Planting the Seeds of Discovery: ACS Grants Boost Budding Investigators’ Research
The American Cancer Society is supporting promising Sylvester investigators with internally competitive research grants to tackle significant cancer questions.
For aspiring actors, it’s that first lucky break.
For aspiring researchers, it’s that first major grant.
Rather than aiming for a chance encounter to launch their research careers, junior faculty members at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, have a more reliable option.
For the 30th year in a row, the American Cancer Society (ACS) is supporting promising Sylvester investigators with internally competitive institutional research grants to tackle significant, cancer-centered questions.
The bestowments total $55,000 for each awardee: $40,000 from the ACS and a matching $15,000 from Sylvester. Awarded annually, they help overcome early-career funding blocks and activate career pathways.
This year’s four recipients were formally recognized at a special ceremony. The previous year’s awardees presented updates on their research, as well.
“ACS support of early-career investigators is as important as it’s ever been, and we’re incredibly proud of our longstanding partnership with Sylvester, which has helped launch scientific careers and drive life-saving cancer research,” said Dr. Kathy Goss, senior scientific director of the Career Growth and Research Excellence Program at the ACS. “We’re excited to welcome the latest awardees and follow their success for years to come. Together, we will advance the ACS mission of ending cancer as we know it, for everyone.”
The purpose of the grants is to help researchers generate compelling preliminary findings, which can serve as a catalyst for larger funding from charitable foundations and state and federal agencies, such as the U.S. National Institutes of Health.
New Leadership
Joseph Rosenblatt, M.D., the William J. Harrington Chair in Hematology and professor of medicine, microbiology, and immunology at the Miller School, has been the program’s principal investigator since 2006. Effective January 1, 2026, leadership will transition to Alan Pollack, M.D., Ph.D., professor and chair emeritus of the Department of Radiation Oncology at the Miller School.
“I’m excited about managing the institutional research grants program,” said Dr. Pollack. “I’ve been directing the K12 Calabresi Clinical Oncology Research Career Development Program and have greatly enjoyed mentoring the exceptional scholars in that initiative. The American Cancer Society program is a natural extension of what I’ve been doing to enhance the pipeline of promising independent, oncology-focused researchers at Sylvester.”
He continued, “Dr. Rosenblatt has done a superlative job in leading this program for 19 years and making it such a crucial part of our education efforts. I am grateful for the guidance he has been providing as we undertake the leadership transition.”
“Under Dr. Pollack, the program will be in excellent hands,” said Dr. Rosenblatt. “He is a nationally recognized radiation oncologist with an exceptional reputation for guiding and mentoring junior faculty members, students and trainees. He brings vast experience in the field, coupled with a passion for education and supporting early-career scientists, which makes him an ideal fit.”
2025 Sylvester ACS-IRG Awardees
Nicholas A. Borja, M.D., Assistant Professor of Genetics
Dr. Borja, who specializes in clinical genetics and hereditary cancer, leads the TRACE research project, which investigates individuals and families who develop cancer at unusually high rates. Analyzing normal and tumor cells with advanced DNA sequencing, he will use the new funding to help pinpoint genetic factors for cancer and cancer risk that standard tests can’t identify. The findings could improve early detection and lead to more personalized prevention strategies.
Mariana Cooke, M.D., Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Molecular and Cellular Pharmacology
Dr. Cooke investigates how defective cell signaling promotes cancer development and growth. With her grant, she will address triple-negative breast cancer, an aggressive, hard-to-treat form of the disease more common in younger women and those of African descent. Using mouse models and human tissue, Dr. Cooke will focus on the DAG-PKCa pathway, which normally promotes healthy cell communication, cell growth and immune responses. In triple-negative tumors, the pathway becomes hyperactive. Shutting it down or blocking it could help stop the cancer from proliferating.
Noa Geifman Holtzman, M.D., Assistant Professor of Transplantation and Cellular Therapy
Dr. Holtzman works to improve outcomes for blood cancer patients, including those with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a hard-to-treat form of blood cancer more common in Hispanics. With her grant, Dr. Holtzman will seek to understand why up to half of patients diagnosed with the condition suffer relapses, even after stem cell transplantation. Her research will examine potential genetic and immunologic contributing factors and their evolution post-transplant.
Stefan Kurtenbach, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology
Dr. Kurtenbach studies uveal melanoma, a deadly eye tumor in adults which can quickly spread to other parts of the body. With his award, Dr. Kurtenbach will examine two mutations occurring in the most aggressive uveal melanomas. One, in the Gq pathway and found in all uveal melanomas, doesn’t appear to cause cancer on its own. It’s only when a second mutation in the BAP1 gene also occurs that this cancer can start to develop. Dr. Kurtenbach suspects that the BAP1 mutation enables the mutated eye cells to bypass a natural roadblock caused by the Gq mutation. He will study molecular changes behind these events, aiming to identify potential drug and treatment targets.
“As these recipients show,” said Dr. Pollack, “we have an outstanding group of early-career researchers at Sylvester. They are examining crucial questions that will make a difference in the lives of patients worldwide.”
Tags: acute lymphoblastic leukemia, American Cancer Society, cancer research, Dr. Mariana Cooke, Dr. Noa Holtzman, Dr. Stefan Kurtenbach, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, triple-negative breast cancer, uveal melanoma