Gerstner Sloan Kettering Graduate Students Receive 2025-2026 Fellowships

By Julie Grisham

A hand holds a multichannel pipette above a well plate
Students working in labs across MSK have received prestigious fellowships to support their ongoing graduate thesis research.

This past year, seven PhD students enrolled in the Gerstner Sloan Kettering Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (GSK) were awarded competitive fellowships from prestigious external agencies such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Science Foundation (NSF). Several GSK students also received internal fellowships made possible by generous benefactors of the graduate school.

External Fellowships

Nibras Ahmed, a first-year PhD student in GSK’s Cancer Biology program, was awarded a 2025 NSF Graduate Research Fellowship. His project proposal is entitled “Deciphering Metabolic Crosstalk: The Role of Lactate in Epigenetic Modifications and Cellular Differentiation.”

Klavdija Karuse, a fifth-year Cancer Biology student in the lab of Tuomas Tammela, MD, PhD, was awarded an NIH Predoctoral to Postdoctoral Fellow Transition Award (F99/K00). The title of her project is “Uncovering Molecular and Cellular Determinants of Lung Cancer.”

Isabella Del Priore is a fifth-year Cancer Biology student in the lab of Scott W. Lowe, PhD. She was awarded an NIH Individual Predoctoral Fellowship (F31) for her project titled “Interferon as a Tumor Suppressor and Potential Therapeutic in Pancreatic Cancer.”

Joshua Lau, a third-year Cancer Biology student in the lab of Benjamin Greenbaum, PhD, was awarded the Croucher Foundation Scholarship for his project entitled, “Quantitative Modeling of Response to Immune Checkpoint Blockade.”

Achuth Nair is a fourth-year Cancer Biology student in the lab of Justin Perry, PhD. His project, “Understanding How Appropriate Apoptotic Cell Degradation Ensures Lung homeostasis,” was awarded an NIH Individual Predoctoral Fellowship (F31).

Madison Rex, a fourth-year MD/PhD student in the lab of Agnel Sfeir, PhD, was awarded an NIH F30 Individual Predoctoral Dual Degree Fellows Award. Her project is entitled “Investigating the Chromatin Landscape of ALT Telomeres.”

Gianfranco Yee is a second-year Cancer Engineering student in the lab of Chrysothemis Brown, PhD. His project, “Immuno-engineering and Microbiome Engineering as Therapeutic Strategies for Immune Disorders,” was awarded the 2025 Hertz Fellowship.

Back to top

Internal Fellowships

In addition to the competitive external fellowships awarded, several students received internal fellowships made possible by the school’s generous benefactors.

Grayer Fellowship

The Grayer Fellowship supports part of the stipends of two GSK students who are entering their third year. This one-year award is given annually to recognize achieved excellence as demonstrated on a student’s thesis proposal examination. The fellowship was established by Jonathan Grayer, member of MSK’s Board of Trustees and the Chairman and CEO of Weld North, an investment company. This year’s recipients are:

Geoffrey Beene Graduate Student Fellowship

The Geoffrey Beene Graduate Student Fellowship provides full stipends for one year for students who work in the lab of an MSK faculty member and are conducting research with direct relevance to cancer. These fellowships are supported by the Geoffrey Beene Cancer Research Center, which is focused on achieving major advances in controlling cancer and producing better outcomes for cancer patients. Its goal is to make cancer a more manageable — and perhaps one day, more curable — disease. This year’s recipients are:

Harold Varmus Fellowship

The Harold Varmus Fellowship supports the stipend of two second-year students for two years. Funded scholars also enjoy opportunities to discuss their research and academic and personal goals with Dr. Varmus, who is a Nobel Laureate in Medicine or Physiology and former Director of the NIH. During his tenure as President of MSK from 2000 to 2010, he was also instrumental in the creation of GSK. This year’s recipients are:

Robert B. Catell Fellowship

The Robert B. Catell Fellowship supports the stipend of a GSK student for one year. Established by Robert B. Catell, former Chairman and CEO of KeySpan, the fellowship grew out of a commitment to advancing cancer research. Mr. Catell currently chairs the Advisory Board for the Advanced Energy Research and Technology Center at Stony Brook University and the New York State Smart Grid Consortium. This year’s recipient is:

GSK Palestin Fellowship

The GSK Palestin Fellowship was established in 2006 by the family of Beatrice Palestin to support the stipend of a GSK student for one year. Mrs. Palestin was a New York philanthropist with a longtime interest in cancer research. This year’s recipient is:

GSK Olayan Fellowship

The GSK Olayan Fellowship supports the stipend of a GSK student for one year. It was established by The Olayan Group, a multinational corporation of more than 50 companies and affiliated businesses. The group’s Chair, Hutham Olayan, serves on MSK’s Board of Trustees. This year’s recipient is:

Bochner-Wachenheim Fellowship

The Bochner-Wachenheim Endowed Fellowships support the stipends of five GSK students for one year. Established with a visionary gift from the Sue & Edgar Wachenheim Foundation, the fellowship grew out of the Wachenheim family’s commitment to life-changing research and educational initiatives at MSK. An investor and philanthropist, Edgar Wachenheim III is the Founder and CEO of Greenhaven Associates and President of the Sue & Edgar Wachenheim Foundation.

The fellowship is named in honor of Bernard H. Bochner, MD, FACS, an MSK Attending Surgeon who holds the Sir Murray F. Brennan Endowed Chair in Surgery. This year’s recipients are:

Back to top