The V Foundation Announces $25 Million Awarded in 2018 to Help Achieve Victory Over Cancer

The V Foundation for Cancer Research, a top-rated cancer research charity, is pleased to announce it awarded $25 million for cutting-edge cancer research in 2018 — bringing the total amount the Foundation has awarded in 25 years to more than $225 million. The V Foundation’s world-class Scientific Advisory Committee, comprised of outstanding researchers from prominent cancer centers, oversees the grant-making process to ensure proposals meet the highest standards of scientific merit and the best scientists are funded nationwide to change the landscape of cancer.

In 2018, the V Foundation awarded 28 V Scholar Grants, designed to identify and advance innovative young scientists establishing their research careers. V Scholar Grants are $200,000, two-year commitments, providing the most promising researchers a competitive edge to earn additional funding from other sources. In connection with two of the V Foundation’s focus areas, four V Scholar Grants will fund pediatric cancer research, and one is funded through the Stuart Scott Memorial Cancer Research Fund. V Scholars supported through the Stuart Scott Fund are early career investigators who are either minority themselves or working to solve health challenges faced by minorities with cancer. V Scholar grant-funding areas included research for cancers of the lung, brain, prostate, endometrium, breast and skin, among others.

“I’m excited about the cutting-edge tools my new lab is using to understand the biology of lymphomas that can’t be cured with current therapies,” said Russell Ryan, M.D., recipient of the 2018 Abeloff V Scholar Grant, which is the highest-rated proposal evaluated by the Scientific Advisory Committee. “With early funding from the V Foundation, I can move quickly to invest in the research that I hope will benefit future lymphoma patients.”

The V Foundation awarded 17 Translational Grants in 2018. These grants fund projects to bring cancer research from the bench to the bedside. Translational Grants are awards of $600,000 spread out over three years. One of these grants was funded through the Stuart Scott Memorial Cancer Research Fund, and five are funding pediatric cancer research. Translational Grants awarded through the Stuart Scott Fund support research dedicated to the aggressiveness, therapeutic responsiveness and ultimate outcomes experienced by cancer patients from diverse ethnic populations.

The V Foundation awarded nine grants within the Robin Roberts Cancer Survivorship Fund initiative. These projects are translational in nature and seek to improve the lives of cancer survivors through research to avoid or minimize toxicities from current cancer treatments that negatively impact a survivor’s ability to thrive. One of the survivorship grants was funded through the Stuart Scott Fund.

“The V Foundation continues to support the best and brightest young cancer scientists at a critical time as they initiate their careers,” said Robert C. Bast, Jr., M.D., V Foundation Board Member and Chair of the V Foundation Scientific Committee. “Over the years, we have helped to launch and retain more than 300 of the most promising young investigators. We are also facilitating the translation of the most innovative ideas from the laboratory to the clinic and back, accelerating progress toward eliminating cancer as a threat to us all.”

The V Foundation holds a 4-star (highest) rating from Charity Navigator, America’s largest evaluator of charities, and is among the top 3% of all charities evaluated. The V Foundation is a GuideStar platinum-rated charity.

For more information about the V Foundation, its grants program, the Scientific Advisory Committee or to donate, please visit www.jimmyv.org.

Editor’s Notes: A complete list of the 2018 grant recipients can be found here.

About the V Foundation for Cancer Research

The V Foundation for Cancer Research was founded in 1993 by ESPN and the late Jim Valvano, legendary North Carolina State University basketball coach and ESPN commentator. Since 1993, the Foundation has funded more than $225 million in cancer research grants nationwide. The V Foundation awards 100% of direct donations to cancer research and programs. The V Foundation’s endowment covers administrative expenses. The Foundation awards peer-reviewed grants through a competitive awards process strictly supervised by a Scientific Advisory Committee. For more information on the V Foundation or to make a donation, please visit www.jimmyv.org.