Conquer Cancer, the ASCO Foundation and BCRF Award Four New Grants to Early- and Mid-Career Researchers

Meet this year’s recipients and learn about their BCRF-supported projects

Each year, BCRF underwrites several grants to breast cancer researchers in partnership with Conquer Cancer, the ASCO foundation. These awards provide critical funding to both early- and mid-career investigators and support innovative projects across the spectrum of breast cancer research. 

For the first time this year, all Conquer Cancer–BCRF grants and awards are focused on diversity and inclusion and/or health disparities research. This year also marks the 20^th year of BCRF’s partnership with Conquer Cancer to support grants such as these.

Meet this year’s esteemed recipients:

Marjory Charlot, MD, MPH, MSc of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill received the Advanced Clinical Research Award for Diversity and Inclusion and wants to help address the lack of representation in clinical research by using mobile apps to provide Black patients with more information about ongoing clinical studies.

Temidayo Fadelu, MD, MPH of Dana Farber Cancer Institute received the Career Development Award for Diversity, Inclusion and Breast Cancer Disparities, which is in honor of Susan Hirschhorn and in memory of her mother. His project aims to test text messaging and symptom-self-monitoring to improve adherence to endocrine therapies among patients in Rwanda. Dr. Fadelu was a prior recipient of a previous Conquer Cancer–BCRF young investigator award.

Sonya Reid, MPH, MD of Vanderbilt University Medical Center received the Career Development Award for Diversity, Inclusion and Breast Cancer Disparities. Her study will establish a database of racially diverse women with breast cancer who were born with BRCA1/2 and PALB2 mutations that predispose them to breast cancer. This award was made possible through additional financial support from The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. and the Lauder family.

Demetria Smith-Graziani, MD of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center received the Endowed Young Investigator Award in Memory of Evelyn H. Lauder for a study assessing the intersection between discrimination, trust, and pain outcomes among Black women with early-stage breast cancer after mastectomy.