Sarcoma Foundation of America Announces 2025 Research Grant Awards

Sarcoma Foundation of America

Sarcoma Foundation of America awards grants to accelerate research on sarcoma, a rare cancer, aiming to improve patient outcomes and therapies.

DAMASCUS, MD, UNITED STATES, August 20, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Sarcoma Foundation of America (SFA), the leading private funder of sarcoma research in the sarcoma community, has awarded $1.2 million to advance sarcoma research. Fifteen grants were awarded to dedicated scientists committed to studying sarcoma, a group of rare cancers that originate in the body’s soft tissue and bone. Each proposal underwent rigorous peer review by members of SFA’s Medical Advisory Board, who selected the most promising and impactful research projects aimed at advancing toward a cure for sarcoma.

“As the leading private funder of sarcoma research, SFA remains deeply committed to advancing scientific discovery,” said Brandi Felser, Chief Executive Officer of the Sarcoma Foundation of America. “These grants represent a critical investment in research that will deepen our understanding of sarcoma and advance the development of more and better therapies. We are honored to support these exceptional researchers who are at the forefront of this vital work, helping to increase the number of sarcoma survivors.”

Since its inception, SFA has invested more than $27 million in sarcoma research, funding over 240 research grants to more than 200 researchers at 120+ institutions across 13 countries. These investments have contributed to over 300 scientific publications, numerous clinical trials, and a growing number of sarcoma experts advancing the field.

2025 SFA Research Grant Recipients:

Danh Truong, Ph.D. – The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
2024 Giving Tuesday Donors Research Award – $75,000
“Investigating lineage plasticity and EMT through the ZEB1-GRHL2 axis in DSRCT”

Erica Braverman, M.D. – University of Pittsburgh
Louise Duffy Memorial Research Award – $75,000
“Uncovering mechanisms of adoptive cellular therapy dysfunction in rhabdomyosarcoma”

Fabio Vanoli, Ph.D. – Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Todd Baron Memorial Research Award – $75,000
“Establishing in vitro models and discovering novel targets in CIC::DUX4 sarcoma”

George Li, M.D. – Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Jay Vernon Jackson Memorial Research Award – $75,000
“Investigating intratumoral heterogeneity in myxoid/round cell liposarcoma”

Janai Carr-Ascher, M.D., Ph.D. – University of California, Davis
Richard and Valerie Aronsohn Memorial Research Award – $75,000
“Identification of YAP-dependent high-grade complex karyotype sarcomas”

Jeffrey Toretsky, M.D. – Georgetown University
Scott Lively Memorial Research Award – $75,000
“Role of biomolecular condensates in EWS::FLI1-driven tumorigenesis”

Jianguo Huang, Ph.D. – Providence Portland Medical Foundation
Marcia Brodsky Memorial Research Award – $75,000
“Siglec15 regulation of the immune suppressive microenvironment in sarcoma”

Mitchell Cairo, M.D. – New York Medical College
John O’Brien Memorial Research Award – $75,000
“Next-generation CAR NK combinatorial immunotherapy against osteosarcoma”

Sandro Pasquali, M.D., Ph.D. – Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori (Italy)
Technoblade Memorial Research Award – $75,000
“Translational study of the phase III STRASS trial (TRANS-STRASS)”

Rebecca Gladdy, M.D., Ph.D. – Sinai Health System (Canada)
Richard and Valerie Aronsohn Memorial Research Award – $75,000
“Pre-clinical development of synergistic drug combinations for leiomyosarcoma”

Timothy Chan, M.D., Ph.D. – Cleveland Clinic
Chris Langbein Memorial Research Award – $75,000
“Reduced HLA expression in rhabdomyosarcoma: implications for immune recognition”

Tyler McCaw, M.D., Ph.D. – UCLA
John O’Brien Memorial Research Award – $75,000
“Targeting post-operative immune suppression in soft tissue sarcoma”

Wantong Yao, M.D., Ph.D. – MD Anderson Cancer Center
Richard and Valerie Aronsohn Memorial Research Award – $50,000
“Leiomyosarcoma cell line compound screening”

Ajaybabu Pobbati, Ph.D. – Cleveland Clinic
Expanding on a multi-year grant awarded by the EHE Foundation – $70,000
“Evaluation of a Cdk9 inhibitor for aggressive epithelioid hemangioendothelioma”

Last Mile Research Grant
The Last Mile Research Grant is a $150,000 investment in translational science focused on the biology, diagnosis, and treatment of sarcoma. Now in its second year, the grant is named for SFA’s Race to Cure Sarcoma events and helps bridge critical funding gaps while accelerating larger-scale research efforts toward a cure.

This year’s Last Mile Research Grant awardee is:
Matthew Hemming, MD, Ph.D. –University of Massachusetts Medical School
“Regulation of KIT gene expression in gastrointestinal stromal tumor”

To learn more about SFA’s research programs and grantmaking, visit: https://curesarcoma.org/research/

About the Sarcoma Foundation of America
The Sarcoma Foundation of America (SFA) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charitable organization based in the United States. SFA’s mission is to improve outcomes for people diagnosed with sarcoma to increase the number of survivors. We do this by funding and advancing research, educating and providing resources for people diagnosed with sarcoma, advocating on behalf of the community, bringing together the collective sarcoma voice, and growing awareness about the disease. For more information, please visit www.curesarcoma.org.

About Sarcoma
Sarcoma is a rare cancer in adults (1 percent of all adult cancers) but rather prevalent in children (about 15% of all childhood cancers). In the U.S., over 17,000 people are diagnosed with sarcoma each year, and more than 7,000 die from the disease. Around 236,000 patients and families are living with sarcoma at any given time. Globally, over 187,000 people are diagnosed each year, and more than 116,000 die from sarcoma.

Danielle Carter
Sarcoma Foundation of America
3012538687 ext.
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