The Specialized Cardiac and Vascular IGNITE award supports innovative early-phase, proof-of-concept investigations on sex- and gender-differences in cardiac and vascular diseases, including studies on disease mechanisms, biomarkers, diagnostics and therapeutics.
The Cardiac and Vascular IGNITE Award is funded by the Scott Schoen and Nancy Adams Research Fund in Women’s Vascular Disease.
The Gayle Brinkenhoff IGNITE Award for Cancer Research supports innovative early-phase, proof-of-concept investigations related to breast cancer.
The Gayle Brinkenhoff Award for Cancer Research is made possible through funding from the Philanthropy Division of RevitaLash Cosmetics.
One $50,000 award will be distributed for each of these awards. The award total is inclusive of indirect costs. Applicants must have an HMS appointment and BWH listed as the primary affiliation.
The application cycle for both of these awards is now closed. Please check back later for the next cycle’s dates.
To access the full RFP and other application materials, please visit our funding opportunities page.
Shashi Kant, PhD, FAHA
2024 Specialized Cardiac & Vascular IGNITE Awardee
Associate Scientist, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine
“Sex-differential role of Sortilin1 in the regulation of endothelium-dependent vascular homeostasis”
Every year more than 500,000 people die from cardiovascular disease, and one of the main problems leading to heart disease is the abnormal function of the endothelium. This project investigates the role of the Sortilin1 pathway and how it impacts the endothelium in different sexes.
Adita Hazra, PhD, MPH
2024 Gayle Brinkenhoff IGNITE Awardee
Associate Genomic Epidemiologist, Division of Preventive Medicine
“Leveraging artificial intelligence to improve shared decision-making among women of color diagnosed with non-invasive ductal carcinoma in situ”
Like a rock band igniting the stage, diverse cell types and genes unite in a molecular orchestra, shaping the intricate symphony of life that influences the course of cancer. Dr. Aditi Hazra, building on her previous multi-omics research in breast cancer, will leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to unravel the molecular orchestra and develop a novel algorithm for predicting outcomes to identify DCIS. The harmonious partnership with Vina Morris, the Founder of AfroPink, highlights the project’s commitment to advancing inclusivity in shared decision-making for DCIS treatment and vaccine options.
Farhad Nezami, PhD, Iman Aganj, PhD
2023 Connors BWH-MGB Collaborative Cardiovascular IGNITE Awardees
Division of Cardiac Surgery, BWH and Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, MGH respectively
“Leveraging AI Tools for Prediction of Cardiac Remodeling to Enhance Diagnosis and Therapy in Women with Severe Aortic Stenosis”
Women with severe aortic stenosis, i.e. narrowing of aortic valve opening, are often diagnosed at later ages, and reported to be undertreated with excess mortality versus men. Drs. Nezami and Aganj propose an artificial intelligence (AI) powered, mathematical approach that strives to eliminate such imbalances with focus on left ventricle sex-specific shape analysis to ensure equivalent care for all patients with severe aortic stenosis.
Zuzana Tatarova, PhD
2023 Gayle Brinkenhoff IGNITE Awardee
Department of Radiology
“Computational analysis of breast cancer neighborhood for biomarker and effective immunotherapy discovery.”
In her study, Dr. Tatarova will integrate bioengineering and computational tools to investigate mechanisms associated with resistance to breast cancer treatments, with a broader aim to improve long-term therapeutic efficacy. Dr. Tatarova’s work will focus on characterizing malignant cells in the tumor and its surrounding environment. Harnessing state-of-the-art bioengineering methods, her approach will allow for selection of the most promising integrative computational strategies based on their capacity to identify standard biomarkers and effective immunotherapy strategies on a personalized basis.
