The Mark Foundation and The Sontag Foundation Lead Coalition to Propel Novel Brain Tumor Therapy Research with $4 Million in New Grants

NEW YORK, Feb. 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research today announced that it is awarding $4 million in new funding to accelerate the discovery of novel therapeutics for glioblastoma (GBM), a devastating and lethal form of brain cancer. This joint initiative is funded by The Mark Foundation in partnership with The Sontag Foundation and a coalition of philanthropic organizations and non-profit funders of brain tumor research.

 The grant program, administered by The Mark Foundation, follows a high-level scientific workshop co-organized with The Sontag Foundation and other philanthropic partners that brought together global experts to dismantle the barriers to effective GBM treatment. The joint funding effort will enable scientists to pursue the bold therapeutic ideas and collaborations that emerged from the workshop.

"Glioblastoma has long resisted therapeutic progress despite decades of scientific effort, and patients and families urgently need new approaches," said Ryan Schoenfeld, PhD, CEO of The Mark Foundation. "This collaborative effort with the Sontag Foundation and our partners supports the transformative ideas inspired by the workshop that have the best chance of developing effective new treatments for this devastating disease."

The Urgent Need for Progress on Glioblastoma

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most aggressive and common primary malignant brain tumor in adults and remains fundamentally incurable. Despite rigorous research, current standard-of-care treatments provide only modest benefits; the median overall survival for patients is typically less than 18 months, with long-term survival rates below 10 percent. Tumor heterogeneity, treatment resistance, and the difficulty of delivering drugs to the brain make GBM treatment extraordinarily challenging, highlighting the urgent need for innovative strategies to develop effective therapies.

Workshop Ignites New Collaborations and Funding Opportunities

Held in late 2024, the jointly organized workshop, titled No Stone Unturned: Relentless Pursuit of a Cure for Glioblastoma, gathered leading investigators spanning the fields of neuro-oncology, translational science, and drug discovery. Following an intensive application and review process, five high-potential projects led by workshop attendees have received $4 million in funding from The Mark Foundation, The Sontag Foundation, The Anne and Claude Berda Foundation, the National Brain Tumor Society, the Southeastern Brain Tumor Foundation, and the Uncle Kory Foundation.

"Glioblastoma demands urgency, collaboration, and bold thinking," said Hilary Keeley, Executive Director of The Sontag Foundation. "By aligning with other funders to support innovative team science, we are accelerating research with the potential to change outcomes for patients and families."

This research was made possible in part by generous support from the families of Amiram Elwork and Rachael Elwork Wells, in whose memory this work is dedicated, honoring the lives of a father and daughter both lost to glioblastoma.

The awards include:

One Endeavor Award — $3 million over three years for a team science project

Aneuploidies as a Source of Therapeutic Targets in Glioblastoma
Rameen Beroukhim, MD, PhD, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
William Kaelin Jr., MD; and Keith Ligon, MD, PhD, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard
 Daniel Schramek, PhD, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute
 Jason Moffat, PhD, The Hospital for Sick Children

Four ASPIRE Awards — $250,000 each for one-year projects

Antisense Oligonucleotides (ASOs) Targeting the Long Noncoding RNA as Novel Immunotherapeutic Agents in Glioblastoma
 E. Antonio Chiocca, MD, PhD, Brigham and Women's Hospital

Targeting Platelet-Immune Cell Interactions for Next-Generation Glioblastoma Therapies
 Justin Lathia, PhD, Cleveland Clinic

Identifying Drivers and Therapeutic Targets in IDH-Mutant and IDH-Wildtype High-Grade Glioma
 Daniel Schramek, PhD, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute
 Daniel Wahl, MD, PhD, University of Michigan

Spatial Profiling of CAR T Cell Interactions and Activation States in the Tumor Microenvironment of High-Grade Gliomas
 Peter Sorger, PhD, Harvard Medical School
 Christine Brown, PhD, City of Hope

To learn more about The Mark Foundation, visit themarkfoundation.org and follow @markfdn on X and Bluesky and The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research on LinkedIn. 

About the Mark Foundation for Cancer Research
 The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research, a charitable organization based in New York City, actively partners with scientists worldwide to accelerate research that will transform cancer prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. Since 2017, The Mark Foundation has awarded over $300 million in grants to investigators at more than 120 academic institutions across 18 countries, with research programs focusing on early career support, team science collaboration, new technology innovation, and therapeutics discovery. Additionally, The Mark Foundation maintains a growing portfolio of investments in early-stage cancer diagnostics and therapeutics companies, including several that have transitioned from grantee projects into commercial development. To learn more, please visit www.themarkfoundation.org

About the Sontag Foundation
 The Sontag Foundation is committed to advancing scientific discovery in the brain sciences, including research into the causes and treatments of brain tumors such as glioblastoma.

Media Contact: Rachel Hastings
[email protected]

SOURCE The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research