The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research (MFCR) is announcing the launch of a new funding program that supports the development of novel cancer therapeutics in areas with high unmet needs. These Drug Discovery Partnership awards are structured to support high-risk, high-reward research and bridge the substantial gap in advancing promising academic discoveries to novel therapies.
Two projects have been initially selected for funding:
MFCR Drug Discovery Partnerships are focused on key milestones along the continuum from target identification to preclinical development and initial regulatory filings. Projects will typically be supported for 1-3 years with budgets aligned to detailed research plans and award payments made based on milestone achievements. For these initial two projects, up to $4.6M total is expected to be awarded over the next two years.
"From our years of combined pharmaceutical industry experience, my Mark Foundation colleagues and I know that the steps needed to develop a new drug from an early academic concept are fraught with challenges," said Ryan Schoenfeld, PhD, Vice President, Scientific Research. "It's an area of tremendous unmet need with which we are uniquely capable to help. We're ecstatic to have the opportunity to provide scientific and technical guidance to brilliant scientists so that we can accelerate their ideas into the clinic."
The scientists at MFCR will also take advantage of their experience working with contract research organizations and other industry partners to provide grantees access to state-of-the-art drug discovery and development capabilities.
Since 2017, MFCR has awarded over $95 million in grants to enable innovative basic, translational, and clinical cancer research, including early-stage drug discovery. MFCR also has a growing investment portfolio that includes drug discovery companies Accent Therapeutics (focused on RNA-modifying proteins implicated in cancer) and Verseau Therapeutics (developing macrophage-targeting immunotherapies), as well as liquid biopsy diagnostics companies C2i Genomics and GRAIL.
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About the Mark Foundation for Cancer Research
The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research actively partners with scientists to accelerate research that will transform the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer. The Mark Foundation fulfills its mission by supporting groundbreaking science carried out by individual investigators, multi-disciplinary teams, and inter-institutional collaborations in the United States and across the globe. Recognizing the obstacles that prevent scientific advances from improving patient outcomes, The Mark Foundation maintains a nimble, high-impact approach to funding research through grants for basic and translational cancer research and investments in early-stage companies that bridge the gap between bench and bedside. Since its launch in 2017, the Mark Foundation has awarded over $95 million in grant funding to over 50 institutions in the U.S., the U.K. and Europe. To learn more, visit http://www.themarkfoundation.org/