Translational Research Grant

The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grants support independent investigators conducting translational research that has as its endpoint the development of a pancreatic cancer assessment, prevention or treatment modality.

The Translational Research Grant was established in 2014, and to date, 31 grants have been awarded.

2020 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Susan Bates, MD
Columbia University
Exploiting a Metabolic Vulnerability Created by Epigenetic Therapy

2016 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Pratip Bhattacharya, PhD
Co-PI: Florencia McAllister, MD
MD Anderson Cancer Center
Early Detection of PanIN by Hyperpolarized Metabolic MR Imaging

2017 Gail V. Coleman-Kenneth M. Bruntel – Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Vladimir Bogdanov, PhD
Co-PI: Syed Arif Ahmad, MD
University of Cincinnati
Disrupting Tissue Factor-beta1 Integrin Axis in Pancreatic Cancer

2015 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
David Boothman, PhD, UT Southwestern Medical Center
Co-PI: Muhammad Beg, MD
Use of PARP1 inhibitors to leverage a tumor-selective ‘kiss of death’

2016 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Erica Carpenter, MBA, PhD
Co-PI: Ben Stanger, MD, PhD
University of Pennsylvania
Real-time Monitoring of Exosomes as a Biomarker for Pancreatic Cancer

2018 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Darren Carpizo, MD, PhD, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
Co-PI: Patrick Mehlen, PhD, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1
Investigating Netrin-1 as a New Therapeutic Target in Pancreatic Cancer

2019 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Yuan Chen, PhD
Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope
Activating Anti-Tumor Immunity by Targeting a Ubl Modification

2019 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Nicholas Cosford, PhD
Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute
Pre-clinical Development of a ULK1/2 Inhibitor for Pancreatic Cancer

2018 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Michael Curran, PhD
MD Anderson Cancer Center
Pro-Inflammatory Conversion of the PDAC Microenvironment

2017 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Giulio Draetta, MD, PhD
MD Anderson Cancer Center
Therapeutic Vulnerabilities of Mesenchymal Pancreatic Cancer Cells

2018 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Sharon Gorski, PhD, British Columbia Cancer Agency Branch (BC Cancer)
Co-PI: Robert Young, PhD, MC, FRSC, Simon Fraser University
ATG4 Family Members as Therapeutic Targets for Pancreatic Cancer

2016 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Claudia Gravekamp, PhD, Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Co-PI: Jennifer Chuy, MD, Montefiore Medical Center
Improving Cancer Immunotherapy and Gemcitabine Sensitivity through Listeria

2016 Abby Sobrato – Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Philip Greenberg, MD
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
Targeting PDA with T-Cells Engineered to Express a Mesothelin-Specific TCR

2016 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
William Hawkins, MD
Washington University in St. Louis
Targeting Tumor Infiltrating Myeloid Cells to Enhance Immunotherapy

2017 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Steven Hughes, MD
University of Florida
Protein Signatures Improve the Diagnostic Yield of Fine Needle Aspiration

2016 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
David Iannitti, MD, Carolinas Medical Center
Co-PI: Rafael Davalos, PhD, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Developing Next Generation IRE to Treat Pancreatic Cancer

2016 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Ann Leen, PhD
Co-PI: William Fisher, MD
Baylor College of Medicine
T-Cell Therapy for Pancreatic Cancer

2020 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Fengzhi Li, PhD
Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center
Validation of Targets as Biomarkers for Targeted Pancreatic Cancer Therapy

2015 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
David Linehan, MD
University of Rochester
Targeting Inflammatory Monocytes in Metastatic Pancreas Cancer

2019 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Yilun Liu, PhD
Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope
Targeting dePARylation for Pancreatic Cancer Treatment

2019 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Andrew Lowy, MD, FACS
University of California, San Diego
MICAL2: A Novel Super-Enhancer Associated Target in Pancreatic Cancer

2015 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Nipun Merchant, MD, University of Miami
Co-PI: Michael VanSaun, PhD
Targeting downstream effectors of KRAS via MEK and CDK-4 inhibition in PDAC

2020 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Kenneth Olive, PhD
Columbia University
Therapeutic Induction of Tumor Selective Ferroptosis in Pancreatic Cancer

2020 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Xiaoyang Qi, PhD
University of Cincinnati
Immunotherapy for Pancreatic Cancer by Saposin C-based Nanovesicles

2018 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Kenneth Shroyer, MD, PhD
Stony Brook University
Keratin 17 Is a Novel Actionable Target in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma

2016 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Aatur Singhi, MD, PhD
University of Pittsburgh
Diagnostic Markers of Malignant Transformation in Mucinous Pancreatic Cysts

2020 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Jill Smith, MD
Georgetown University
Proglumide and the Pancreatic Cancer Microenvironment

2015 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Kazuki Sugahara, MD, PhD, Columbia University
Co-PI: Andrew Lowy, MD, FACS, University of California, San Diego
Clinical development of a tumor-penetrating peptide for enhanced pancreatic cancer therapy

2014 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network – Translational Continuation Research Grant
David Ting, MD
Massachusetts General Hospital
Circulating Tumor Cells to Assess Pancreatic Cancer Disease Status

2017 Tap Cancer Out – Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Timothy C. Wang, MD
Co-PI: Paul Oberstein, MD
Columbia University
Targeting Cholinergic Receptors to Suppress Pancreatic Cancer

2019 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Wantong Yao, MD, PhD
MD Anderson Cancer Center
Targeting Syndecan1 in Pancreatic Cancer