Yale Cancer Center has selected Susan M. Kaech, Ph.D., as the recipient of the 2016 Class of 1961 Cancer Research Award. This annual award recognizes significant accomplishments in cancer research at Yale University by a young member of the faculty, coupled with the expectation for future outstanding contributions to our understanding of the causes and cures for cancer.
Dr. Kaech is the Waldemar von Zedtwitz Professor of Immunobiology at Yale and a leader in the field of cancer immunology. Her research for many years focused on the differentiation and activity of T lymphocytes, with a primary focus on memory T cells, which allow the immune system to respond vigorously to antigens long after the initial exposure. In recent years, with the increasing use of immunotherapy to treat cancer, her work has turned to studying the immune response to tumors, with the goal of mobilizing it more effectively to inhibit cancer growth. Dr. Kaech has discovered important ways that the tumor cells and the surrounding normal cells in the tumor microenvironment utilize nutrients. Better understanding of these complex metabolic pathways will improve our ability to optimize the use of the immune system to attack cancer.
A graduate of the University of Washington, Dr. Kaech received her Ph.D. from Stanford University. Among other awards, she is the recipient of a Burroughs Wellcome Career Award in Biomedical Sciences, the Edward Mallinckrodt Foundation Award, a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Early Career Scientist Award. She has received funding from the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, including an NIH MERIT Award, and the Cancer Research Institute, The Melanoma Research Alliance, and pilot funds from Yale Cancer Center.
Sue is a creative thinker and superb scientist who is emerging as a leader in the growing field of cancer immunology.
One letter we received in support of her application stated that, “Sue is a creative thinker and superb scientist who is emerging as a leader in the growing field of cancer immunology,” who is “remarkable for her ability to provide significant conceptual advances.” Another referee stated that Dr. Kaech is “an outstanding immunologist and one of the most innovative, creative and productive scientists I’ve encountered at Yale and throughout my career.” We are delighted to name her the Class of 1961 Cancer Research Award winner.