Forward Fund

The SITC Forward Fund enables SITC to further the society’s mission and expand the knowledge of and interest in cancer immunotherapy. With the investment from the Forward Fund, SITC has awarded more than $6 million in research funding to early career investigators in the last decade. In 2023 alone, SITC supported over 90 awards for early career scientists.

"The funding from the Forward Fund was really important for me to continue doing my research as a post doc. It allowed me to accomplish the science that I wanted to and address why some patients don’t respond to checkpoint blocking therapy. It also gave the opportunity to travel to the SITC Annual Meeting, where I presented the data I generated and interacted with colleagues.” Elen Torres Mejia, PhD

Steven A. Rosenberg Scholars Award

Established in 2020, this award recognizes Dr. Rosenberg’s vast contributions to immuno-oncology by supporting emerging leaders who are focusing on novel approaches to moving immunology and cancer immunotherapy forward. Each year, SITC seeks the best and brightest to continue Dr. Rosenberg’s legacy as a Rosenberg Scholar.

SITC recognized Jessica Stark, PhD – Massachusetts Institute of Technology as the fourth Rosenberg Scholar at SITC’s 38^th Annual Meeting.

Jessica Stark, PhD
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Martin “Mac” Cheever Excellence in Clinical Trial Design Travel Award Fund

Established in 2022, this fund recognizes Dr. Cheever’s numerous contributions to cancer immunotherapy by providing travel awards to deserving early career investigators pursuing excellence in clinical trial design. Each year, SITC identifies an emerging leader who participated in SITC’s Clinical Immuno-Oncology Network (SCION) Workshop and whose research drives to improve immunotherapy protocols.

SITC recognized Alaa Ali, MD – Georgetown University as the second recipient of this award at SITC’s 38^th Annual Meeting.

Alaa Ali, MD
Georgetown University

Presidential Award

Established in 1991, the SITC Presidential Award is the most prestigious early career award, recognizing the investigator deemed to have the most outstanding oral abstract presentation among those delivered during the Presidential Session of the SITC Annual Meeting.

SITC recognized Hussein Sultan, PhD – Washington University School of Medicine as the 2023 Presidential Award recipient for his abstract titled, “High doses of MHC-II neoantigens in peptide cancer vaccines induce tumor-specific inhibitory cytolytic CD4+ T cells.”

Hussein Sultan, PhD
Washington University School of Medicine

Fellowships

SITC established its fellowship award program through the Forward Fund to support the development of early career scientists to cultivate the next generation of cancer immunotherapy experts. In 2023, SITC offered these fellowships:

SITC-Bristol Myers Squibb Postdoctoral Cancer Immunotherapy Translational Fellowship
SITC-AstraZeneca Immunotherapy in Lung Cancer Clinical Fellowship
SITC-Genentech Women in Cancer Immunotherapy Fellowship
SITC-Merck Cancer Immunotherapy Clinical Fellowship
SITC Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Cancer Immunotherapy Fellowship
SITC-Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals Adverse Events in Cancer Immunotherapy Clinical Fellowship
NCI Immunotherapy Fellowship (2)