biosciences Investigator Award Presentation and Lecture recognizes a noteworthy early career achievement in immunology research by Dr. Palm, specifically "mapping uncharted landscapes of host-microbiota connectivity.

6. YCC member Lisa Fucito, PhD, director of the Tobacco Treatment Service at Smilow Cancer Hospital, recently received a new $3.4 million grant from the National Cancer Institute to study interventions to help adults quit vaping and to evaluate potential health benefits of cessation including changes to health markers related to cancer. The proposal for the five-year grant said, in part: "Nicotine e-cigarette use in the US has increased to 13 million adult users per year. These devices are now the most popular tobacco product among young people. E-cigarettes deliver nicotine rapidly and are highly Harmful emerging evidence, including work by our team, suggests that e-cigarettes can induce DNA damage and suppress DNA repair, important mechanisms linked to cancer."

7. William Oh, MD, was part of a panel discussion on "Radiopharmaceuticals for Cancer Therapy" at the recent meeting of the Precision Medicine World Conference in Silicon Valley in early February.

For similiar awards, honors and accolades mentioned earlier this month visit here.

The U.S. News & World Report 2025-2026 “Best Hospitals” survey opens this month on Doximity.com, making it the first opportunity to vote for Yale New Haven Hospital as well as different specialties that will become available over a two- to three-week period. Board-certified physicians in the following subspecialties are eligible to vote:

• Cancer (hematology, hem/onc, medical oncology, surgical oncology, gynecologic oncology, musculoskeletal oncology, radiation oncology);
• Cardiology & Heart Surgery (clinical cardiac electrophysiology, cardiovascular diseases, interventional cardiology, vascular surgery, advanced heart failure and transplant, thoracic, cardiac, or cardiothoracic surgery, adult congenital heart disease);
• Diabetes & Endocrinology (endocrinology, diabetes & metabolism);
• Ear, Nose, & Throat (otolaryngology, plastic surgery (facial, head, neck);
• Gastroenterology & GI Surgery (gastroenterology, colon and rectal surgery, transplant hepatology);
• Geriatric;
• Gynecology (obstetrics & gynecology);
• Neurology & Neurosurgery (neurology, neurological surgery, neuroradiology);
• Ophthalmology;
• Orthopedics (orthopedic surgery, sports medicine, hand surgery);
• Pulmonology & Lung Surgery (pulmonary diseases);
• Psychiatry;
• Rehabilitation (physician medicine & rehabilitation);
• Rheumatology;
• Urology
  
  To vote use the link emailed from Doximity or log into Doximity to vote. Instructions can be found under Related Documents. If you are not a member yet, create a profile and vote.

It's been nearly a half year since record-breaking donations and participation were announced by the Closer to Free Ride fundraising campaign, which has supported cancer research and care at Smilow Cancer Hospital and the Yale Cancer Center for 14 years.

Now, it's time to start thinking about the 2025 ride, which will be Sept. 6. Registration opens March 9 and the organization is hosting a launch party at the New England Brewing Company in Woodbridge from noon until 4 pm. To RSVP to the launch party—and to let them know if you are a returning or new rider, a donor, a volunteer or simply want to know more about the fundraising bike event—go here. Remember to also give your size for your T-shirt!

Closer to Free's official web site is here.

• The ROS1+ Cancer Innovation Award funds high-risk, high-reward research projects focused on ROS1+ Non Small Cell Lung Cancer. The one-year, $75,000 seed grant can be used for pre-clinical, translational, or clinical research and is open to investigators who hold a doctorate degree and a faculty appointment at an academic or non-profit research institution anywhere in the world. There is a two-step application process:

1. A letter of intent (LOI), with a brief overview of the proposed project and biographical information
2. A full application with an extended narrative about the project, as well as supporting information and documentation. (Because there are a limited number of awards, only a subset of applicants is invited to submit a full application after the LOI review.)
Submit online at proposalCENTRAL by March 17, 2025. A complete description, terms and conditions, and instructions are included in the ROS1+ Cancer Innovation Award RFA.

• The American Association for Cancer Research reminds all interested that its grants program has awarded more than $529 million in grants to more than 3,400 scientists to advance its commitment to the understanding of cancer biology, cancer prevention, early detection, interception, and cures. Some grants open to applications are:
• AACR-KidneyCAN Kidney Cancer Innovation and Discovery Grants. The one-year $50,000 grant has a Feb. 18, 2025 deadline and an April 2025 decision date with the grant beginning in mid-May.
• AACR-EMD Serono “I’M IN” Oncodisparity Fellowships in Lung and Urothelial Cancers. The one-year $65,000 grant has a March 18, 2025 deadline and a June 2025 decision date with the grant beginning July 1.
• AACR-Ocular Melanoma Foundation Research Fellowship. The two-year $130,000 grant has an application deadline of April 8, 2025 and a decision date in June 2025. The grant begins Aug. 1.
• AACR-Ocular Melanoma Foundation Miriam Counts Innovation and Discovery Grants.. The one-year, $50,000 grants have an April 8, 2025 application deadline and a decision date of June 2025. The grant begins Aug. 1, 2025.
• AACR-Exelixis Renal Cell Carcinoma Research Fellowship.. The two-year $130,000 research fellowship has an April 23, 2025 application deadline and a decision date of June 2025. It begins July 1.
For more visit the AACR funding opportunities page here.

Feb. 20 • Noon • Cancer Prevention and Control: Spring 2025 Seminar Series

Gastric Disparities in the U.S. with Chul S. Hyun, MD, PhD, MPH, director, Gastric Cancer Prevention and Screening Program. WWW 208 Conference Room, 333 Cedar St., New Haven. Lunch provided.

Feb. 21 • Rare Disease Day Event at Yale • 1 to 5 pm

Hosted by Yale National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) Center of Excellence and Genetics Department at the Greenberg Conference Center, 391 Prospect St., New Haven. Learn from leading specialists, meet with others from the rare disease community. RSVP and get details via email to nord@yale.edu

Feb. 21 • 1 to 2 pm • YCC Developmental Therapeutics Research Program

“From data reuse, to TCR, BCR, HLA and CNV assessments, to cancer patient population subdivisions” presented by George Blanck, PhD, professor, department of Molecular Medicine, University of South Florida. The talk will be given in the Gairman Room, Sterling Hall of Medicine, B201

Feb. 23 • Yale Cancer Answers radio program • 7:30 to 8 p.m

"Improving long-term outcomes for breast cancer" with Maryam Lustberg, MD, MPH. Listen live on Connecticut Public Radio. All YCA episodes are archived here

Feb. 25 • YCC Grand Rounds • Noon
The Iris Fischer Memorial Lecture will be presented by Anthony Back, MD, on "Communication Between Patients & Clinicians in the Age of AI." Lunch is served during the one-hour talk in Smilow Auditorium, 55 Park Street or on Zoom.

March 4 • Smilow Shares with Primary Care • 6 to 7 pm on Zoom

The talk "Pancreas Cysts and Cancer" will be given by three members of the Northeast Medical Group, Flora Zarcu-Power, MD; James Farrell, MD; and John Kunstman, MD. For more visit here.

March 6 • Smilow Shares: World Lymphedema Day 2025 • 6 pm

Talks by lymphedema expert Siba Haykal, MD, PhD, FRCS, FACS, and survivorship coordinator Heather L. Studwell, MS, OTR/L, MBA, CLT. Register here to attend the talk on Zoom.

March 7 • 10th Annual Cancer Health Disparities Symposium • 8:30 am to 4 pm
Hosted at Downstate Health Sciences University, Brooklyn, the day-long symposium includes a talk by Yale's Jacquelyne Gaddy, MD, MSc, MSCR, titled "Closing the Gap: Advancing Health Equity in Cancer Clinical Trials.” Dr. Gaddy is an assistant professor in the Yale School of Medicine and deputy director, Diversity Enhancement Program in Oncology. To register in person or for Zoom, go here.

March 8 • Metastatic Breast Cancer Conference for Women, Children, and Caregivers • 8:30 am start
Infinite Strength hosts the daylong conference at Hotel Marcel in New Haven. The free event features Eric Winer, MD, director of Yale Cancer Center, and president and physician-in-chief at Smilow Cancer Hospital, and Maryam Lustberg, MD, MPH, director of the Center for Breast Cancer at Smilow Cancer Hospital and Yale Cancer Center, and other top oncologists. Community building and educational presentations, breakfast and lunch. Go here to register.

March 11 • Distinguished Lecture Series Yale Cancer Center • noon

Sandra Demaria, MD, presents "Opportunities and Challenges in Translating Combinations of Radiation Therapy and Immunotherapy to the Clinic." Dr. Demaria is professor of radiation oncology at Weill Cornell Medical College. Lunch is served. Also available on Zoom.