The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research Announces 2026 Emerging Leader Awards, Committing $3.75 Million to Next-Generation Oncology Breakthroughs

Since 2018, more than $40 million has been granted to support outstanding cancer research projects by early-career scientists

NEW YORK, Jan. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research is proud to announce the recipients of the 2026 Emerging Leader Awards (ELA), recognizing five visionary early-career scientists poised to make significant impacts in oncology. Each investigator will receive $750,000 over three years to support innovative projects that challenge existing paradigms in how we understand, diagnose, and treat cancer.

"Now more than ever, it is vital that we provide robust support to early-career scientists, ensuring they have the resources and freedom to develop their most ambitious ideas," said Ryan Schoenfeld, PhD, CEO of The Mark Foundation. "As federal funding becomes increasingly uncertain, philanthropy must step in to bridge the gap. By investing in these brilliant investigators today, we are enabling the next generation of breakthroughs.

The 2026 ELA recipients are tackling some of the most complex challenges in the field, from new imaging strategies to detect cancer earlier to engineering bacteria that can infiltrate the most treatment-resistant tumors

The 2026 Mark Foundation Emerging Leader Award Recipients:

Jeremy Borniger, PhD, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
The Bakewell Emerging Leader Award
Synthetic Torpor for Anti-Cancer Therapy
Investigating how inducing a hibernation-like state (torpor) can globally suppress metabolism to starve tumors while sparing healthy tissue.

Iok In Christine Chio, PhD, Columbia University
Systemic Iron Remodeling as an Early Indicator of Pancreatic Cancer
Developing non-invasive imaging techniques to detect pancreatic cancer in its earliest stages by tracking how the disease redistributes iron throughout the body.

Lucas Farnung, PhD, Harvard Medical School
Molecular Mechanisms of DNA Replication and Epigenetic Inheritance
Utilizing "visual biochemistry" at atomic resolution to identify how errors in DNA replication drive cancer, revealing new targets for drug development.

Mariella Filbin, MD, PhD, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Neuronal-Activity-Driven DNA Repair in Diffuse Midline Gliomas
Exploring how aggressive childhood brain tumors hijack normal brain activity to repair their own DNA, pointing towards new strategies to overcome radiation resistance.

Christopher Johnston, PhD, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Engineering Microbial Cellular Therapies Against Cancer
Engineering a specific lineage of human-derived bacteria to infiltrate solid tumors and deliver therapeutic payloads directly into immunosuppressive environments.

Eight Years of Impactful Funding
Since its inception in 2018, the Emerging Leader Award program has awarded over $40 million to early-career scientists. This support has proven to be a powerful catalyst, with past awards supporting the launch of new clinical trials, the formation of innovative biotechnology companies, and fundamental shifts in our understanding of cancer's driving mechanisms.

This year, The Mark Foundation is proud to partner with The Bakewell Foundation to support Dr. Jeremy Borniger's Emerging Leader Award. The Bakewell Foundation is dedicated to forging partnerships with world-class scientists pursuing measurable breakthroughs in cancer prevention and treatment. Their support of Borniger's unconventional research reflects the foundations' shared belief in the power of bold, translational science to bring about a world without cancer.

To learn more about the Emerging Leader Award program and the 2026 recipients, please 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.

Media contact: Rachel Hastings; [email protected]

SOURCE The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research