ACS Professors

This directory includes all American Cancer Society (ACS) Professors.

The awards are intended to provide preeminent cancer researchers with the flexibility to investigate innovative avenues of study. They're also expected to have leadership roles in the cancer research community, including being spokespeople for the American Cancer Society.

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The ACS Professor Award is the most prestigious grant made by our national program. These full professors have histories of pioneering, influential work and mentoring that’s continuing to change the direction of cancer research. While the grant term is 5 to 10 years, those awarded may use the title ACS Professor for the remainder of their careers.”

Bill Dahut, MD

Chief Scientific Officer, Discovery Science

American Cancer Society

close up portrait of Cory Abate-Shen, PhD, Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center in New York City, New York

Cory Abate-Shen, PhD

Grant Institution:  Columbia University Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center in New York City, New York
Grant Term: 1/1/2012 through 12/31/2021
Area of Research: Molecular Determinants of Prostate Cancer Progression
Current Institution: Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center in New York City, New York

close up portrait of John W. Adamson, MD, UC San Diego Health in California

John W. Adamson, MD

Grant Institution: UC San Diego in California
Grant Term: 7/1/1988 through 6/30/1989
Area of Research: Hematology
Current Institution: UC San Diego Health in California

close up portrait of Bruce M. Alberts, PhD, University of California, San Francisco

Bruce M. Alberts, PhD

Grant Institution: The Regents of the University of California, San Francisco
Grant Term: 1/1/1981 through 10/31/1995
Area of Research: Molecular Biology
Current Institution: University of California, San Francisco

close up portrait of Kenneth C. Anderson, MD, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Kenneth C. Anderson, MD, PhD

Grant Institution: Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, MA
Grant Term: 7/1/2010 through 6/30/2020
Area of Research: Cell Biology
Current Institution: Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, MA
Expert Predictions: Cancer Care 10 Years from Now

close up portrait of Carlos L. Arteaga, MD, Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Carlos L. Arteaga, MD

Grant Institution: Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, TN
Grant Term: 7/1/2007 through 6/30/2017
Area of Research: Cellular and Molecular Biology
Current Institution: UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, TX

close up portrait of David Baltimore, PhD, California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, CA

David Baltimore, PhD

Grant Institution: California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, CA
Grant Term: 1/1/1973 through 12/31/1997
Area of Research: Virology
Current Institution: California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, CA
Nobel Laureates and the American Cancer Society

close up portrait of Jonathan R. Beckwith, PhD, Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA

Jonathan R. Beckwith, PhD

Grant Institution: Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA
Grant Term: 1/1/1990 through 12/31/2002
Area of Research: Microbiology and Immunology
Current Institution: Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA

close up portrait of Andrew Berchuck, MD, Duke University Medical Center

Andrew Berchuck, MD

Grant Institution: Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC
Grant Term: 1/1/2006 through 6/30/2016
Area of Research: Cell Biology
Current Institution: Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC
Expert Predictions: Cancer Care 10 Years from Now

closeup portrait of Irwin D. Bernstein, MD, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, WA

Irwin D. Bernstein, MD

Grant Institution: Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, WA
Grant Term: 7/1/1995 through 6/30/2010
Area of Research: Immunology and Immuno-oncology
Current Institution: Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, WA

close up portrait of Bradley Bernstein, MD, PhD, Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School in Boston

Bradley Bernstein, MD, PhD

Grant Institution: Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston
Grant Term: 1/1/2016 through 12/31/2025
Area of Research: Molecular Genetics and Biochemistry
Current Institution: Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston
Press Release: New ACS Professors
How Epigenetics Could Improve Your Cancer Treatment

close up portrait of Joseph R. Bertino, MD, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey in New Brunswick

Joseph R. Bertino, MD

Grant Institution: Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey in New Brunswick
Grant Term: 7/1/1975 through 6/30/1995
Area of Research: Hematology
Current Institution: Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey in New Brunswick

close up portrait of Edward A. Boyse, MD, University of Arizona in Tucson

Edward A. Boyse, MD

Grant Institution: Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, NY
Grant Term: 1/1/1977 through 3/31/1994
Area of Research: Immunology and immuno-oncology
Last Institution: University of Arizona in Tucson

close up portrait of Joan Brugge, PhD, Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA

Joan Brugge, PhD

Grant Institution: Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA
Grant Term: 1/1/2001 through 7/31/2004
Area of Research: Cellular Pathways That Control Cell Proliferation, Survival, and Invasion
Current Institution: Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA
American Cancer Society Awards Medal of Honor for Extraordinary Contributions for Saving Lives from Cancer

close up portrait of John Cairns, MD, Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, MA

John Cairns, MD

Grant Institution: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York
Grant Term: 1/1/1969 through 6/30/1989
Area of Research: Molecular Biology
Last Institution: Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, MA

close up portrait of John A. Carbon, PhD

John A. Carbon, PhD

Grant Institution: University of California, Santa Barbara
Grant Term: 1/1/1990 through 12/31/1999
Area of Research: Molecular and Cellular Biology
Current Institution: University of California, Santa Barbara

close up portrait of Thomas R. Cech, PhD, University of Colorado, Boulder

Thomas R. Cech, PhD

Grant Institution: University of Colorado, Denver
Grant Term: 1/1/1987 through 12/31/1991
Area of Research: Molecular Biology
Current Institution: University of Colorado, Boulder
Nobel Laureates and the American Cancer Society

Andrew Chan, MD, MPH

Grant Institution: Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston
Grant Term: 1/1/2022 through 6/30/2027
Area of Research: Clinical and Translational Cancer Epidemiology
Current Institution: Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston

close up portrait of Yuan Chang, MD, University of Pittsburgh

Yuan Chang, MD

Grant Institution: University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania
Grant Term: 1/1/2009 through 12/31/2018
Area of Research: Discovery and Characterization of Novel Human Tumor Viruses
Current Institution: University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute in Pennsylvania
The Cancer Atlas: Infection

close up portrait of Herbert Chen, MD, University of Wisconsin - Madison

Herbert Chen, MD, FACS

Grant Institution: The University of Alabama at Birmingham
Grant Term: 1/1/2011 through 4/30/2017
Area of Research: Establishment of an MEN2 Thyroid Cancer Research and Training Program
Current Institution: The University of Alabama at Birmingham

Portrait of Arul Chinnaiyan

Arul M. Chinnaiyan, MD, PhD

Grant Institution: University of Michigan in Ann Arbor
Grant Term: 7/1/2009 through 6/30/2019
Area of Research: A Bioinformatics Platform for Nextgen Sequencing in Oncology
Current Institution: University of Michigan Health System in Ann Arbor

close up portrait of Karlene A. Cimprich, PhD, Stanford University in California

Karlene A. Cimprich, PhD

Grant Institution: Stanford University in California
Grant Term: 1/1/2019 through 12/31/2028
Area of Research: Replication Stress and Genome Instability in Cancer
Current Institution: Stanford University in California
Podcast: When DNA and RNA Tangle

close up portrait of John Coffin, PhD, Tufts University

John M. Coffin, PhD

Grant Institution: Tufts University in Medford, MA
Grant Term: 1/1/1994 through 12/31/2014
Area of Research: Molecular Biology of Retroviruses
Current Institution: Tufts University in Medford, MA and National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, MD

close up of Seymour S. Cohen, PhD, Rockefeller Institute

Seymour S. Cohen, PhD

Grant Institution: State University of New York at Stony Brook
Grant Term: 9/1/1957 through 3/31/1992
Area of Research: Virology
Last Institution: Rockefeller Institute

close up portrait of Stanley Cohen, PhD, Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN

Stanley Cohen, PhD

Grant Institution: Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, TN
Grant Term: 1/1/1976 through 3/31/1992
Area of Research: Molecular Biology
Last Institution: Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN
Nobel Laureates and the American Cancer Society
Seven Breast Cancer Research Success Stories

close up portrait of Graham A. Colditz, MD, DrPH, Washington University

Graham Colditz, MD, DrPH

Grant Institution: Washington University, St. Louis in Missouri
Grant Term: 7/1/2003 through 6/30/2014
Area of Research: Breast Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention
Current Institution: Washington University, St. Louis in Missouri

close up portrait of Sidney P. Colowick, PhD, Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN

Sidney P. Colowick, PhD

Grant Institution: Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN
Grant Term: 7/1/1959 through 6/30/1983
Area of Research: Metabolic Biochemistry
Last Institution: Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN

close up portrait of Craig M. Crews, PhD, Yale University in New Haven. Connecticut

Craig M. Crews, PhD

Grant Institution: Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut
Grant Term: 1/1/2019 through 12/31/2023
Area of Research: Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology
Current Institution: Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut

Headshot of ACS professor Edna Cukierman in a lab

Edna Cukierman, PhD

ACS Wilmott Family Professor in Pancreatic Cancer
Grant Institution:
Fox Chase Cancer Center
Grant Term: 1/1/2024 through 12/31/2028
Area of Research: Pancreatic Cancer Microenvironment
Current Institution: Temple University, Fox Chase Cancer Center
American Cancer Society Awards 131 New Research and Career Development Grants Totaling $64.5 Million