Pancreatic cancer
SkyFoundation
Funding science. Supporting patients.
Our Research
Who we fund

The researchers.

Sky awards seed grants for exploratory pancreatic cancer research — the initial funding that lets a scientist gather preliminary data and turn an idea into something fundable at national scale.

$50,000
Where a seed grant starts — enough to grow an idea into a competitive project.
19
Scientists and clinicians funded across leading institutions nationwide.

How a grant gets made

Every proposal is reviewed by our Scientific Advisory Committee — medical experts who evaluate each project for innovation, impact and feasibility. Annual progress reports track the measurable result of each funded project.

Stars In Our Sky14 one-to-one interviews with the researchers we fund.

Funded researchers

Aatur Singhi, MD, PhD
Aatur Singhi, MD, PhD
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
Surgical pathologist with sub-specialty training in gastrointestinal, liver and pancreatobiliary pathology.
Adrianne Wallace-Povirk, PhD
Adrianne Wallace-Povirk, PhD
Henry Ford Health — Pancreatic Cancer Center
Arnav Mehta, MD, PhD
Arnav Mehta, MD, PhD
Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard · Massachusetts General Hospital
Asfar S. Azmi, PhD
Asfar S. Azmi, PhD
Wayne State University · Karmanos Cancer Institute
Advisory committeeCommittee member
Ben Z. Stanger, MD, PhD
Ben Z. Stanger, MD, PhD
Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania
Hanna Wise Professor of Cancer Research.
Chris Halbrook, PhD
Chris Halbrook, PhD
Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center
Assistant Professor, Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry.
Despoina Kalfakakou, PhD
Despoina Kalfakakou, PhD
NYU Langone Health
Post-doctoral bioinformatics fellow, Simeone Lab and Tsirigos Lab.
Harrison L. Hiraki, PhD
Harrison L. Hiraki, PhD
U-M Rogel and Blondy Center for Pancreatic Cancer
Howard Crawford, PhD
Howard Crawford, PhD
Henry Ford Pancreatic Cancer Center
Scientific Director at Henry Ford, and Chief Scientific Officer of Sky’s Scientific Advisory Committee.
Advisory committeeChief Scientific Officer
Jiao Shen
Jiao Shen
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Jurgis Alvikas, MD
Jurgis Alvikas, MD
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center — Surgical Oncology
Kathleen DelGiorno, MD, PhD
Kathleen DelGiorno, MD, PhD
Vanderbilt University
Assistant Professor, Department of Cell and Developmental Biology.
Kirsten L. Bryant, PhD
Kirsten L. Bryant, PhD
Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, UNC Chapel Hill
Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacology.
Advisory committeeCommittee member
Lisa Miller-Phillips, MD
Lisa Miller-Phillips, MD
University of California San Francisco
Postdoctoral scholar, School of Medicine.
Mariana Tannus Ruckert, PhD
Mariana Tannus Ruckert, PhD
U-M Rogel and Blondy Center for Pancreatic Cancer
Nikki Lytle, PhD
Nikki Lytle, PhD
Medical College of Wisconsin — LaBahn Pancreatic Cancer Program
Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery.
Nina Steele, PhD
Nina Steele, PhD
Henry Ford Health, Detroit
Pamela Itkin-Ansari, PhD
Pamela Itkin-Ansari, PhD
Sanford Burnham Prebys · UC San Diego
Her lab found that a single gene reprograms pancreatic cancer cells back toward a normal state.
Peter Wang, PhD
Peter Wang, PhD
Massachusetts General Hospital
Fund the next seed grant.

Every dollar is awarded as research funding, reviewed by scientists, and reported on annually.

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