The Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance Now Accepting Applications for the 2016 Prize for Young Investigators in Cancer Research

NEW YORK, Oct. 1, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance (PSSCRA) today announced the opening of applications for its Prize for Young Investigators in Cancer Research. The prize of $200,000 per year for up to three years is awarded annually to at least five New York City-based scientists, enabling them to continue to pursue explorative and high-risk/high-reward research at a stage when traditional funding is lacking.

Now entering its third year, the highly competitive Prize is an initiative seeking to help bridge the gap between academia and the business community and to support young scientists at a formative stage in their careers.  In order to facilitate these collaborations, each Prize winner is given a mentor in the pharmaceutical industry and the opportunity to present his or her work to scientific and business audiences. 

Olivia Tournay Flatto, Ph.D., Executive Director of the Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance said, "As we head into the third year of the Prize, we are continuously impressed with the excellence of the research performed by our Prize winners, and their commitment to bringing about catalytic change for the detection and treatment options for cancer patients. It is a great honor to be able to fund groundbreaking research where traditional funding is lacking and we are so excited to learn about the 2016 candidates and their amazing work."

In May 2015, PSSCRA awarded the second Prize to six winners: Timothy Chan, M.D., Ph.D., Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center; Arvin Dar, Ph.D., Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; Evripidis Gavathiotis, Ph.D., Albert Einstein College of Medicine; Moritz Kircher, M.D., Ph.D., Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center; Christine Mayr, M.D., Ph.D., Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center; Sohail Tavazoie, M.D., Ph.D., The Rockefeller University.

Prize winner Timothy Chan, M.D., Ph.D. said, "I feel honored to be part of this unique and supportive program that has allowed me to pursue high-risk, high-reward work in the field of immunotherapy and immunogenomics. This award provides not only the resources but the environment and relationships that will accelerate the work and help prepare our findings for use in the clinic."

In order to apply for the Prize, applicants must have between 2 to 8 years of experience running their own laboratories and must have a PhD, MD or MD-PhD (or equivalent). The deadline to submit the Letter of Intent is November 9, 2015.  For more details on the application process, including the full eligibility criteria, and for more details on the Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance, please visit: www.psscra.org.

About The Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance The Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance was formed in 2013 through a $25 million commitment by Bill and Karen Ackman and The Pershing Square Foundation, which partnered with The Sohn Conference Foundation. The Alliance is dedicated to playing a catalytic role in accelerating cures for cancer by supporting innovative cancer research and by facilitating collaborations between academia and industry.  Annually, the Alliance awards The Pershing Square Sohn Prize to young New York based scientists who are engaged in cutting-edge cancer research. For more information, visit http://psscra.org/.

About The Pershing Square Foundation The Pershing Square Foundation is a private family foundation, based in New York, founded in December 2006 by Karen and Bill Ackman. The Foundation has committed more than $350 million in grants and social investments to support exceptional leaders and innovative organizations that tackle important social issues and deliver scalable and sustainable impact. Bill is the CEO and portfolio manager of Pershing Square Capital Management, L.P. For more information visit: www.pershingsquarefoundation.org.

Pershing Square Foundation Press Contacts:

Jenny Tartikoff, Rubenstein Communications
212-843-8496 / [email protected]

Lauren Condoluci, Rubenstein Communications
212-843-8943 / [email protected]

SOURCE The Pershing Square Sohn Cancer Research Alliance