Thomas Roberts, PhD and Catherine Wu, MD, elected as Fellows of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Academy Class of 2023

Thomas Roberts, PhD, and Catherine Wu, MD, have been elected as Fellows of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Academy Class of 2023. The AACR Academy recognizes and honors distinguished scientists whose scientific contributions have propelled significant innovation and progress against cancer. Fellows of the AACR Academy serve as a global brain trust of top contributors to cancer science and medicine who help advance the mission of the AACR to prevent and cure all cancers through research, education, communication, collaboration, science policy and advocacy, and funding for cancer research.

Roberts was recognized for his contributions to elucidating the tyrosine kinase signaling pathways critical for tumorigenesis, with particular emphasis on PI3K; and for ushering in the age of precision medicine through fundamental discoveries of signaling mechanisms capable of regulating cell growth, knowledge that has been subsequently applied to the development of transformative cancer therapies.

Roberts has been a member of Dana-Farber’s faculty since 1981. In addition to his recognitions by the AACR, Roberts’ extended his work to stimulate the discovery of clinically useful inhibitors of oncogenic kinases.

In naming Wu, the academy recognized her groundbreaking discoveries involving immunogenic antigen targets; for developing genomic-guided immunotherapy and neoantigen-targeting cancer vaccines; and for translating these research findings into early-phase clinical trials designed to ascertain the clinical viability of personalized tumor vaccines in melanoma and glioblastoma patients.

Wu leads the Division of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapies at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Her research interests include the identification of targets of the immune response associated with therapies and dissecting the basis of effective human antitumor responses.

“We are proud to announce the election of 23 new Fellows of the AACR Academy. These individuals from across the world have all made significant and groundbreaking contributions to cancer research,” said Margaret Foti, PhD, MD (hc), chief executive officer of the AACR. “The 2023 class of Fellows includes pioneers from numerous scientific disciplines who have collectively shaped our understanding and treatment of cancer. We are deeply honored to have them join our 289 existing Fellows and look forward to celebrating their extraordinary scientific achievements at our upcoming Annual Meeting.”