Paul A. Marks, MD & Riccardo Dalla-Favera, MD
Chairman and Vice Chairman, Scientific Advisory Board
We commend Chairman Daniele Bodini, the other members of the Board of Directors, and the generous friends of the American-Italian Cancer Foundation (AICF) for their tremendous support of cancer research over the last 31 years.
The Prize for Scientific Excellence in Medicine is now recognized nationally and internationally as an important vehicle to acknowledge scientists of the highest caliber who have made invaluable discoveries in cancer biology, prevention, diagnosis, and/or treatment. Joseph Schlessinger, PhD and David M. Livingston, MD have been awarded the Prize in 2011 and are fitting examples of world-class scientific excellence.
Dr. Schlessinger identified the basic mechanisms of receptor tyrosine kinases activation and of signal transduction from the cell surface to the nucleus. These findings have led to the creation of new drugs for cancer and other diseases. Dr. Livingston has made seminal contributions to human cancer science and, specifically, the discovery of key molecular events that control cancer progression, including the RB, p300 and BRCA1 pathways. By honoring these outstanding scientists, AICF continues a meaningful annual tradition.
The International Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship Program has effectively launched the scientific careers of several hundred top-notch cancer researchers, many of whom are among the very best the field has to offer. The research of AICF Fellows is frequently published in the world’s major scientific journals, and a good number have received awards and special recognition for their contributions to cancer research.
This year’s 20 winning AICF Fellowship applicants are accomplished recent graduates of the top research institutions in Italy who wish to further their scientific careers at the major cancer centers in the United States. This year they are pursuing research projects and advanced study at Brandeis University; Children’s Hospital Boston, Harvard Medical School; Columbia University; Dana-Farber Cancer Institute; Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University; Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research; Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center; New York University Cancer Institute; Roswell Park Cancer Institute; Stanford University; The Rockefeller University; University of California, San Francisco; Washington University in St. Louis; and Yale University School of Medicine.
We are proud to be involved with AICF and look forward to continuing success in the future.
Dr. Marks is President Emeritus, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.
Dr. Dalla-Favera is Director of the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center and Institute for Cancer Genetics at Columbia University.
